Unseen News

Unseen News

Dead to Rights [PS2] — Beta

Yassine Bakrim
22-01-2025
No Comments

Dead to Rights was a fantastic third-person shooter inspired by many Hong Kong and action noir thrillers. The game sold more than 500k copies in its prime and was well-received by critics and players alike. This article takes a trek back to the past, covering some of the changes as seen in the E3 2001 footage.

Some of the changes are the following:

  • Different running animation
  • Different combat moves
  • Different clothes
  • Different environment
  • Special finishing moves are absent from the final game
  • Different HUD for both your HP and weapons
  • Different aim pointer

Images related to E3 2001:

Images related to pre-E3 2002

Videos:

Beta vs Final differences

  • Different gun sfx
  • Some pick-ups are in different places
  • Hildy’s posters aren’t on the wall
  • Different NPCs are waiting to get into the club
  • Different truck when chasing Augie Blatz

2001 Footage of Dead to Rights

E3 Footage of the game, back when Syphon Filter inspired the controls. (Confirmed by one of the designers)

 

Unseen News

Altered Beast [PS2] – Beta

Yassine Bakrim
09-12-2024
No Comments

Project Altered Beast (commonly known as Altered Beast) was a remake of the legendary game originally released in arcades and on various consoles. The game underwent numerous changes, many of which remain largely undocumented. Luckily for you, this article on Unseen64 attempts to shed light on some of the changes I noticed from both the E3 2003 and 2004 footage.

The HUD (HP and Energy Bar) went through two distinct designs before the final version. The attack animations for the Werewolf and Luke were noticeably different in the E3 2003 and 2004 footage. Additionally, the design of the Wendigo was different in the E3 2003 footage. It seems that much was reworked between the E3 2003 presentation and the game’s 2005 release. However, without access to earlier builds, it’s impossible to determine exactly what was improved and what remained unchanged.

Fun fact: the game was originally developed by SEGA WoW, as noted in both the E3 2003 and 2004 trailers. However, by the final release, there was no trace of the developer’s name. While the exact details are unclear, it’s possible that SEGA WoW was quietly disbanded, and development was transferred to an internal team within Sega of Japan, working in collaboration with Sega Shanghai.

Below are some videos and images of the differences.

Videos:

Apart from the changes mentioned above, we can observe more differences. They’re the following:

  • Different werewolf attacks
  • Destructible environment
  • Different Luke attacks
  • Faster attacks for the werewolf
  • Different Wendigo transformation and attacks
  • Different transformation CGI cutscene

Image Compilation:

A video documenting the making of the game.

 

Unseen News

Sphinx and The Cursed Mummy 2 [PS2] — Shelved

Yassine Bakrim
25-11-2024
1 Comment

Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy is a fun 3D action-adventure developed by Eurocom and released by THQ back in 2003 for Xbox, GameCube and PS2. The game was a critical success with many praising its art style, gameplay, music and story. However, the game didn’t do well sales-wise. Eventually, the game’s sequel was never greenlit by THQ. There were several attempts to make the sequel happen by making a J2ME mobile game, and work on an Xbox 360 port was in development back in 2006-2007 before it was cancelled altogether. Eight Pixels Square, which is comprised of ex-Eurocom employees, tried to make an infinite runner-type game for iPhones, but that one was also cancelled.

Sphinx 2 never got past the concept phase as THQ was not interested in greenlighting the sequel after the game’s disappointing sales. A few sketches were made, and that was it.

Images:

Video:

Fan-documentary detailing the inception of Sphinx & the Cursed Mummy and details on the sequel

Credit: the Sphinx Community 

Unseen News

Rygar 2 [Xbox-PS2] Cancelled

Yassine Bakrim
14-10-2024
No Comments

Rygar: The Legendary Adventure is a fun action adventure on the PS2 released in 2002. The game was well-received among critics, going as far as receiving nominations for various awards. While it did well critically, it sadly failed commercially. Rygar was unable to dethrone competitors like Shinobi and Devil May Cry. While Tecmo was working on a Ninja Gaiden game back then, rumours began to surface about a potential Rygar sequel in the works. The first mention of a Rygar follow-up appeared in an Electronic Gaming Monthly magazine issue and an IGN article in 2004 where journalists reported that Tecmo was gearing up to showcase the next chapter in the Rygar franchise. Game Informer caught up on the news and interviewed Tomonobu Itagaki to obtain more scope on the matter. The aforementioned assured everyone that he would make an announcement regarding Rygar 2, but in the end, he didn’t.

Gamekult reported that Tecmo has renewed the trademark, speculating that the company may indeed release the Rygar follow-up. On the other hand, IGN continued with their investigation, speculating that Rygar 2 may be released in 2005 for the Xbox and the PS2. In the end, nothing happened and the project was silently shelved.

There were attempts to contact Satoshi Kanematsu, Yoshifuru Okamoto and Tomonobu Itagaki to learn more about Rygar 2, but nothing came to fruition.

More details concerning Rygar 2 have been documented in a YouTube video.

Video:

Images:

 
Unseen News

Hybrid Extreme Racing [PS1 — Beta]

Yassine Bakrim
05-10-2024
1 Comment

Hybrid Extreme Racing was a vehicular combat game in the vein of titles like Twisted Metal, Vigilante 8, and Rogue Trip: Vacation 2012. Little is known about the game beyond a print ad found in Electronic Gaming Monthly magazine, and the fact that it was slated for release around 2001, exclusively for the PS1. The game was being developed by Mattel Interactive, a company more famed for its Barbie games.

What set Hybrid Extreme Racing apart from its competitors was its unique dual gameplay system. In certain segments of the game, your car could transform into an airship, allowing you to either engage enemies or complete some missions. The game also promised extensive vehicle customization, giving players the ability to upgrade their cars into the ultimate destruction machines.

Eventually, the name was changed to Hot Wheels Extreme Racing after Mattei Interactive went bankrupt. THQ ended up releasing the game in 2001 as Mattei Interactive planned from the beginning. A print ad was preserved to show the game’s original name.