Whiplash was a fun 3D platformer developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Eidos Interactive in 2003. One of the main protagonists in the game, Spanx, originally appeared in another CD game titled Mad Dash Racing. Whiplash early in development went by various codenames: Bust It Up, Spanx & Redmond and others. Even more interesting was the game’s birth, as it all happened after Gex 4 was mysteriously cancelled.
Below, we can observe a few beta changes before the game was released. The images below date back to a late 2002 beta build of the game that, as of the time of writing this article, remains inaccessible…. Unfortunately. If you know anything more about the game, do not be shy to share!
Images:
Differences:
Different HUD (cool DNA design)
Different idle animation
Slightly different attack animation (kinda slower)
Some guards in the game are wearing different uniforms (?)
Battlantis was a fun, although hard, Arcade game originally developed and published by Konami in 1987. The game was a marriage of Space Invaders and Galaga, where the player had to shoot down on-screen targets to progress further. While the game is long forgotten nowadays, it appears that there were plans for a sequel back in 1992 for the Super Famicom, though there’s no way to confirm this, as information online is scarce. What remains are a couple of pre-production sketches that you can look at.
From the sketches, we can pretty much deduce that the game was going to take an entirely different art direction, featuring a cute cast of characters to meet standards of yore. Other than this, it’s unknown how far the game progressed beyond these early sketches.
Starhawk was a darn good sequel to the beloved Warhawk. This third-person shooter didn’t try to recycle formulas from other games—it stood out by blending real-time strategy (RTS) with fast-paced gunplay. One moment you’re blasting enemies, and with a quick button press, you’re calling down a turret from orbit. The way battles unfolded—and the overall feel—was fantastic.
But before Starhawk reached its final form, this 2009 prototype build told a different story. Below is an in-depth comparison of the game’s early version versus the one we ultimately played.
Video:
Different character
Different movement animation
Different HUD
Different gun sounds
Different pickup designs
Different deployable Rifts
Different map design
Different main menu
Different main logo
Different bike
Different weapon icons
Different energy pick up
Different aim HUD
Different gameplay system (you use money instead of energy to build)
Images:
The Main Character
Original Character
Final Character -Emmett Graves
The Enemies
Early enemies
Early enemies
Final enemies – The Outcasts
Final enemies – The Outcasts
Main Logo
Early logo
Final logo
In addition, Starhawk was originally planned to be released sometime in 2011 but was pushed back to 2012. With all of the changes shown from the prototype and final, the core idea of the game remained the same.
Conan: The Dark Axe was a fun action-adventure game based on the iconic Conan franchise. You played as the legendary barbarian as he slashed and clashed with enemies of all sizes, and rose victorious like he always does. Unlike the 2007 Conan game, this one didn’t play like a copy of God of War or Devil May Cry. It felt unique with all its pros and cons. Looking back, this game excelled in several areas over the 2007 Conan iteration by THQ.
Below, we can see a couple of beta images and concept artwork showing some of the changes.
Here’s a long-lost Dating Simulator game concept from the 1990s, which artist Kinu Nishimura, best known for her work with Capcom, tried to pitch back then. Titled Tokimeki Requiem (working title), it is unknown how far this concept progressed. This particular pitch may have evolved into something else or been cancelled altogether. It’s hard to know. What is known, though, is that this game was going to target women.
Luckily, thanks to a rare page in an old Capcom magazine, we can get a glimpse of what this game might have been. Check out the translation below this picture.
Picture:
Translation (using Deepl)
Top green header section デザイン室夜一夜 第1夜 Design Room Overnight – Episode 1
“いまを去ることン年前……西村キヌが本業の合間につくった！？ 温めていた謎の恋愛シミュレーション。その名は『ときめきレクイエム（仮）』！！” “Many years ago… was this made by Kinu Nishimura in between her main work!? A mysterious romance simulation she had been keeping warm. Its name: Tokimeki Requiem (working title)!!”
Pink text on top-left with picture of the two characters: 愛は力なり!! Love is Power!!
“女性になるため、彼女の心のよりどころであった男子、2回も失恋した。いやいやすべての主人公はプレイヤーのキンチョーの糸をたぐりよせるように進行していくのだ。なんといっても彼の愛を勝ち取るのが目的。しかも全宇宙の女子制服の逆シンパターンを初公開！” “To become a woman, she relied on this boy as her emotional support — but was rejected twice. No no, every protagonist advances as if pulling in the player’s tension thread. The goal is, of course, to win his love. And for the first time ever: a reverse-pattern lineup of girls’ uniforms from across the universe!”
Orange/yellow text block mid-right: ターゲットの男の子は全部で11人！ The target boys total 11 in all!
“ビジュアルからタイトル構成まで、それぞれ一長一短ありまくりますが、なんとかひとつにまとめようと苦労したのがこれ…夢か幻か!! いやしかし、全部人間じゃない!? えっ…宇宙人に獣人、天使や悪魔まで…？ わかるかな？ わかんねぇだろうなァ…” “From visuals to title composition, each had its strengths and weaknesses, but this was the result of trying to bring them together into one… was it a dream or an illusion!? Wait a second — not all of them are even human!? What the… aliens, beast-men, angels, even demons…? Can you believe it? Nah, you probably can’t…”
Small red text bubble near top right next to two characters 似てる!? Do they look alike!?
ゲームシステム Game System
“これが自分の分身となるヒロイン。ちなみに彼の名前は…って書こうとしたら、まだ決まってなかったらしい。” “This is the heroine who becomes your alter ego. By the way, his name was… well, I was going to write it, but apparently it hadn’t been decided yet.”
Lower-left section, game screenshots: 更にゲーム画面では…！ And furthermore, in the game screens…!
“日常もままならない!! テストや部活で忙しい毎日、追い詰められ授業の居眠りは毎度恒例!! サーモの姿勢や部屋（簡単な模様替え）、校内探検、そして突然のバトル展開などイベントも盛りだくさん！” “Daily life isn’t easy!! Busy days filled with tests and club activities, cornered into dozing off in class as always!! Adjust your posture or room (simple rearranging), explore the school, and enjoy plenty of events like sudden battle developments!”
Screenshot captions:
コップを割れれになった!! The cup got broken!!
問題を解いた!! Solved the problem!!
Bottom-left red burst text: ここまでやるとホントにゲームになりそう？ If we go this far, it might really turn into a game!?
Character list on right-hand side (vertical small captions next to each watercolor illustration):
天使くん – Angel-kun
ゴーストスイーパー教師 – Ghost Sweeper Teacher
設くん – Construction-kun
改造島 – Modified Island
人気アイドル – Popular Idol
PAロボJrくん – PA Robot Jr-kun
サイキッカー – Psychic
ホーミンくん – Homin-kun
Important: This game is not related to any Tokimeki games made by Konami.
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