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Infogrames

Mission: Impossible is an action game / third-person shooter for the Nintendo 64, based on the 1996 film Mission: Impossible. It was developed by Ocean Software and distributed by Infogrames Entertainment. It later received a PlayStation port, with minor additions such as voice acting, but reduced graphics.

The N64 version was released in 1998, after it was postponed for many years. The game was originally announced in March 1996 as one of the first titles in development for the new 64-bit console. Ocean even confirmed that the game would had some special features for the Nintendo 64DD, but obviously there is no such option in the final game.

The very first images released looked like an High-Definition version of the game, with a cleaner graphic that was unthinkable for the real N64 hardware. Today these screens can make us to smile, but in 1996 these target renders were the most beautiful graphic ever. The final version of the game had no such graphic detail, with blurred out polygons and textures.

Unfortunately none of the U64 staff has played Mission Impossible 64, so we don’t know if the scenes in these beta screens were ported somehow in the final version. If you played Mission Impossible 64 and notice any differences, please let us know!

Thanks to RagingD and John Doom we found out some more details about the differences in these early screens:

This level only ends up being a cutscene in the final version.

The wet suit is not in the final version

This suit is changed from white to red in the final version

Screen 1: It’s the exit from the KGB HQ
Screen 2: This stage it’s not in the game
Screen 3: She (should be) Candice Parker in the prison of the KGB HQ. However, in the game she has a different hair cut.
Screen 4: A room in the KGB HQ where it should be a missing agent (but in the screen he isn’t there)
Screen 5: KGB HQ’s closet (But in the game you can’t drag enemies’s corpses).
Screen 6: The stage is not in the game (and who is that guy? o.o)
Screen 7: Same as above
Screen 8: Another missing level
Screen 9: Missing level (And the hud is VERY different)
Screen 10: Missing level
Screen 11: A cutscene (as RagingD said)
Screen 12: ??? maybe it’s the first level (but I’m not so sure…)
Screen 13: Head Security Officer’s room (but in the game there is a Communist flag instead of an american flag. The situation in the screen it’s totally different from the game too)
Screen 14: The second level (but in the game Ethan wears a different suit)
Screen 15: ??? Maybe it’s the hallway to exit from the KGB
Screen 16: The embassy (but the Lenin’s statue is missing)
Screen 17: Head Security Officer’s room as in the game (but the suit is different, just as RagingD said, and Ethan looks more Tom Cruise than in the game)
Screen 18: It seems a beta embassy’s room because the door and the plants are the same of the game). Or it could be a totally different level missing in th game.
Screen 19: The secret room in the KGB as in the game
Screen 20: it seems the entry to that beta-embassy. (the hud is totally different)
Screen 22: It’s probably a beta first level
Screen 23: First level
Screen 24: It could be a beta version of the escaping level from the KGB HQ
Screen 25: A beta version of the Head Security Officer’s room
Screen 26: Maybe is a beta version of the escaping level from the KGB HQ (but the enemy is totally different from the one in the game)
Screen 29: The bathroom in the embassy and the Deputy Ambassador (but the mirrors don’t reflect in the n64 version)
Screen 30: ???
Screen 32: VR sequence?

Mission Impossible 64 remains without doubt one of the most fascinating beta games to look at, to have an idea of what were the expectations of the gamers about the new Nintendo hardware. We dreamed for months to play with this high level of graphic with the Nintendo 64, but only with the release of the Dreamcast we were able to have something that looked as clean as the original Mission Impossible 64 target renders.

A sequel, Mission Impossible 2, was announced in 1999, but it was soon cancelled for the N64. MI2 was going to be developed for the Dreamcast, but when Infogrames lost the Mission Impossible license, the game became “La Femme Nikita” for the Playstation 2, cancelled after 2 years of development.

Thanks to Robert Seddon for some of these screens and to RagingD and John Doom for the contributions!

[spoiler /Clicca qui per la versione in Italiano/ /Nascondi la versione in Italiano/]Uscito solo nella metà del 1998, Mission Impossible per Nintendo 64 ha dovuto aspettare alcuni anni, prima di essere completato. Il gioco fu infatti annunciato nel marzo del 1996, come uno dei primi titoli in sviluppo per la nuova console a 64 bit. Ocean confermò addirittura la presenza di alcune caratteristiche speciali, che sarebbero state sbloccate grazie ad un espansione per 64DD. Ovviamente nessuna opzione per 64DD è presente nel gioco finale.

Le primissime immagini diffuse erano una versione esagerata delle capacità 3D del N64: visuali ad alta definizione (almeno per l’epoca) ed una pulizia grafica impensabile per l’hardware Nintendo. Oggi queste foto possono farci sorridere, ma nel 1996 la grafica sembrava davvero realistica. Come già successo per altri giochi, presentati durante le fasi iniziali dell’Ultra 64, gli screenshot si riferivano probabilmente ad una serie di tech demo, creati per avere un’idea di come sarebbe stato Mission Impossible su di una console a 64 bit. Le specifiche tecniche del Nintendo 64 si rivelarono però meno potenti del previsto, ed il gioco completo è in realtà più sfocato e poco definito, rispetto a quanto volevano farci credere inizialmente.

Purtroppo nessuno dello staff ha mai giocato a Mission Impossible 64 e non possiamo quindi riconoscere se le situazioni qui mostrate siano presenti nella versione completa, oppure erano semplicemente degli scenari provvisori. Se avete finito M:I 64 e notate qualche differenza nei livelli, saremmo felici di ricevere una vostra e-mail con queste informazioni!

Gli Unseen di Mission Impossible 64 rimangono senza dubbio fra i più affascinanti da osservare, per avere un idea di quali erano le aspettative delle software house, rispetto al nuovo hardware Nintendo. Milioni di videogiocatori hanno sognato per mesi di poter avere una simile qualità grafica nei propri videogames, ma solamente con l’uscita del Dreamcast hanno potuto avvicinarsi all’aspetto che mostrava questo Tech Demo di M:I.

Un seguito del gioco era stato annunciato, ma presto cancellato senza lasciare nessuna traccia.[/spoiler]

Images:

Nintendo, Nintendo 64 & 64DD

Looney Tunes Space Race [N64 – Cancelled]

U64 Staff & Contributors

04-04-2008

1 Comment

Looney Tunes: Space Race is a 2000 racing game that was originally announced as a Nintendo 64 title in 1998, but it was later moved to the Dreamcast and PlayStation 2. The N64 version was so cancelled. The project was initialy developed by New Wave USA but when it was ported to the Dreamcast, it was completed by Infogrames Melbourne House, therefore, is not really the same game that was going to be released on the Nintendo64.

[spoiler /Clicca qui per la versione in Italiano/ /Nascondi la versione in Italiano/]Le prime immagini di questo racing game della Infogrames cominciarono a circolare nel Marzo del 1998. Il progetto non sembrava all’insegna dell’innovazione, visto il concept abusato introdotto da Mario Kart, ma aveva comunque delle possibilità di successo grazie alla notorietà del brand e alla particolarità delle vetture, dei razzi.

Inizialmente previsto come gioco per Nintendo 64, venne dirottato durante l’estate del 1999 su Dreamcast, dove ottenne delle ottime valutazioni da parte della critica. Per i possessori della console Nintendo il rimpianto fu comunque limitato, visto che Infogrames oltre che cambiare destinatario cambiò anche mittente: non più New Wave USA (della quale fra l’altro non si hanno più tracce), ma Infogrames Melbourne House; quello che è stato distribuito per Dremcast, quindi, non è lo stesso gioco che sarebbe uscito su Nintendo64.[/spoiler]

Images:

Nintendo, Nintendo 64 & 64DD

Starshot: Space Circus [N64 – Beta]

MAIcrosoft

03-04-2008

2 Comments

Starshot (under its original title Space Circus) was first conceived in July of 1994 by Xavier Schon, who worked for Infogrames since 1989 as a graphic artist and game designer. He sent around 10 game concepts to Infogrames management between 1992 and 1995, with Space Circus being the 1 which got off the ground due to it being a unique new concept, a 3D platformer. He sent management 3D concept drawings in July 1994, with management finally approving the idea 10 months later in April 1995. At this time the Nintendo 64 was not formally announced so the game was set for a PlayStation release as well as PC, though the PlayStation version would eventually be cancelled due to hardware concerns.

Once approved Xavier was given another Infogrames employee and they were tasked to make a 3D CGI video to show management what gameplay would look like. Some screenshots of this video exist in the design documents which show a different Starshot design and an unused mechanic of controlling other characters or objects, such as a large cannon which could shoot objects or possibly defend Starshot. In May 1996 Infogrames and Nintendo agreed on a Nintendo 64 version.

Screenshots were first shown in issue 44 of Edge Magazine in April 1997, showing another different Starshot design and an early view of the level Tensuns.

Starshot was scheduled to be finished for PC in June 1997, but after seeing Banjo-Kazooie’s demo at E3 in June 1997, and having been impressed by Mario 64 previously, Schon reluctantly delayed the game to try and rewrite and redefine priorities in the gameplay, though he agrees that the level design and range of actions weren’t good enough to compete.

Their 2nd master version was set to be finished in June 1998, but the team missed this date and finished in September after making N64 a main version. Towards the end of production many programmers and debuggers were moved off the project by Infogrames, but they were still paid for the rest of production which made the games development budget more expensive. At points the N64 version only had 2 programmers. The game suffered as the team had fewer resources than Nintendo and we’re inexperienced with optimizing PC versions for N64 hardware. A late release resulted in poor sales and the development team being split up into different projects.

Due to time constraints, an entire planet was cut from the game, Kripkon, named after Superman’s home planet Krypton and centered around Superhero parodies. In this stage players could grab onto superheros and fly to different parts of the level, and the planet even has a fully composed song unused on the PC version soundtrack.

It was considered for release in Japan at one point, with Schon flying out to Nintendo headquarters, however he believes they weren’t impressed enough with the gameplay to distribute the game.

Xavier kept all his design documents and even a timeliness of the games production. Every area was hand drawn before being modeled in 3D, with many areas looking identical to how they appear in game. Some art depicts areas or characters not in the final game, such as Miss Starling, a humanoid similar looking to Starshot who was a sharpshooter for the Space Circus.

Despite the game’s failure and mixed critical reception, when Infogrames asked producer Xavier Schon for movie concepts in 2002, Schon wrote and drew up a screenplay for Starshot the movie to try and being the character back, but this unfortunately never happened. You can download 3 PDF about the unmade Starshot movie: Space Circus story synopsis, Drawing Script, Space Circus English.

This information comes from an interview done with producer, director, and original concept creator Xavier Schon on February 21st, 2018. It was a piece of research for our upcoming N64 book, the N-cyclopedia 64.

Article written by Jalyn.

In the gallery below we can also see various beta screenshots showing differences from the final version:

Different HUD
More Tourists NPCs in the “jungle” area
Better / more detailed graphic
A couple of unknown areas (removed?)

Thanks to Henrique Resende for some of these beta screens!

Images [Beta Version]

Videos (final version):