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Kill. Switch is a third-person shooter developed by Namco Hometek and published by Namco in 2003 for PC, Xbox, PS2, and the Game Boy Advance. The game revolutionised the TPS genre by introducing several groundbreaking concepts that ultimately influenced high-profile titles like Uncharted, Gears of War, and Rainbow Six: Vegas.

Despite its influence, Kill . Switch sadly didn’t receive any nominations or awards. However, its legacy is deeply embedded in the DNA of modern third-person shooters.

Before its release, the game underwent several changes, as seen in E3 and beta footage. One striking difference is the HUD, which was originally green instead of blue. In another clip, Nick Bishop—the game’s protagonist—had a different running animation. Additionally, early concept art reveals plans for a female lead character, though this idea was ultimately scrapped.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much information about Kill. Switch’s pre-release development beyond E3 and demo footage, as well as a few bits of trivia. Fun fact: Kill. Switch had two follow-ups in development. One was titled The Adversary, and the other The Displacement City Under Siege. Unfortunately, the projects were cancelled around 2005 and never came to fruition.

Concept Images:

Note: Thanks to writer and producer Alvin Muolic. The character concept art sketches were made by artist Christian Gossett (the man behind The Red Star himself!)

Beta Images

The HUDs

Credit: Evan Hanley, Jabler

Videos:

Differences:

HUD was changed twice (first it was green, then soft blue with lines)
Different running animation for Nick Bishop in early builds
Different attack
Guards don’t warn others when you throw a flash bomb at them
Different pointer HUD (changed twice)
More enemies in certain areas than in the final release
The enemy AI is tougher
The AI movement is often unpredictable
A sandstorm effect is present here, which was removed from the final release. Visibility is also difficult in the early builds (sandstorm area only).
Entirely different main menu

This video documents the early codename, various settings the developer experimented with and more

A documentary about the inception of Kill. Switch and the cancelled sequel

Unseen News

Project Flame [PC] – Cancelled

Yassine Bakrim

07-11-2025

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Project Flame was a cancelled 2D run-and-gun game that began development in 2008, originally conceived as a Flash-based title with plans to expand onto PC, iOS, Android, and even consoles (Xbox 360 Arcade). Spearheaded by a Syrian developer based in the UAE alongside a small team of artists and programmers, the project reached a playable demo stage that showcased a couple of levels.

Unfortunately, by 2010, internal disagreements and funding issues led to the team’s dissolution and the eventual cancellation of the game. To preserve its existence, the developer later uploaded the demo to their Behance page, allowing others to experience a glimpse of what Project Flame could have been.

Credit: Huge thanks to TunisianRetroGamer for the discovery

Images:

Videos:

This video has a few beta differences.

Unseen News

ESPionage [Beta] Xbox/PS2/PC/GameCube

Yassine Bakrim

03-08-2025

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Before it became known as Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy, the game was originally titled ESPionage. In its early beta builds, it looked and played quite differently from the version that eventually hit the store. This was largely because Midway began showcasing the game while it was still in its alpha phase.

The game was indeed shown at E3 2003, where it was featured under the ESPionage codename. Thanks to footage and media from that event, we can catch a few rare glimpses of what the game looked like during its early development.

While the game was officially scheduled to release on the GameCube, that port was eventually cancelled.

Video:

Beta differences:

Different HUD
Slightly different character model
Different gun sounds
Different environment
Different running animation
Different movement altogether
Unfinished psychokinesis powers

Images:

Unseen News

Severance: Blade of Darkness 2 [Cancelled?]

Yassine Bakrim

03-08-2025

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Severance: Blade of Darkness (or Blade: Edge of Darkness in Europe) was a brutal and atmospheric hack-and-slash released for PC back in 2001 by the now-defunct Rebel Act Studios. Years later, it got a remastered release on modern platforms, giving it a second life with old fans and curious newcomers alike.

While digging around the internet, I came across an old concept sketch that hinted at a possible sequel. It was originally posted on MercurySteam’s Facebook page but has since been deleted — and there’s almost no info about it anywhere else. Still, it seems like a follow-up was at least being explored at some point.

There’s not much else to go on right now, but if you happen to know anything about this lost project — or have more artwork or details stashed away — feel free to reach out. It would be great to uncover more about what could’ve been.

Image:

Unseen News

Internal Affairs [PC/PS2] — Cancelled

Yassine Bakrim

21-06-2025

No Comments

Internal Affairs was an action-driving-based game in development by Attention to Detail in 2000. Internal Affairs was designed as a 12-mission character-based driving and action game, and would have been extended with downloadable monthly episodes via broadband. Each episode would reveal a new area of Phoenix City Island and a new part of the plot, which initially concerned tracking down a group of terrorists.

Internal Affairs was self-funded entirely by the folks at Attention to Detail. While working on the game, they had a tight timeframe to quickly find a publisher to secure the game’s future. Unfortunately, two attempts to secure a publisher fell through, and Internal Affairs continued to rely on self-funding until it was deemed not commercially viable to proceed with the project. In the end, the game was cancelled. Chris Gibbs, who was involved with Internal Affairs, shared the following:

“We had two successive publishing opportunities,” recalls Chris Gibbs, ATD’s managing director. “One fell through due to the publisher folding, the next when the subsequent publisher was acquired.”

Without publisher support and with the broadband part of the game in doubt due to the slow penetration of services, ATD couldn’t wait any longer to secure a third deal, and took a paying commission instead.