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.
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.
Urban Chaos is a fun 3D open-world beat’em up developed by Mucky Foot Productions and released by Eidos Interactive on the PlayStation, PC and the Sega Dreamcast. Although it wasn’t originally scheduled to appear at the E3 1998 show, Eidos was so impressed with a demo they saw a few days before the show that they eventually decided to show it off to the press. Many images from E3 1998 are unfortunately lost to time, but I did manage to preserve a few that I came across in magazines. Who knows, maybe there’s more out there.
The difference between the E3 1998 demo and the final release is interesting:
Stolen is an obscure stealth game developed by Blue52 and published by Hip Games. The game was originally intended as a PlayStation 2 exclusive, but Sony abandoned the project. Blue52 eventually found a publisher, and the game was released in 2005 for the PS2, Xbox and PC.
Before the game’s release, it went through several changes, which I’ll demonstrate below. From the build dated April 5th,2004, we can observe the following differences:
Different HUD (HP, Map, Visibility Meter)
Different Gadget Icon
Whereas in the July 26, 2004 build, the only differences I noticed are the following:
Different HUD (closer to the final release layout)
Different suspicion music (it sounds like a soft version of the final release)
However, in the early build that probably dates to late 2003, we can notice MORE differences in this build. Please check out the video attached below.
Different running animation for Anya
Different wall run animation
Different icons for the mini games
Different HUD, gadget icons
Different movesets
Different walking animation for the guards
Different protection systems (if you pass by some machines, you’ll get zapped)
Unseen intro cutscene (?)
Different theme for the game ” Infiltrate. Neutralise. Vanish“. The final game is “Infiltrate. Steal. Vanish“.
April 2004 Build
July 2004 Build
2003 Build (maybe)
Early Concept Artwork
Anya Romanov, the game’s protagonist, went through several iterations along with Breeze, the game’s main villain. Below, we can observe some of the early sketches:
Videos
Fan-documentary containing insight from Jaid Mindang and Rudolf Kremers.
This trailer of the game is important to note because it shows the following:
Different HUD (similar to the July 2004 build)
A special take-down technique by Anya that isn’t present in the final game
On July the 20th 2005, Tecmo once unveiled a lineup of their upcoming games. Among these games was Bastard!! Online, an MMORPG based on the Bastard!! manga by Kazushi Hagiwara. According to various media outlets, the game was initially slated to be released exclusively on PC in Asian territories.
When rumours began to circulate that the game was cancelled, GameKult.com uploaded an article featuring many images and other minuscule details. From the site, we can read:
The project Bastard !! Online is not aborted, as evidenced by the first real images of the game, released two years after the development was announced. For those who are still wondering, it will indeed be an MMORPG adaptation of the famous manga by Kazushi Hagiwara, plunging players into the chaos of Meta-Licana. PvP oriented, the game will offer allegiance to one of the competing factions, at the command of generals Nei, Gara, Karsu or by joining the camp of the oppressed led by Princess Shira. It remains to be seen whether the universe heroic fantasy, the game system and the presence of the charismatic Dark Schneider will prove convincing enough to captivate the Japanese public. The launch of the game is still planned for 2007 in the land of the Rising Sun.
Despite plans for a 2007 release, Bastard!! Online was never launched. However, in 2008, Gamekult.com published another article titled “Bastard!! Online Lives Again.” The article revealed that the developers had spent an additional year enhancing the graphics to make the game much more visually appealing than what was previously shown. The website provided the following details:
Announced almost four years ago, the project Bastard !! Online is still relevant. As immortal as Dark Schneider, this impossible MMORPG is reborn from its ashes through these new images, enhanced with a trailer extra. Don’t laugh, the developers were particularly keen to highlight the efforts made on the graphics part of the game in a recent interview. For the rest, we know that this MMO based on the work of Kazushi Hagiwara will require allegiance to one of the game’s factions, commanded by the highly charismatic characters Nei, Gara and the others. The game is now scheduled to go live in 2009, at least until further notice..
Years have passed, and Bastard!! Online was never released. Ultimately, the game was cancelled on December 18, 2009 as Tecmo concluded that the development time required, coupled with their market forecasts, made continuing the project unfeasible. What remains of the game are a few screenshots and trailers.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience, by continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to the use of cookies. Find out more about cookies.Hide
Privacy & Cookies Policy
Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
