Summary
It’s a shame whenever a game gets canceled. Microsoft had a rough go during the Xbox One generation, with first-party cancelations happening seemingly all the time, disappointingXboxfans.Scaleboundfrom PlatinumGames is probably the highest profileXboxgame that fans were disappointed that got canceled.
Thankfully, these games were not canceled and were instead moved to Xbox consoles after appearing elsewhere. What would have happened if these games had initially launched on the starting consoles? It’s fun to think about, but the multiverse highway is currently sealed in our reality. As always, Unseen64 is a great source to track down assets for lost games, which was a big help in researching these prototype versions of classics.
One of the best-reviewed horror games of the first HD generation got aremake in 2023which was also revealed well.Dead Spacelearned from the best and expanded the genre by going into space. This may surprise some, but the game began on the original Xbox.
A prototype was made to run on the system and there is a video of this builduploaded to Unseen64. One of the artists for the game, Ian Milham, showed this prototype off at a convention. The gameplay looked similar to the final build of the game, and even the graphics looked close.
5Halo: Combat Evolved
Halo: Combat Evolved, without a doubt, made the original Xbox when it launched in 2001. Without it, who knows if Microsoft would still be making Xbox consoles to this day. That reality could have happened because the game was initially planned for both PC and Mac systems and it was radically different when it was revealed at a conference in 1999 and the original buildsare on Unseen64.
It wasan RTS gamewhich made sense since that genre was and always has been, huge on computers. A new build a year later showed the game as a third-person shooter. Eventually, Microsoft scooped up this Bungie game and it was retooled into a first-person shooter for the upcoming original Xbox. While a third-person shooter has never been, the series would receive two RTS games via theHalo Warsspinoffs years later.
4Kameo: Elements Of Power
Kameo: Elements of Powerwas a launch game for the Xbox 360 and it wasdeveloped by Rare. It was put through the development wringer and it is a miracle it came out. It began on the N64 then moved to the GameCube followed by the original Xbox and then, at long last, it was released on Xbox 360. Unseen64 has extensive footagefor the GameCubeandoriginal Xbox versions, but data for the N64 prototype does not seem to exist beyond a footnote.
Now, this rough cycle happened a lot with Rare’s games likeStar Fox Adventureswhich started as its own thing calledDinosaur Planet. A lot of gameswere also canceledaround this time because Microsoft bought Rare in 2002 while the company was making projects for Nintendo. Fans can at least be thankful thatKameo: Elements of Powerwas never outright canned.
Ryse: Son of Rome, likeKameo: Elements of Power, was a launch game albeit for a different system: Xbox One. It was an action title that seemed like it wanted to be the nextGod of Warexcept with Roman soldiers. It was reviewed moderately, but it by no means set the world on fire. The Xbox One version didn’t but maybe the Xbox 360 version could have. This game began as two projects that would inhabit the same world.
Kingswas going to be an MMO whileKingdomswas going to be the console experience. Instead of Rome, the games were going to be fantasy-based and this all changed when Microsoft entered the arena.Ryse: Son of Rome’screation is a fascinating story and it is one of the mostdetailed articles Unseen64has on their website. They did interviews, pulled up footage for a mini-documentary, and showcased dozens of screenshots and artwork. It is worth a look beyond this microscopic blurb.
2The Saboteur
The Saboteurwas not a groundbreaking game during the first HD generation of consoles. It was a satisfying third-person shooter experience though with a few neat hooks to it. One, thegame took place during World War 2after the Nazis took over Paris. The game starred a race car driver named Sean Devlin who helped infiltrate Nazi territory to destroy their bases.
Paris was visually set in a black and white backdrop, but once areas were liberated the color would return. This black-and-white aesthetic is missing from the original Xbox prototype. The action seen in the footagearchived on Unseen64looks basically the same as the final product.The Saboteurwould be the last game the developer, Pandemic Studios, would put out before closing
1Too Human
There is simply not enough time to dive in deeply for the tragedy that wasToo Human. If one thought the console cycle forKameo: Elements of Powerwas rough, this game will make heads spin. Silicon Knights, the developer, had a similar rough start withEternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiemas it went from N64 to GameCube, but it wasn’t nearly as messed up asToo Human. It began on the PS1, moved over to the GameCube, and then it was finalized on the Xbox 360.
Amazingly, it went through the trifecta of the three big console manufacturers before coming out. It should also be mentioned thatthis action RPGwas meant to be a franchise, withToo Humanending on a cliffhanger. Sadly, a sequel would never come. Also, there were orders to destroy physical copies of the game but that is a whole other saga involving Silicon Knights and a bunch of lawsuits. Lawsuits aside, be sure to check out the extensive footagefor the PS1andthe GameCube versionsof the game on Unseen64.
