@@dannyboots depends on how much of a JoJo fan he was at the time, if ever. Maybe he might have felt inclined to watch it in cinemas, but there's not much more he can give us than his own memories.
What Sakurai doesn't mention here is the other harm a cancellation does towards the people working on that project: the gaps in the resume. All developments are under NDA. That NDA is usually lifted (at least partially) when the game is released. So anyone who works on a project that is not released or, even worse, not even announced, have a years-long gap in their resume. Very often, the professionals that worked in a cancelled project want to move on to other companies for various reasons (burnouts, poor management...) but they have nothing to show for their efforts during the last few years.
@@matthewjones6786 the possibility of retaking that project in the future, the know-how developed during the process... there are reasons, though not always good ones
@@guilleortega570 That’s not necessarily true. An applicant would be able to send their resume to a studio and simply write that they worked at Bungie on an unannounced project. It’s a common courtesy in the industry to stipulate in employment contracts that employees have the right to share their work created during their tenure as a part of their portfolio to showcase their talent.
@@UndertakerU2ber I've been at both ends of the hiring process and I've never been allowed to showcase anything I worked on for a cancelled project nor seen anyone allowed to do so. It is true that you can add you worked on an unannounced project and make vague comments about it like "I worked on a 3rd person shooter's combat system", but when the recruitment team has to choose between those comments and an actual gameplay video from a launched title, it is really hard to compete. Where did you get this kind of contract that allowed you to share confidential stuff in the portfolio? I wanna work there ^^
@@UndertakerU2ber it's not entirely true, as @guilleortega570 said, for employees who worked in a project that was canceld (like me lol), your capability will be doubt during recruitment process, they will always prefer those who have the same experience as you, but they can showcase their work. Before it gets to the hand of a lead or manager, HR would just disqualify your resume. Even if you're managed to get an interview and scored it, there are also chances that you will be paid less than you should be. NDA means you can't showcase, and sometimes, it even means you can't link the company with the investors/publishers behind it.
I feel you, my project was cancelled this month, the studio closed and I need to find a new job while there are layoffs all throughout the industry. Good luck to you!
Star Fox 2's cancellation saddened me as a kid, but Star Fox 64 was a great improvement, and I understand why they made that decision. Eventually 2 was finally released with the snes mini, so that was great that all the effort didn't go to waste. Right now I'm mourning the loss of Overwatch 2's PvE mode.
@@NonisLuckThe only way it's coming is if all the backlash makes the executives change their minds. Otherwise the only PvE is the basic stuff we've already seen but with cutscenes.
2 probably wouldn't be canceled today because of rising game dev costs, as it took a lot smaller of a team to create back in the day which makes it easier to justify canceling. It was less about Starfox 64 being better than 2 with such close releases, and more so a fear that they would be in a timeline where they're losing ground to Sony because people would be spending their money around the SNES, what with it's established library and recently Starfox 2, instead of getting a N64, with less games, and that's directly competing with Sony's PlayStation which was all the hype when it came out. Almost EVERYTHING was bought physically too, so if the N64 lost shelf space, say to a new release for SNES, and to the new Sony Playstation; then it'd be closer to game over for that generation for Nintendo. Because consoles need libraries of games to sell and people needed to see them on the shelf to know they're available, so if they weren't on the shelf, people would think you have no library worth the cost of the console, you'd get less shelf space because less people are buying your product and then it's a death spiral from there until the store stops ordering stock from you.
@Upon Eric Shelf space probably still matters to a degree, at least when I go to a brick and mortar store. Every time I go to a GameStop or Target and compare the Switch shelves lined with a huge variety of games and genres, and then see the smaller PS5 shelves filled mostly with overpriced remasters, then the pathetic little corner of Series S/X games, my interest in getting a “next gen” console these days sinks to zero. Don’t get me wrong, if someone gifted me a free Series S or something I would easily play 3rd Party games on consoles magnitudes more powerful than the Switch. But despite what Phil Spencer says, having a wide variety of games does matter a lot, and I don’t want to pay another $300-$500 just to play games from companies that don’t want to properly optimize for Switch or even mid-range PCs.
RIP in peace, Kirby GCN… may you live on in RtDL(DX), Star Allies, and Forgotten Land. Actually, it is really nice when elements from cancelled games (or cancelled anything) make their way into future projects. Not a video game, but apparently there are some elements from Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur that take inspiration from a cancelled Cars spinoff, of all things.
Some of the core ideas in Tears of the Kingdom such as exploring the sky and depths are apparently cancelled ideas from Breath of the Wild's planning stages - I'd expect the team were excited to be able to put in these ideas that had to be cut to stick to the brief, as well as polishing the core mechanics and responding to criticism of issues in BotW such as characters, story and side quests, all of which were improved in TotK.
It's mostly sad to see games that the developers worked hard on, to get cancelled. Causing not only the people who worked on it sad/frustrated but the public too. But the canceled game might find a second chance someday.
There are times, however, where the work that was done on a cancelled game *does* make it to the public in some form. Sometimes a developer might be able to hold on to an alpha/beta build and share footage online (Rare's "Project Dream"); sometimes a demo build might be dumped online (not sure, but feel free to give examples); on a few rare occasions, the studio might hold onto a nearly finished game that didn't release as planned for whatever reason, until one day they find a way to launch it officially (StarFox 2)!
Reminds me of a game that was supposed to release as a Dreamcast launch title called Geist Force, which was supposed to be similar to Star Fox. It was going to be the first Dreamcast game made by SOA, but ultimately Yuji Naka basically just killed the project and i remember reading interviews the devs absolutely HATED him because of that. A decade later a dump of the prototype was made publicly.
"sometimes a demo build might be dumped online (not sure, but feel free to give examples)" I guess not a cancelled game but the 2001 or w/e build of Duke Nukem Forever, and StarCraft: Ghost.
Absolutely. The fact that artists with so much variation in their education, viewpoints, and styles are able to collaborate on a massive scale and make a cohesive vision, it’s crazy.
Something I'm rather familiar with, sadly. Just 3 years in the industry and I've worked on more canceled projects than announced ones. It's horrible seeing all the work going down the drain after you put your soul into it.
This has me curious about Sakurai's opinion on games that enter Development Hell. The ones that never get canceled, but never get released either, and just spend way more time in development than they should realistically need.
As always, Sakurai-san delivers an exceptional video! Maybe it's just me, but after today's announcement of MGSΔ, a game which many people have rumored for a long time and some thought would never come to be, and of course, all the other games announced, the timing of this video feels quite lucky. Creative people come up with so many concepts and ideas for projects that it would just not be possible for all of them to be made. The "cancelled games" we know about are truly just the tip of the iceberg; it's unfortunately the case that the majority of creative projects never come to full fruition. However, there is an intoxicating allure to the concept of being able to see the trailers and news for a game that never comes out; a trail leading to a mysterious empty space; a "Phantom Game". On the developer side, it's a painful and emotionally vulnerable thing, especially as a creative person, to go through. It's not always because there's a company mandate; especially for people like me. When you're on your own, trying to make something of yourself in the world, being able to develop something is a test of who you really are as a person. I recommend the podcast "Woolie Will Figure It Out", one of the most intimate and vulnerable pieces of media I've ever experienced. I try not to talk about this online, but I've been working on a creative project for a number of years; a musical called "Player 0". No matter what happens, I must release it. Even if it is terrible (though I will try to avoid this), I have a duty to finish something if it can benefit others or bring them joy in some way. I must become a better person. I must contribute. Player 0 WILL release!
Sound Fantasy, Dragon Hopper, Catroots, Ravenblade, and Project Hammer are the cancelled Nintendo games I wish came to light, we could have seen the characters in Smash
That closing comment is just as telling as the pros and cons of cancelled games. One thing is to cancel a game that may have done real well, another is releasing a game that may never get played in the current market ecosystem.
Curious to know Sakurai's opinion when it comes to game companies practices in recent times like companies sending out unfinished games and fixing it later down the line or stuff like that
hate to tell you but that is not something recent. this can be traced back to nes and atari. it only seems like it now with the web, patches for console games and armchair devs.
Ultimate shipped without Stage Builder and Home-Run Contest at launch so I'd imagine he sympathizes with it to some degree. Some stuff just can't get squeezed in before going gold ig
One important note to point out that this is Sakurai's way of talking about cancelled (with a little bit of unfinished) games from a developer's perspective. When it comes to corporate guys' POV from a publishing company though, it's a whole another story.
May the gods bless Sakurai for making these videos for us for free. They are short but more insightful than many long videos about these topics. He's an incredible teacher!!
I feel like at this point there is a market to folks craving to play games that went unreleased for various reasons cause every so often a prototype of a game gets released by a preservation group and its the talk of the town for several days
Another awesome video from Sakurai! It's very sad when a project gets canceled and never sees the light of day. Hopefully we will be able to hear more about those projects someday.
I still feel like a potential Ape Escape 4 was cancelled. They had a whole Twitter for the anniversary of the games a few years back, and then nothing. Then Japan Studios dissolved.
I liked his comment near the end, where he says if the developers are thinking about the whole project and not just their assignments, the game is more likely to succeed.
It's ironic that spaceworld used to show games that would go on to either never see the light of day or be reworked onto different consoles. Does this explain why spaceworld 2000 mostly showed off games that were 100 percent complete instead of fifty? I dont want to put words in your mouth (or anybody's). This is my favorite video yet because some I'll faded games are fascinating and entertaining to learn about. Thank you, Mr. Sakurai.
Glad I’m not the only one who thought of DK Racing. Really wish Microsoft didn’t have to go and buy Rare like they did. We also lost a true Banjo 3 and a possible Perfect Dark 2 too
@@TheDerpyDolphin Banjo 3 wouldn't begin development until after Grabbed by the Ghoulies, and Perfect Dark Zero was in development all this time. Why else did Joanna have an early version of her Zero design in a Gamecube Tech Demo? As for Donkey Kong Racing, that was all that was lost. Everything else was moved to Xbox, and the GBA games got delayed until THQ decided to publish them, and those based on Donkey Kong were reworked into something else.
I have that exact box sitting next to me right now! Don't forget Kameo is also there! As an early Gamecibe adopter, I was so ready for those games to come out. At least Kameo did make it...technically...
I noticed Sakurai has said "witness and heard" and not "worked on". Not that HAL Laboratories is perfect, but one thing I do like about them is that they tinker with ideas until it becomes a game.
With games like Scalebound and Megaman Legends 3 and countless others ... it really makes it hurt more thinking about all those that did so much to try to get these games out there only for them to be cancelled. It sucks so dang much...😓
I find it interesting that this topic comes up right around the cancellation of… a certain mode in a certain sequel… False promises are the fastest way to lose faith from your consumers, so not only do you hemorrhage any profit you were anticipating to make, but now people won’t feel as inclined to consume your products, which makes recovering from that kind of financial loss even harsher…
To expand on the graph: "Change in Expected Revenue over Time" is constant in the example; in reality, this can fluctuate with the economy and it can also be purposefully influenced. To offset rising development costs, the company can advertise the game in progress. In the case of Prime 4, Nintendo released the promotional image to generate interest and market value for the upcoming sequel and Prime as a series. The game had been in development for some period of time, and was projected to need additional funding--The decision was then made to release the "in development" teaser. By doing this, the company could afford to allocate more funds to the continuing development of Prime 4
I’d love to hear about the cancelled titles Mr. Sakurai knows about. The biggest horror story of a cancelled title that’s known is Sonic X-treme, if you want to see SEGA at its worse, especially with how SoJ treated Sega of America’s devs at that time. :/
I think it's important the bigger companies not announce games that have risk of never being completed, otherwise you just end up with a jaded player base who will be more critical of your other projects or just give up on you entirely. That said, I'm sure announcing such things is probably more driven by the corporate side of things.
It's a bit better for employees because if they get fired in the process of cancellation, at least they can openly say that they worked on that game on their resume, maybe even show assets on their portfolio. While if the game is unanounced, they'll have nothing to show for their work.
I was once working with a writer on a card game, where one side of the card told a story and you picked an option, and the other side was the results of each option. The cards were shuffled, added and removed from the deck as instructed... it had potential, but sadly, it was cancelled when the writer's home flooded, and he couldn't focus on it anymore. So even indie devs get cancellations...
Mario Spikers was cancelled because Nintendo thought that the concept of combining Volleyball with Wrestling was going too far with Violence. If you look at the leaked animations, you can see that they were much more real than cartoon-like.
On the one hand, I'd love to hear from cancelled games Sakurai was a part in. On the other hand, talking about canceled games always has this air of "it was perfect, but", where the major flaws that couldn't be fixed in a sensible way are overlooked or minimized
I'm always happy every time a good game is released, specially from certain companies that never betrayed their customers and long standing fans 👀 Can you imagine my EYES when I heard that a new Professor Layton was going to be released after hearing all the hub-hub of one of their makers passing away and how they changed the original formula so much they decided to send the franchise to the desk-drawer of oblivion? We know that the developers are the ones doing the things, and that they deserve to be paid every time they finish their work, that's why I like when they receive collaterals for over-performing games (selling over the 100% expected benefit). That also boosts their morale and the company becomes a happier place for everyone to work their hardest because they want to keep delivering games that their customers and fans loves to bits. And that's financially desirable too 👌 Ah... Well. I thought Sakurai would mention a list of "his" cancelled games, but guess that will be too much for our kokoros to endure 🤣 (I'm still sad that we never got the Ecco the Dolphin III we deserved)
Final Fantasy 13 was one of them. Plus Tesuya Nomura eventually lost Greatest project and Nomura favorite number was 7 and 13, a eventually number 13 was also favorite. Until the former square enix head boss eventually fired Nomura from his project and it replaced him by someone else and his game eventually end changing it's name final fantasy 15 instead. I also remember star wars battlefront 3 a few years ago. I waited for game but that game but it did not arrive a eventually electronic arts rebooted in a different way. Plus Scott the Wozz did a video mentioning this topic to about cancelled games. Plus Scott the Wozz also plays super smash games too.
One that hurts me very much is Mother 3, even though it released and haven't beaten any Mother game yet, Mother 3 for the 64DD looked incredible, the music, i mean, lots of mistery there and when i learned about its development i truly got really sad. That said, my favorite console is the Wii U, that thing is FILLED with cancellations.
This is actually one of the reasons why it's important to prototype. Make a game playable in the lowest cost possible, playtest it, and evaluate if this is a project work going through. If there doesn't seem to be any promise, or it does show the promise of being a successful title but the development cost would be too high, it's best to cancel it there, while the cost invested is still low. The later you cancel a project, the more losses the company suffers.
It's sad to see some of these games go, but it's fascinating to find projects that were discontinued, such as a Standard Kirby Platformer for the Gamecube. It may not have made the cut, but at least we got Kirby's Return to Dreamland for the Wii, while the Dedede machine in the GC game's trailer would later be used in a minigame in Kirby Mass Attack.
The cancelled games I'll never get over are Baten Kaitos 3 and Baten Kaitos DS, both have been confirmed, BK3 even having concept art and other pre-production material laying around at Bandai Namco.
No company has felt that harder than Sega and Sonic X-Treme, who would do anything to prevent a repeat of that scenario from occuring ever again. So even if the so-called "honeymoon" for Sonic Frontiers has ended, it'll take literal years to get the bitter taste of Sonic X-Treme's cancellation out of journalist's mouths...
I genuinely feel like SEGA would still be making consoles at least into the 2010’s had they had Sonic X-Treme or ANY major Sonic game on the Saturn to compete with Mario 64 and Crash Bandicoot. The Saturn and Dreamcast were really cool and unique consoles, especially in the former’s case where SEGA had to bring their A game since Sonic and third party games couldn’t pick up the slack that time, but imagine how different things would be if the Saturn was a viable competitor to the N64 and PlayStation outside of Japan…
@@JeffreyThrash it's far from the biggest issue of the console imh. Shadowdropping the American release was a terrible idea that soured relations with developers, retailers and consumers alike.
Btw, that kind of cancellation is not only cutting monetary loses, it could also cut REPUTATION ONES. If the game ends up being a stinker or a dissapointment some companies recurr to cancelling the title even though it could sell well. That was the case for Kirby during the 2000's; without Sakurai the franchise took a while to get in the right foot again, cancelling 3 titles for the Gamecube/DS because none felt good to play as 1 AND 3-4 players.
I don’t think it’s entirely Sakurai leaving that caused that tho; by the time he left, half of the mainline series (slightly more than half, actually, if you count NiDL) was directed by Shinichi Shimomura. We don’t really know why they were cancelled beyond “didn’t meet their standards of quality,” and none of them were meant for the DS.
Just Thinking About The Many Canceled Mega Man games. -Mega Man Maverick Hunter X reboot. -Mega Man ZXC (ZX Third Entry) -Mega Man Universe (Mega Man Maker) -Mega Man Star Force 4 -Mega Man Online -and of course Mega Man Legends 3...😢 That last one hurt me the most.
The one game that I was sadden to see be cancelled was Terraria OtherWorld, after a lot of behind the scenes things going on, it was saddening but expected to see it canceled.
I had to double check Sakurai didn't show any reddeer games when talking about being thankful a game releases. Reddeer is a scourge on the eshop and we should celebrate every day they don't release something
Dinosaur Planet: I know that released a prototype on the Web recently, but it's not the full game (and let's face it, the character Krystal was screwed in "Star Fox Adventures").
You can really tell that he’s trying to tip-toe around the fact that sometimes games are not cancelled in order to keep the company afloat, but instead because they do not make the shareholders and top execs enough money, even though the game itself is expected to be well over the red-line.
It's always tragic when artists spend years on something and then have it be canceled, often they aren't even allowed to use their work from the project in portfolios to get new work.
Even games that do get cancelled don't necessarily have the concepts, if not the actual assets, wasted. Considerable interest was expressed to produce follow ups to _Vagrant Story._ I don't know if these were strictly failed projects that were canceled, but nor did they ever manage to manifest. In the end, _Vagrant Story_ found it's legacy in games like _Final Fantasy 12_ and became fully integrated into the continuity of the FF lore.
Still remembered when they cancelled three Mega Man titles, right in a row... Legends 3, Universe, and Online. Kind of wish they'd never of been officially announced, since I still think about what could have been.
Man. Up until now I've never really made the mental connection between games in dev being canceled after so much work being done, is because the end-game IS the most expensive one. Hiring testers and marketers is, according to conventional wisdom, easily half of a gamea budget. So if a company has no faith in a title they'd be cutting costs in half by killing it before that period in development. I finally get it now... I don't _like_ it, but I get it.
I'd love to see you talk about cancelled or abandoned consoles, Mr Sakurai! I've recently gotten really into the Dreamcast, playing the games I'm interested in in the order they were released, and it's giving a feeling of dread knowing I've only played about 15 games and I'm almost halfway through the console's "life"
There's also the other similar situation, where a company rushes out a clearly unfinished product to try and recoop some of the development costs even if their reputation might take a hit in the process
Definitely makes me prefer to remain a hobbyist. There are other things that can get in the way, but your pet project won't ever get canceled... unless you die x)
@@IDK3679. Because they're an interesting piece of Sakurai's personal development history? And I'm interested in that, as I'm sure many others who watch him are?
I was disappointed when Mother 3/EarthBound 64 was cancelled, as the N64 really, really lacked in quality RPGs. Pretty much all the N64 had that was really worth it and is still a banger to this day is Paper Mario. But at least it was later revived as a GBA game, which if I’m being real it’s probably better off as a 2D GBA game
N64 development in general was kind of a mess. Many devs struggled with the system and its capabilities (mainly space issues), some hoped the Disk Drive would allow for more freedoms etc. Alas, that one hardly came out and was even then among Nintendos greatest failures, so many games shifted back to cartridge, some to GameCube or other systems, with many games (including Mother 3 for N64 for example) being cancelled entirely. Even games that did release didn't exactly turn out as developers hoped in some cases.
There's a theory out there that PT wasn't even known to Konami, and that it was meant to be Kojima's pitch to them, with the huge online following it inevitably gained serving as proof that people would be into it. Wether or not that's true, it sucks that nothing ever came of it.
What? Did it have more Hills? 😅 (but really, whatever happened with the franchise? 🤔 All these remakes of Resident Evil are becoming pieces of art, but I haven't heard of a Silent Hill in a very very long while)
I pray that Konami doesn't cancel Silent Hills f aka Silent Hill no naku koro ni (pun is based on Ryukushi07's famous psychological murder mystery novels).
I've actually heard of one game that got cancelled even after the game was completely done. Sales analytics were so bad that it appeared that the cost of even barebones marketing and just getting the game on store shelves was going to come out to a net loss so they had to cut their losses at the truly last step. Of course, I don't really know if this was true. The tale was passed around like a ghost story at college I went to. Now it was originated by a professor with industry connections, so I believe the story. But grain of salt and all that.
The 2 games that come to mind are Star Fox 2 and the English version of EarthBound Beginnings. Star Fox 2 was cancelled because Nintendo didn't want to release another 3D game on the Super Nintendo when 3D was supposed to be the main selling point of the Nintendo 64. The English version of EarthBound Beginnings was cancelled just because RPGs weren't very popular in America in the 80s, so they didn't think it would sell well. From what you said, I'm thinking EarthBound Beginnings is probably the one you're thinking of. Thankfully, both of these cancelled games eventually did get released in more recent years.
It makes me wonder about what happened to the devs that were involved in the making of the PVE part. Replacing employees while you are working on a project really damages the whole of the structure and delays end stumbling over the deadlines 🙄
Star Wars Battlefront 3's cancel is what makes me most sad to this day. A game that was 98% complete and cancelled just before the finish line due to false concerns they were hoarding resources! A real shame
Theres also cancellation of features in games, specifically live service games. The most recent elephant in the room is Overwatch 2's PvE mode being scrapped, a whole 4 years after the gamemode was announced, making Overwatch 2, in many peoples eyes, a completely unnecessary sequel, and the decision likely cause hundreds if not *thousands* of players to quit Overwatch 2 on the spot. In a few days, Overwatch 2 lost years of work, and lots of players and money due to poor planning, or money, or some other factor.
This video reminded me of one of the recurring comments of a LP youtuber I watch usually says: "A game being out is a miracle by itself, no matter how flawed it can be"
It's a shame that some games get cancelled, but ultimately they can provide learning experiences so companies can produce even better games. For instance, without Kirby GCN, we would've never gotten Kirby's Return To Dream Land in its final form. And that's not even mentioning how sometimes game cancellations can even be beneficial for the physical and mental health of others, as was the case with Sonic X-Treme...
My favourite game's third installment wasn't exactly cancelled, but it changed from a continuation to a reboot where many of the best parts were removed. Still pretty disappointed.
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Imagine all the cancelled stuff Sakurai must know about.
Like the Batgirl movie?
The lost JJBA film
@@dannyboots depends on how much of a JoJo fan he was at the time, if ever. Maybe he might have felt inclined to watch it in cinemas, but there's not much more he can give us than his own memories.
Like the GCN Kirby game that ran on Melee's engine?
@@X2011racer
It ran on Melee's engine?
What Sakurai doesn't mention here is the other harm a cancellation does towards the people working on that project: the gaps in the resume.
All developments are under NDA. That NDA is usually lifted (at least partially) when the game is released. So anyone who works on a project that is not released or, even worse, not even announced, have a years-long gap in their resume.
Very often, the professionals that worked in a cancelled project want to move on to other companies for various reasons (burnouts, poor management...) but they have nothing to show for their efforts during the last few years.
Now that doesn’t seem fair at all. What would the NDA be protecting if the game has been canceled?
@@matthewjones6786 the possibility of retaking that project in the future, the know-how developed during the process... there are reasons, though not always good ones
@@guilleortega570
That’s not necessarily true.
An applicant would be able to send their resume to a studio and simply write that they worked at Bungie on an unannounced project. It’s a common courtesy in the industry to stipulate in employment contracts that employees have the right to share their work created during their tenure as a part of their portfolio to showcase their talent.
@@UndertakerU2ber I've been at both ends of the hiring process and I've never been allowed to showcase anything I worked on for a cancelled project nor seen anyone allowed to do so.
It is true that you can add you worked on an unannounced project and make vague comments about it like "I worked on a 3rd person shooter's combat system", but when the recruitment team has to choose between those comments and an actual gameplay video from a launched title, it is really hard to compete.
Where did you get this kind of contract that allowed you to share confidential stuff in the portfolio? I wanna work there ^^
@@UndertakerU2ber it's not entirely true, as @guilleortega570 said, for employees who worked in a project that was canceld (like me lol), your capability will be doubt during recruitment process, they will always prefer those who have the same experience as you, but they can showcase their work. Before it gets to the hand of a lead or manager, HR would just disqualify your resume. Even if you're managed to get an interview and scored it, there are also chances that you will be paid less than you should be. NDA means you can't showcase, and sometimes, it even means you can't link the company with the investors/publishers behind it.
As a developer in a bad position this week, your video was conveniently timed Mr. Sakurai lol
strike while the pans hot. But seriously, hope it works out for you at some point.
Wish you luck to fullfill your project
Good luck! Don’t give up!
I feel you, my project was cancelled this month, the studio closed and I need to find a new job while there are layoffs all throughout the industry. Good luck to you!
what games are you work on if you not under NDA of course maybe i can pre-order it if the game pick my interest to
Star Fox 2's cancellation saddened me as a kid, but Star Fox 64 was a great improvement, and I understand why they made that decision. Eventually 2 was finally released with the snes mini, so that was great that all the effort didn't go to waste.
Right now I'm mourning the loss of Overwatch 2's PvE mode.
"That was the whole point of Overwatch 2, without that, it's just Overwatch...again"-Mightykeef 2023
I think it's still coming, it was just delayed
@@NonisLuckThe only way it's coming is if all the backlash makes the executives change their minds. Otherwise the only PvE is the basic stuff we've already seen but with cutscenes.
2 probably wouldn't be canceled today because of rising game dev costs, as it took a lot smaller of a team to create back in the day which makes it easier to justify canceling.
It was less about Starfox 64 being better than 2 with such close releases, and more so a fear that they would be in a timeline where they're losing ground to Sony because people would be spending their money around the SNES, what with it's established library and recently Starfox 2, instead of getting a N64, with less games, and that's directly competing with Sony's PlayStation which was all the hype when it came out.
Almost EVERYTHING was bought physically too, so if the N64 lost shelf space, say to a new release for SNES, and to the new Sony Playstation; then it'd be closer to game over for that generation for Nintendo.
Because consoles need libraries of games to sell and people needed to see them on the shelf to know they're available, so if they weren't on the shelf, people would think you have no library worth the cost of the console, you'd get less shelf space because less people are buying your product and then it's a death spiral from there until the store stops ordering stock from you.
@Upon Eric Shelf space probably still matters to a degree, at least when I go to a brick and mortar store. Every time I go to a GameStop or Target and compare the Switch shelves lined with a huge variety of games and genres, and then see the smaller PS5 shelves filled mostly with overpriced remasters, then the pathetic little corner of Series S/X games, my interest in getting a “next gen” console these days sinks to zero.
Don’t get me wrong, if someone gifted me a free Series S or something I would easily play 3rd Party games on consoles magnitudes more powerful than the Switch. But despite what Phil Spencer says, having a wide variety of games does matter a lot, and I don’t want to pay another $300-$500 just to play games from companies that don’t want to properly optimize for Switch or even mid-range PCs.
Til this day the Cancel of Mega man Legends 3 Hurts me
Same with Megaman Starforce 4. Capcom really needs to continue their megaman series again.
No mega man x9
If it's anything like how I feel about banjo 3 being canceled then I very much feel your pain. And you have my condolences
And to avoid this pain, I've never played any games from that arc until today (Megaman ended up in "Zero 4" and I'm satisfied).
I hope that’s revived some day. Maybe if a Legends Collection comes and sells well.
RIP in peace, Kirby GCN… may you live on in RtDL(DX), Star Allies, and Forgotten Land.
Actually, it is really nice when elements from cancelled games (or cancelled anything) make their way into future projects. Not a video game, but apparently there are some elements from Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur that take inspiration from a cancelled Cars spinoff, of all things.
Some of the core ideas in Tears of the Kingdom such as exploring the sky and depths are apparently cancelled ideas from Breath of the Wild's planning stages - I'd expect the team were excited to be able to put in these ideas that had to be cut to stick to the brief, as well as polishing the core mechanics and responding to criticism of issues in BotW such as characters, story and side quests, all of which were improved in TotK.
It's mostly sad to see games that the developers worked hard on, to get cancelled. Causing not only the people who worked on it sad/frustrated but the public too.
But the canceled game might find a second chance someday.
Like Metroid Dread. :D
If I made a game for god knows how long and it ended up cancelled, I would be pissed off too
Essentially a lot of unused ideas gets put into other projects and or titles so they don't necessarily go to waste. It is always still sad to see it.
R.I.P
Prey 2.
@MrSentinel07 In terms of Second Chances, Metroid Dread comes to mind for sure.
What else comes to mind I wonder?
There's not much I'm aware of.
I loved that intro so much that the inner Super Mario World fan in me is crying.
There was never any true sequel planned as far as we know.
this has me thinking about game preservation and how many games are stuck on platforms where you can't even buy it anymore :(
Licensed games especially. X-Men Mutant Apocalypse never got a re-release.
nintendo is happy to hold them to ransom
@@jimsyfool4335not even Nintendo it goes both ways with certain ips like license games often are harder to use then something like first party
There are times, however, where the work that was done on a cancelled game *does* make it to the public in some form. Sometimes a developer might be able to hold on to an alpha/beta build and share footage online (Rare's "Project Dream"); sometimes a demo build might be dumped online (not sure, but feel free to give examples); on a few rare occasions, the studio might hold onto a nearly finished game that didn't release as planned for whatever reason, until one day they find a way to launch it officially (StarFox 2)!
The work that was put into a canceled game can also often be recycled for another title.
@@Whitecroc Yes! God yes! That happens all the time!
Reminds me of a game that was supposed to release as a Dreamcast launch title called Geist Force, which was supposed to be similar to Star Fox. It was going to be the first Dreamcast game made by SOA, but ultimately Yuji Naka basically just killed the project and i remember reading interviews the devs absolutely HATED him because of that. A decade later a dump of the prototype was made publicly.
"sometimes a demo build might be dumped online (not sure, but feel free to give examples)"
I guess not a cancelled game but the 2001 or w/e build of Duke Nukem Forever, and StarCraft: Ghost.
Most fans of these games know this, but the demo build of Resident Evil 4 got turned into Devil May Cry.
The ones we do know of are already devastating so i don't even want to know how many other cancelled games there are.
Each released game is a little miracle in itself.
Absolutely. The fact that artists with so much variation in their education, viewpoints, and styles are able to collaborate on a massive scale and make a cohesive vision, it’s crazy.
+.
“Chibi-Robo Zip Lash:”
-Scott the Woz
Something I'm rather familiar with, sadly.
Just 3 years in the industry and I've worked on more canceled projects than announced ones.
It's horrible seeing all the work going down the drain after you put your soul into it.
This has me curious about Sakurai's opinion on games that enter Development Hell. The ones that never get canceled, but never get released either, and just spend way more time in development than they should realistically need.
As always, Sakurai-san delivers an exceptional video! Maybe it's just me, but after today's announcement of MGSΔ, a game which many people have rumored for a long time and some thought would never come to be, and of course, all the other games announced, the timing of this video feels quite lucky.
Creative people come up with so many concepts and ideas for projects that it would just not be possible for all of them to be made. The "cancelled games" we know about are truly just the tip of the iceberg; it's unfortunately the case that the majority of creative projects never come to full fruition. However, there is an intoxicating allure to the concept of being able to see the trailers and news for a game that never comes out; a trail leading to a mysterious empty space; a "Phantom Game".
On the developer side, it's a painful and emotionally vulnerable thing, especially as a creative person, to go through. It's not always because there's a company mandate; especially for people like me. When you're on your own, trying to make something of yourself in the world, being able to develop something is a test of who you really are as a person. I recommend the podcast "Woolie Will Figure It Out", one of the most intimate and vulnerable pieces of media I've ever experienced. I try not to talk about this online, but I've been working on a creative project for a number of years; a musical called "Player 0". No matter what happens, I must release it. Even if it is terrible (though I will try to avoid this), I have a duty to finish something if it can benefit others or bring them joy in some way. I must become a better person. I must contribute. Player 0 WILL release!
shoutout to whoever animates your little cartoon people, they're great
Sound Fantasy, Dragon Hopper, Catroots, Ravenblade, and Project Hammer are the cancelled Nintendo games I wish came to light, we could have seen the characters in Smash
That closing comment is just as telling as the pros and cons of cancelled games. One thing is to cancel a game that may have done real well, another is releasing a game that may never get played in the current market ecosystem.
Grab Bag’s becoming my favorite category, the best intros too!
0:30 Metroid Dread cancelled multiple times, put in hold until Yohio Sakamoto have the adaquate hardware to work on the game
Curious to know Sakurai's opinion when it comes to game companies practices in recent times like companies sending out unfinished games and fixing it later down the line or stuff like that
He is Japanese. Critiquing others, specially companies, is not practiced commonly. You'd need a mind reader for that.
I was gonna say, felt like I've heard less on cancelled games recently, probably for this reason...
hate to tell you but that is not something recent. this can be traced back to nes and atari. it only seems like it now with the web, patches for console games and armchair devs.
Ultimate shipped without Stage Builder and Home-Run Contest at launch so I'd imagine he sympathizes with it to some degree. Some stuff just can't get squeezed in before going gold ig
If it were me, I'd be ecstatic that games could be fixed after the fact, rather than just being broken or unbalanced in major ways forever
One important note to point out that this is Sakurai's way of talking about cancelled (with a little bit of unfinished) games from a developer's perspective.
When it comes to corporate guys' POV from a publishing company though, it's a whole another story.
I think he touched on that when he talked about the company taking the biggest hit when a game gets cancelled.
May the gods bless Sakurai for making these videos for us for free. They are short but more insightful than many long videos about these topics. He's an incredible teacher!!
I feel like at this point there is a market to folks craving to play games that went unreleased for various reasons cause every so often a prototype of a game gets released by a preservation group and its the talk of the town for several days
Another awesome video from Sakurai! It's very sad when a project gets canceled and never sees the light of day. Hopefully we will be able to hear more about those projects someday.
I still feel like a potential Ape Escape 4 was cancelled. They had a whole Twitter for the anniversary of the games a few years back, and then nothing. Then Japan Studios dissolved.
I liked his comment near the end, where he says if the developers are thinking about the whole project and not just their assignments, the game is more likely to succeed.
It's ironic that spaceworld used to show games that would go on to either never see the light of day or be reworked onto different consoles. Does this explain why spaceworld 2000 mostly showed off games that were 100 percent complete instead of fifty? I dont want to put words in your mouth (or anybody's).
This is my favorite video yet because some I'll faded games are fascinating and entertaining to learn about. Thank you, Mr. Sakurai.
Donkey Kong racing was advertised on the back of the GameCube’s box
Glad I’m not the only one who thought of DK Racing. Really wish Microsoft didn’t have to go and buy Rare like they did. We also lost a true Banjo 3 and a possible Perfect Dark 2 too
@@TheDerpyDolphin Banjo 3 wouldn't begin development until after Grabbed by the Ghoulies, and Perfect Dark Zero was in development all this time. Why else did Joanna have an early version of her Zero design in a Gamecube Tech Demo?
As for Donkey Kong Racing, that was all that was lost. Everything else was moved to Xbox, and the GBA games got delayed until THQ decided to publish them, and those based on Donkey Kong were reworked into something else.
I have that exact box sitting next to me right now! Don't forget Kameo is also there! As an early Gamecibe adopter, I was so ready for those games to come out. At least Kameo did make it...technically...
I noticed Sakurai has said "witness and heard" and not "worked on". Not that HAL Laboratories is perfect, but one thing I do like about them is that they tinker with ideas until it becomes a game.
To be fair any cancelled game he might have worked on would be protected by NDA anyway.
There were several canceled Kurby projects during the GameCube era.
In the Smash 64 video he mentioned a cancelled N64 game about a small robot
@@_KevinLong Right, but did *he* work on those kirby games? Remember he didn't work on most of the dark matter trilogy.
@@sinteleon Right, but no NDA will prevent you from saying you worked on that was cancelled.
With games like Scalebound and Megaman Legends 3 and countless others ... it really makes it hurt more thinking about all those that did so much to try to get these games out there only for them to be cancelled. It sucks so dang much...😓
Never expected this dark topic, interesting
I find it interesting that this topic comes up right around the cancellation of… a certain mode in a certain sequel… False promises are the fastest way to lose faith from your consumers, so not only do you hemorrhage any profit you were anticipating to make, but now people won’t feel as inclined to consume your products, which makes recovering from that kind of financial loss even harsher…
To expand on the graph:
"Change in Expected Revenue over Time" is constant in the example; in reality, this can fluctuate with the economy and it can also be purposefully influenced. To offset rising development costs, the company can advertise the game in progress.
In the case of Prime 4, Nintendo released the promotional image to generate interest and market value for the upcoming sequel and Prime as a series. The game had been in development for some period of time, and was projected to need additional funding--The decision was then made to release the "in development" teaser. By doing this, the company could afford to allocate more funds to the continuing development of Prime 4
I love finally hearing a new BGM in these vids
I’d love to hear about the cancelled titles Mr. Sakurai knows about.
The biggest horror story of a cancelled title that’s known is Sonic X-treme, if you want to see SEGA at its worse, especially with how SoJ treated Sega of America’s devs at that time. :/
That's baloney. Everything you heard about it it's false
I think it's important the bigger companies not announce games that have risk of never being completed, otherwise you just end up with a jaded player base who will be more critical of your other projects or just give up on you entirely. That said, I'm sure announcing such things is probably more driven by the corporate side of things.
It's a bit better for employees because if they get fired in the process of cancellation, at least they can openly say that they worked on that game on their resume, maybe even show assets on their portfolio. While if the game is unanounced, they'll have nothing to show for their work.
I came into this video to learn about lost canceled video games.
I came out of this video worrying about lost canceled video games.
I was once working with a writer on a card game, where one side of the card told a story and you picked an option, and the other side was the results of each option. The cards were shuffled, added and removed from the deck as instructed... it had potential, but sadly, it was cancelled when the writer's home flooded, and he couldn't focus on it anymore. So even indie devs get cancellations...
Even Sakurai's getting a piece of the trending pie for Overwatch's cancelled PvE.
Just kidding, I'm sure he plans these way ahead of time :)
The first two Pokemon generations are very much horror stories in this vein
The canceled games from the top of my head were the following
Pac-Man Ghost Zone
Kirby GameCube
and Super Mario Spikers
Never heard of it.
Kirby GameCube was reworked into Return to Dreamland I think. Mario Spikers would have been awesome though
Mario Spikers was cancelled because Nintendo thought that the concept of combining Volleyball with Wrestling was going too far with Violence. If you look at the leaked animations, you can see that they were much more real than cartoon-like.
@@mjfilho33 Which one?
@@cloudluigigreenblue9349 all of them.
It's interesting to see you talk about the business side of game development, it's very cool.
Sakurai is a gem. Best developer of all time in my opinion
On the one hand, I'd love to hear from cancelled games Sakurai was a part in. On the other hand, talking about canceled games always has this air of "it was perfect, but", where the major flaws that couldn't be fixed in a sensible way are overlooked or minimized
I'm always happy every time a good game is released, specially from certain companies that never betrayed their customers and long standing fans 👀
Can you imagine my EYES when I heard that a new Professor Layton was going to be released after hearing all the hub-hub of one of their makers passing away and how they changed the original formula so much they decided to send the franchise to the desk-drawer of oblivion?
We know that the developers are the ones doing the things, and that they deserve to be paid every time they finish their work, that's why I like when they receive collaterals for over-performing games (selling over the 100% expected benefit). That also boosts their morale and the company becomes a happier place for everyone to work their hardest because they want to keep delivering games that their customers and fans loves to bits. And that's financially desirable too 👌
Ah... Well. I thought Sakurai would mention a list of "his" cancelled games, but guess that will be too much for our kokoros to endure 🤣
(I'm still sad that we never got the Ecco the Dolphin III we deserved)
Dead Phoenix: the last piece of puzzle called "Capcom 5" that never saw the light of day.
Final Fantasy 13 was one of them. Plus Tesuya Nomura eventually lost Greatest project and Nomura favorite number was 7 and 13, a eventually number 13 was also favorite. Until the former square enix head boss eventually fired Nomura from his project and it replaced him by someone else and his game eventually end changing it's name final fantasy 15 instead. I also remember star wars battlefront 3 a few years ago. I waited for game but that game but it did not arrive a eventually electronic arts rebooted in a different way. Plus Scott the Wozz did a video mentioning this topic to about cancelled games. Plus Scott the Wozz also plays super smash games too.
Final Fantasy Versus XIII split up into Final Fantasy XV and Verum Rex.
Before 2021 I'd be grieving about how Metroid Dread was cancelled 2 times
One that hurts me very much is Mother 3, even though it released and haven't beaten any Mother game yet, Mother 3 for the 64DD looked incredible, the music, i mean, lots of mistery there and when i learned about its development i truly got really sad.
That said, my favorite console is the Wii U, that thing is FILLED with cancellations.
This is actually one of the reasons why it's important to prototype. Make a game playable in the lowest cost possible, playtest it, and evaluate if this is a project work going through. If there doesn't seem to be any promise, or it does show the promise of being a successful title but the development cost would be too high, it's best to cancel it there, while the cost invested is still low. The later you cancel a project, the more losses the company suffers.
It's sad to see some of these games go, but it's fascinating to find projects that were discontinued, such as a Standard Kirby Platformer for the Gamecube. It may not have made the cut, but at least we got Kirby's Return to Dreamland for the Wii, while the Dedede machine in the GC game's trailer would later be used in a minigame in Kirby Mass Attack.
The cancelled games I'll never get over are Baten Kaitos 3 and Baten Kaitos DS, both have been confirmed, BK3 even having concept art and other pre-production material laying around at Bandai Namco.
No company has felt that harder than Sega and Sonic X-Treme, who would do anything to prevent a repeat of that scenario from occuring ever again. So even if the so-called "honeymoon" for Sonic Frontiers has ended, it'll take literal years to get the bitter taste of Sonic X-Treme's cancellation out of journalist's mouths...
I think the journalists have moved on from X-Treme. It's 06 that they haven't.
I’ve never heard of X-treme, but considering reviews gave Frontiers flack for Sonic being kissed in 06, it’ll take a while.
I feel like Sega was probably hit harder by Shenmue.
I genuinely feel like SEGA would still be making consoles at least into the 2010’s had they had Sonic X-Treme or ANY major Sonic game on the Saturn to compete with Mario 64 and Crash Bandicoot. The Saturn and Dreamcast were really cool and unique consoles, especially in the former’s case where SEGA had to bring their A game since Sonic and third party games couldn’t pick up the slack that time, but imagine how different things would be if the Saturn was a viable competitor to the N64 and PlayStation outside of Japan…
@@JeffreyThrash it's far from the biggest issue of the console imh. Shadowdropping the American release was a terrible idea that soured relations with developers, retailers and consumers alike.
Think of all the cancelled versions of Metroid Prime 4 that Sakurai knows about
Megaman Legends 3, always in our hearts.
RIP to that guy at 00:34 that got canceled instead of the game
Gracias por el video Sakurai, fue muy entretenido. 😄
Por un segundo pensé que hiba a hablar del juego cancelado Kirby's Adventure para Gamecube. 😅
Man I was kinda hoping Sakurai would just start name dropping games that got cancelled and make me cry like a baby
Can we get an F for Happy Life?
the world will never get to experiance the joy that is happy life 😔
F
Happy Life Forever!
Btw, that kind of cancellation is not only cutting monetary loses, it could also cut REPUTATION ONES. If the game ends up being a stinker or a dissapointment some companies recurr to cancelling the title even though it could sell well. That was the case for Kirby during the 2000's; without Sakurai the franchise took a while to get in the right foot again, cancelling 3 titles for the Gamecube/DS because none felt good to play as 1 AND 3-4 players.
Shoutout to the fully completed sequel to 1-2 Switch that Nintendo just won't release because of how awful it is
I don’t think it’s entirely Sakurai leaving that caused that tho; by the time he left, half of the mainline series (slightly more than half, actually, if you count NiDL) was directed by Shinichi Shimomura. We don’t really know why they were cancelled beyond “didn’t meet their standards of quality,” and none of them were meant for the DS.
Dropping this a week after the Overwatch 2 incident is bold
Just Thinking About The Many Canceled Mega Man games.
-Mega Man Maverick Hunter X reboot.
-Mega Man ZXC (ZX Third Entry)
-Mega Man Universe (Mega Man Maker)
-Mega Man Star Force 4
-Mega Man Online
-and of course Mega Man Legends 3...😢 That last one hurt me the most.
The one game that I was sadden to see be cancelled was Terraria OtherWorld, after a lot of behind the scenes things going on, it was saddening but expected to see it canceled.
oof, that one hurt...
I had to double check Sakurai didn't show any reddeer games when talking about being thankful a game releases. Reddeer is a scourge on the eshop and we should celebrate every day they don't release something
Dinosaur Planet: I know that released a prototype on the Web recently, but it's not the full game (and let's face it, the character Krystal was screwed in "Star Fox Adventures").
You can really tell that he’s trying to tip-toe around the fact that sometimes games are not cancelled in order to keep the company afloat, but instead because they do not make the shareholders and top execs enough money, even though the game itself is expected to be well over the red-line.
I still cry about Timesplitters 4
It's always tragic when artists spend years on something and then have it be canceled, often they aren't even allowed to use their work from the project in portfolios to get new work.
I wish that some of those lost games are found. Like Earthbound 64
Even games that do get cancelled don't necessarily have the concepts, if not the actual assets, wasted.
Considerable interest was expressed to produce follow ups to _Vagrant Story._ I don't know if these were strictly failed projects that were canceled, but nor did they ever manage to manifest. In the end, _Vagrant Story_ found it's legacy in games like _Final Fantasy 12_ and became fully integrated into the continuity of the FF lore.
A cancelled game is always part of a learning curve for a company plus they have some assets that can be used for other games.
Still remembered when they cancelled three Mega Man titles, right in a row... Legends 3, Universe, and Online. Kind of wish they'd never of been officially announced, since I still think about what could have been.
Man. Up until now I've never really made the mental connection between games in dev being canceled after so much work being done, is because the end-game IS the most expensive one. Hiring testers and marketers is, according to conventional wisdom, easily half of a gamea budget. So if a company has no faith in a title they'd be cutting costs in half by killing it before that period in development. I finally get it now... I don't _like_ it, but I get it.
This is why I love the Wha Happun/What Happened series that Matt McMuscles does. Preservation of what was cancelled is still important.
Exactly I love that series
Introducing sunk cost fallacy! I imagine that gets a lot of developers.
Cancelling a game must be such a tough call...
You’ve inspired me to make games again with my friends, but we never finish anything we start.
I'd love to see you talk about cancelled or abandoned consoles, Mr Sakurai! I've recently gotten really into the Dreamcast, playing the games I'm interested in in the order they were released, and it's giving a feeling of dread knowing I've only played about 15 games and I'm almost halfway through the console's "life"
There's also the other similar situation, where a company rushes out a clearly unfinished product to try and recoop some of the development costs even if their reputation might take a hit in the process
You mean Fire Emblem Engage.
Definitely makes me prefer to remain a hobbyist. There are other things that can get in the way, but your pet project won't ever get canceled... unless you die x)
Going pro is not easy and completely understand people who take this path.
I wonder if Sakurai has any such games...?
We'd love to hear about them, I'm sure!
Why would anyone want to hear about them.
@@IDK3679. why WOULDN'T I want to know more about kirby GCN?
@@TheRealSuperKirby Because you are a super Kirby fan
@@IDK3679. I like some of my own videos but I'm not THAT egotistical
@@IDK3679. Because they're an interesting piece of Sakurai's personal development history? And I'm interested in that, as I'm sure many others who watch him are?
I was disappointed when Mother 3/EarthBound 64 was cancelled, as the N64 really, really lacked in quality RPGs. Pretty much all the N64 had that was really worth it and is still a banger to this day is Paper Mario. But at least it was later revived as a GBA game, which if I’m being real it’s probably better off as a 2D GBA game
Fire Emblem 64 also got cancelled and became Thracia 776, and 64 Wars (or is it Wars 64?) got cancelled outright.
@@X2011racer Uhhh AFAIK, the planned FE game for the N64 turned into The Binding Blade, not Thracia 776
There's also Quest 64.
Ogre Battle 64 and there’s Hybrid Heaven which I hear is a hidden gem
N64 development in general was kind of a mess. Many devs struggled with the system and its capabilities (mainly space issues), some hoped the Disk Drive would allow for more freedoms etc. Alas, that one hardly came out and was even then among Nintendos greatest failures, so many games shifted back to cartridge, some to GameCube or other systems, with many games (including Mother 3 for N64 for example) being cancelled entirely. Even games that did release didn't exactly turn out as developers hoped in some cases.
0:33 I feel bad already! So many tears!
Investment, budget, and profitability. The woes of a game company.
We literally had Silent Hills in our hands and Konami just took it away....
The most devastating game sequel cancellation of our time… 😞
There's a theory out there that PT wasn't even known to Konami, and that it was meant to be Kojima's pitch to them, with the huge online following it inevitably gained serving as proof that people would be into it. Wether or not that's true, it sucks that nothing ever came of it.
What? Did it have more Hills? 😅
(but really, whatever happened with the franchise? 🤔 All these remakes of Resident Evil are becoming pieces of art, but I haven't heard of a Silent Hill in a very very long while)
@@Spamkromite They did announce several titles last October.
I pray that Konami doesn't cancel Silent Hills f aka Silent Hill no naku koro ni (pun is based on Ryukushi07's famous psychological murder mystery novels).
I've actually heard of one game that got cancelled even after the game was completely done. Sales analytics were so bad that it appeared that the cost of even barebones marketing and just getting the game on store shelves was going to come out to a net loss so they had to cut their losses at the truly last step. Of course, I don't really know if this was true. The tale was passed around like a ghost story at college I went to. Now it was originated by a professor with industry connections, so I believe the story. But grain of salt and all that.
The 2 games that come to mind are Star Fox 2 and the English version of EarthBound Beginnings. Star Fox 2 was cancelled because Nintendo didn't want to release another 3D game on the Super Nintendo when 3D was supposed to be the main selling point of the Nintendo 64. The English version of EarthBound Beginnings was cancelled just because RPGs weren't very popular in America in the 80s, so they didn't think it would sell well. From what you said, I'm thinking EarthBound Beginnings is probably the one you're thinking of. Thankfully, both of these cancelled games eventually did get released in more recent years.
Sakurai-san, could we SEE these canceled games pleeeeease?
Already being reminded of Overwatch 2 PvE getting cancelled.
Same, perfect timing. I don't think he plans at all.
Heck don't think he knows.
I feel bad for that poor building 🥺🏢
As an overwatch player since 2016, this video feels perfectly timed
It do be like that
It makes me wonder about what happened to the devs that were involved in the making of the PVE part. Replacing employees while you are working on a project really damages the whole of the structure and delays end stumbling over the deadlines 🙄
Ngl, when I first heard that Happy Life was actually getting cancelled, I was crying for weeks 😭😭
Grab Bag is my favourite category
Star Wars Battlefront 3's cancel is what makes me most sad to this day. A game that was 98% complete and cancelled just before the finish line due to false concerns they were hoarding resources! A real shame
Theres also cancellation of features in games, specifically live service games.
The most recent elephant in the room is Overwatch 2's PvE mode being scrapped, a whole 4 years after the gamemode was announced, making Overwatch 2, in many peoples eyes, a completely unnecessary sequel, and the decision likely cause hundreds if not *thousands* of players to quit Overwatch 2 on the spot.
In a few days, Overwatch 2 lost years of work, and lots of players and money due to poor planning, or money, or some other factor.
This is probably confirmation the Metroid Prime 4 is canceled 😢
What even is the correlation here
HOW DARE YOU CANCEL HAPPY LIFE MR. SAKURAI, now I won’t be happy ;-;
This video reminded me of one of the recurring comments of a LP youtuber I watch usually says: "A game being out is a miracle by itself, no matter how flawed it can be"
It's a shame that some games get cancelled, but ultimately they can provide learning experiences so companies can produce even better games. For instance, without Kirby GCN, we would've never gotten Kirby's Return To Dream Land in its final form.
And that's not even mentioning how sometimes game cancellations can even be beneficial for the physical and mental health of others, as was the case with Sonic X-Treme...
In today's grab bag--how to draw extremely stressed people.
I love how Sakurai uses The Sims 3 music ❤❤
My favourite game's third installment wasn't exactly cancelled, but it changed from a continuation to a reboot where many of the best parts were removed. Still pretty disappointed.
What game is that? Bioshock Infinite?
@@ikagura No, never played a Bioshock game actually! Unless you count System Shock 2.