Welcome to Games That Weren't!

We are a Cancelled & Unreleased Video games archive with prototypes, developer history and assets for many computers and consoles of all ages. A non-profit large archive dedicated to preserving lost games that were never released to the public. Sharing history and stories from the developers, assets and more before it is too late. GTW has been preserving lost video game history online since 1999, and long before that offline.

Please Browse our archive and discover the many entries that we host for many different platforms.

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Axe ‘n Crossbow

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

1993 Scangames (Scandinavian Games)

Platform: Commodore Amiga
Also known as: Seven gates of hell

After a less than perfect experience with the development/release of Fuzzball on the Amiga, artist Tomas Dahlgren returned to Sweden, determined to create the perfect arcade game on the Amiga platform. As a result, he started working on a title called Axe ‘n Crossbow, with the plan (in Tomas’ own words) to create “a giant medieval maze game similar to Elevator Action.”. The name of the game referred to the two protagonists, a male warrior and a female elf.

Axe'nCrossbow 03

In the 2016 book “Svensk videospelsutveckling. Från 50-tal till 90-tal” (Swedish video game development. ’50s to ’90s) by Sunhede and Lindell, a bit more information is given about the game:

“But despite the setbacks [with Fuzzball], Dahlgren doesn’t give in, [instead] he does the graphics for a game he calls Seven gates of hell, later renamed into Axe ‘n Crossbow. He’s inspired by [the arcade game] Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (Atari, 1985) and the graphics are impressive even today, but [the game] is soon canned. He is offered to sell his graphics, but Tomas, now wizened, refuses.”

Continue reading →

Posted in: Commodore Amiga, Reviews | Tagged: | 3 Comments

Codemasters early conversion entries added

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

Thanks to Adam Markey for highlighting a conversions call from Codemasters in April 1987, we’ve created a set of new entries for ZX Spectrum, Atari 800, MSX and Commodore 16/Plus 4:

Posted in: News | 1 Comment

Pro Snooker Simulator

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

1987 Codemasters

Platform: Commodore 16/Plus 4

A very short entry for a Commodore 16/Plus 4 conversion of Pro Snooker Simulator that is currently missing. The question is, was it ever started? The game was released on the Commodore 64.

Popular Computing Weekly, and probably other magazines, featured and article in April 1987 that gave a call for developers to get in touch with a list of conversions that they needed.
One of those titles was Pro Snooker Simulator for the Commodore 16/Plus 4. Continue reading →

Posted in: C16 and Plus/4, Reviews | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Grand Prix Simulator

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

1987 Codemasters

Platform: Commodore 16/Plus 4

A very short entry for a Commodore 16/Plus 4 conversion of Grand Prix Simulator that is currently missing. The question is, was it ever started? The game was released on the Commodore 64.

Popular Computing Weekly, and probably other magazines, featured and article in April 1987 that gave a call for developers to get in touch with a list of conversions that they needed.
One of those titles was Grand Prix Simulator for the Commodore 16/Plus 4. Continue reading →

Posted in: C16 and Plus/4 | Tagged: | 1 Comment

Ghost Hunters

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

1987 Codemasters

Platforms: Atari 800 and MSX

A very short entry for an Atari 800 and MSX conversion of Ghost Hunters that is currently missing. The question is, were either ever started? The game was released on the Commodore 64 , Amstrad CPC and ZX Spectrum and was designed by the Oliver Twins (their first game on the ZX Spectrum too).

Popular Computing Weekly, and probably other magazines, featured and article in April 1987 that gave a call for developers to get in touch with a list of conversions that they needed.
One of those titles was Ghost Hunters for Atari 800 and MSX. Continue reading →

Posted in: Atari 400/800/XL, MSX, Reviews | Tagged: | 2 Comments

Armourdillo

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

1987 Codemasters

Platform: ZX Spectrum

A very short entry for a ZX Spectrum conversion of Armourdillo that is currently missing. The question is, was it ever started? The game was released on the Commodore 64.

Popular Computing Weekly, and probably other magazines, featured and article in April 1987 that gave a call for developers to get in touch with a list of conversions that they needed.
One of those titles was Armourdillo for the ZX Spectrum. Continue reading →

Posted in: Reviews | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Batman Returns missing features (Atari Lynx)

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

Been a while since we last did an unused materials/prototype post. This time we have a very quick one thanks to Ross Sillifant.

In the advert for Batman Returns on the Lynx, you’ll notice that there are a number of promised features which didn’t seem to make the final game (please correct us if we’re wrong!):

  • Bat-rope / grapping rope to access inaccessible areas
  • Gas Grenades (replaced by Acid Vials?)
  • No body shields for protection or making you more athletic.

It seems perhaps the advert was based from the initial design document for the game, and these features were cut?

Graphic designer Robb Mariani reveals:

“I was the lone Atari/ Chicago artist chosen to go out to Sunnyvale for “more horsepower” on the Batman Returns project. I was out there for around a month, if I recall. It actually was a nightmare!

Adding more graphic/ sprite animations (elaborate) – those cumulatively added up. Since we had maxed-out the background artwork, we were limited on overall memory. Hence some promised power-ups were eliminated.

As an artist, we wanted the game to look great. Programming was out of our control. Playability was another subject. Don’t shoot the artists – we rocked out!”

Gallery
Posted in: Atari Lynx, Prototype, Unused materials | Tagged: | 2 Comments

Pandemonium

Posted: by Frank Gasking

1992 Gremlin Graphics

Platforms: PC, Atari ST and Commodore Amiga

Our next entry into the archives is thanks to the brilliant preservation efforts of Mr Talida, who has been busy preserving all of Dave Lowe’s Amiga/PC disks of late. On one set of disks was what seemed to be a demo of a game called Pandemonium over 2 disks. Sadly the second disk couldn’t be backed up due to the disk coming away from its metal hub. Mr Talida hopes to fix this in the near future to preserve the missing files.

pan large1

We took a look at what remained, and found that the DOS demo does still run – but with at least half of the assets missing from the second disk, you get a blank screen for most parts. However, keep pressing space a few times and you’ll end up on a map screen where you can fly a balloon to a boat, before it gets stuck (as we can’t see anything else). Continue reading →

Posted in: Atari ST, Commodore Amiga, PC, Reviews | Tagged: | 4 Comments

Lethal Moves

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

1993 Radical Software

Platform: Amstrad CPC (possibly Plus range)

With the infamous Amstrad version of Street Fighter 2 never going to appear, a fan of the machine would take matters into their own hands back in 1993 with the development of Lethal Moves. Not without the nudge of a popular magazine of the time.

LethalMoves large

The game was being developed by Rob Buckley, who ran Radical Software in the early 1990s to try and save the Amstrad by producing and selling new games for the machine. After the fuss with Street Fighter 2, Amstrad Action asked Rob if he could develop a clone – and that they would really push it if he did. Continue reading →

Posted in: Amstrad CPC | Tagged: | Leave a comment