Preserving Cancelled & Unreleased Video Game History Since 1999
Welcome to Games That Weren't!
We are an 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.
An interesting car racing game preview, where it seems you would have been able to win races and upgrade the spec of your car to compete again later on.
A lot of work seems to be still required, and the game was possibly abandoned at a mid-way stage. The playable element to it doesn’t really have much interaction at all, apart from allowing you to scroll up the map.
We’re not sure if this was intended for any commercial company, but hope to hear from the developer in the future to find out more.
A game that was due for release sometime in 1986, but has only just been released thanks to the efforts of the author, and English translation by Laxity.
It is a neat game where you control a tiny main character who has to get past a series of obstacles before moving onto the next screen. It’s a little bit clunky, and you can easily get stuck it seems, but it is a neat curiosity none the less, and a full game too!
We don’t know much else about the game at present and what the intentions were. We hope to hear from the author in the future. For now, check it out and enjoy for yourself!
A very early game where it seems you are meant to disable a set of fans within a simple 2D map. I think!
I’m not fully sure exactly what you are meant to do, but this preview was built back in 2014 and seems to have been abandoned. It probably didn’t get much further than this preview.
A short entry for a title that has been highlighted by Peter Weighill as one which is currently missing.
This was to be an adventure game, possibly a graphic text adventure which has the following blurb in the advert:
“Are you brave enough to save the Beautiful Princess Glasya. She has been abducted by the evil Death Master. Who is the Supreme Ruler of the Nation of Darkness? This is an adventure that will give you an experience you won’t soon forget!”
Sadly nothing more is known about the game and if it was ever actually sold at all. Can you help us find and preserve it?
A short entry for a title that has been highlighted by Peter Weighill as one which is currently missing.
A quiz game for 2 players or more, and billed as a “Terrific Party Game” and “No typing required”. Over 20 hours of play with no questions repeating and dozens of subjects available. Later on you would also be able to add your very own questions too.
Sadly nothing more is known about the game and if it was ever actually sold at all. Can you help us find and preserve it?
A short entry for a title that has been highlighted by Peter Weighill as one which is currently missing.
A small compilation of games including Tic Tac Toe, Slot Machine and 2 versions of Blackjack”‹. It is likely to be a compilation that was written in BASIC and sold only via mail order.
Sadly nothing more is known about the compilation and if it was ever actually sold at all. Can you help us find and preserve it?
A short entry for a title that has been highlighted by Peter Weighill as one which is currently missing.
As you might have guessed from the title, the game is a Craps simulation that was developed after years of actual casino play. Designed so that beginners can join in and challenge the most seasoned players too. There is the ability to play alone or against a computer player, with full colour and sound used throughout. It is likely that the game was coded in BASIC and only ever sold via mail-order.
Sadly nothing more is known about the game and if it was ever actually sold at all. Can you help us find and preserve it?
A short entry for a title that has been highlighted by Peter Weighill as one which is currently missing.
Described as an “Incredible Sailing Simulation”, the game supports up to two players as well. Martin/Stadium 64 has highlighted that there was a “Cup Challenge” game which seems to fit the description, and also includes a Kangaroo image on the loading screen, which features also in the Am-Cup advert. It could be just a co-incidence, and might be a logo from a famous Australian team perhaps – but its from the same era and could well be the same game:
Contributor Marc Walters has confirmed that the game is indeed the very same game as Cup Challenge. He had the following to say:
“Yes, this is the Australian game “Cup Challenge”. Andrew Farrell was editor, and later owner, of the newsstand magazine “Australian Commodore & Amiga Review”. The “PA” in the copyright notice is short for Prime Artifax, which was Farrell’s publishing business. Farrell also wrote “Forest Raiders” and “Typing Tutor”, which was a pack-in software title for the Commodore Australia’s Commodore 16 Family Pack. However, don’t mistake it for the other Australian America’s Cup sailing game from Microforte, called “Arnie’s America’s Cup Challenge”. That game was published in Europe as “America’s Cup Challenge” and by Activision in the USA as “The Official America’s Cup Sailing Simulation”.”
So it seems the game was picked up for US based release. Not sure exactly how different it would have been to the original game, but probably not much.
A short entry for a title that has been highlighted by Peter Weighill as one which is currently missing.
A game that was apparently two years in the making and described in the advert as follows:
“Have you ever wanted to pilot your own starship? Well commander, GALAXY PATROL will challenge you to the edge of the universe. You will encounter black holes, relentless Zugorian warriors, and mighty Zugorian warships, all displayed with up-to-date graphics. Great skill will be needed to land on planets. This one-player game also allows you to communicate with the enemy during combat. The future of free planets is in your hands!”
It seems that it may have been a kind of Elite/Star Raiders style game, which sounds pretty interesting.
Sadly nothing more is known about the game and if it was ever actually sold at all. Can you help us find and preserve it?
A short entry for a title that has been highlighted by Peter Weighill as one which is currently missing.
It seems to be an arcade game where you have to stop a ship from sinking. The advert described the game as follows:
“Sailor Joe has volunteered to stay behind and keep the ship afloat until his crew members are rescued. Can he make it or will he have to abandon ship? Patch the holes and seal off hopeless rooms while fighting invading sea creatures.”
Another advert details that it is a hi-res arcade style game that requires strategy and joystick skills. There are a total of 52 rooms in total within the HMS Black, including The Bridge, Engine Room, Armory and supply room.
Sadly nothing more is known about the game and if it was ever actually sold at all. Can you help us find and preserve it?
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