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.

Latest News and Posts

World Class Rugby SNES Prototype

Posted: by Frank Gasking

Today we add a very different and early prototype of World Class Rugby for the Super Nintendo, dated from July 1992, and some time before the final release. The engine seems quite different from the final version, with completely different sprites and a different pace about the game.

rugby large

When starting the prototype, it begins with a 2.5D viewpoint and kicks off a demo game, but pressing start on the control pad will flip you to a Mode 7 tilted viewpoint to play the game. You can control the blue set of players, kick the ball and take part in scrum and other actions within the game. Continue reading →

Posted in: Prototype, Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Sorcerer

Posted: by Frank Gasking

1999 Chris Pigas

Platform: Game Boy

Our next entry into the archives is a title that was being created by Chris Pigas called Sorcerer. An early and simple platformer, featuring a protagonist looking rather like Miner Willy from Manic Miner, where you can roam freely around a single level and fight with enemies.

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Within the game, you can advance your magic levels and increase your experience, mana or health by picking up bonuses left after the destruction of enemies. Picking items – an important feature of the game play – is not implemented at this stage. As a result, harder enemies are not placed into this build. Transition from level to level is also not implemented, nor has different element firing. Continue reading →

Posted in: Nintendo Game Boy, Reviews | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Gilbert Goodmate

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

1998 Crystal Interactive

Platform: Commodore Amiga
Also known as: Gilbert Goodmate and the Mushroom of Phungoria

Our next entry is for a Monkey Island inspired graphic adventure game called Gilbert Goodmate which was eventually released on PC, but was due to have a release on the Amiga too. The game started out originally as a hobby project in 1996. It got picked up originally by Alive Mediasoft, before being picked up by Crystal Interactive with plans for release in 1998.

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It seems that this was another casualty of a fading Amiga market at the time, and so the focus was switched to the PC edition – which eventually saw release in 2001, published by FastTrak Software. Continue reading →

Posted in: Commodore Amiga, Reviews | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Ifigonia

Posted: by Frank Gasking

1985 Quickly

Platforms: ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 (GTW64 entry)

Our next entry into the GTW archives is a slightly controversial title due to its rather risqué advertisement that featured in the Italian press at the time. Ifigonia was an erotic/adult themed text adventure, with graphics created by artist Mauro Mazza. The game was based on a poem from 1928.

After a few adverts for the ZX Spectrum, C64 and Amstrad CPC – the game disappeared without a trace, and some even wondered if it was a hoax of some kind. One magazine (Sperimentare) showed a rather different looking cover-art case and talked about the game. We don’t think they actually review it, as the details about the title are quite vague. It is mentioned though that the graphics would be a mixture of comic-like graphics and animations throughout. Continue reading →

Posted in: Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 (C64), ZX Spectrum | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Podcast appearance with Mamemeister

Posted: by Frank Gasking
I had the pleasure of being a guest on the “Nice and Nasty Gaming Podcast” with Mamemeister recently! We chatted about Games That Weren’t, how I first got into gaming, and picked out three games I’d take to a desert island… and three I’d happily launch into the sun!
 
If that sounds like your thing, you can have a listen here on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5hZzC1TwOxahT569p5ETyX

Or you can also listen via YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW81sZ90DG0

Posted in: GTW64 news, News | Tagged: | Leave a comment

The Lion King – Game Gear prototype

Posted: , last updated: by Frank Gasking

Another week, and another prototype with the release of a very early build of The Lion King for the SEGA Game Gear. The game was eventually released in 1994, but this prototype is dated 25th April 1993, and when you take a look you’ll see that were was a lot of work still left to do.

UPDATE: I’ve just realized that Codebound had already recovered this particular prototype back in January 2025. Apologies, i’d completely missed it and will try and check in future!

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From the title screen, you can select various Alpha state levels, though a number are not yet implemented. Those that are available are very early stage, with enemies and graphics missing in places. Some elements just have place holders at this stage. Continue reading →

Posted in: Prototype, SEGA Game Gear, Unused materials | Tagged: | Leave a comment

The Grid

Posted: by Frank Gasking

1995 D3 / Phoenix Interactive

Platform: PC DOS

Our next entry within the Games That Weren’t archives is an early PC development for a space shooter known as The Grid, developed by D3 for Phoenix Interactive in 1995. Little is known about the game at this stage apart from what we have gleaned from an early demo and various concept screens.

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Thankfully we have been able to recover a very early demo, where you can move around a small flat texture shaded area in a “Descent” like way, with pillars as obstacles and various hover sleds that you can shoot with laser cannons. The hover sleds just move around and don’t have any real AI at this stage. Continue reading →

Posted in: PC, Reviews | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Viking

Posted: by Frank Gasking

1990 New Deal Productions

Platforms: Commodore Amiga and Atari ST

Viking was to be an ambitious adventure game that was to cast you as a Viking warrior (e.g., Erik, Leif, or Thorwald) with the ultimate goal of living a worthy life and earning a place in Valhalla. Rather than following a strict storyline or mission structure, the game would encourage freedom, exploration, and role-playing, allowing you to create your own saga.

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The idea was that you would begin by undertaking one of four initiation quests, such as hunting or trying to gain permission to leave your village. After building your long ship and selecting your crew (whose qualities impact gameplay), you set sail on an expansive journey through 13 seas, 72 rivers, and over 200 cities, villages, and abbeys across Europe, Africa, and even the New World. Continue reading →

Posted in: Atari ST, Commodore Amiga, Reviews | Tagged: | Leave a comment

Student game development project archives

Posted: by Frank Gasking

Thanks to contributor Starlord, this post links to collection of student projects that were created at The Game Assembly in Malmö, Sweden, showcasing some incredible new talent in games development. These were once briefly made publicly available online, but were eventually removed (possibly when the student year had finished).

Thankfully several games were preserved by Starlord, and these have been made available once more here for posterity. Due to the size, we’ve uploaded to Archive.org. Over time, we’ll add more as they come to light and add to the archive links below.

Archive links

Posted in: PC, Preservation | Tagged: , | Leave a comment

Nigel Mansell’s World Championship Racing NES prototype

Posted: by Frank Gasking

Yet another NES prototype for you today, with the release of an earlier build of Nigel Mansell’s World Championship Racing by Gremlin. The game was released in mid-late 1993, though this prototype is dated the 29th September 1992.

nigel large

This particular build was being used by another development team as a reference point for a new conversion. It seems very close to the final version, though there are a number of differences throughout – including a 1992 date on the title screen and credit differences, and minor colour changes on the game panel (especially the “tires” and “behind” segments).

In addition to this, we noticed that the game seems to have been sped up in the final version, and in this prototype – the road routine seems a lot slower paced. There are likely some other enhancements and fixes with the road routine too. Continue reading →

Posted in: Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Prototype | Tagged: | 4 Comments