History WhatCouldHaveBeen / VideoGamesGToM

* ''VideoGame/HeavenlyGuardian'' would have been a sequel to the classic Creator/{{Taito}} arcade game ''VideoGame/KikiKaiKai'', but after Taito got bought out by Creator/SquareEnix, Square-Enix [[ScrewedByTheLawyers revoked the license]].

* ''VideoGame/HeavenlyGuardian'' would have been a sequel to the classic Creator/{{Taito}} arcade game ''VideoGame/KikiKaiKai'', but issues with Taito's parent company, Creator/SquareEnix, [[ScrewedByTheLawyers put an end to that]].

* ''[[Film/JurassicWorld Jurassic World]]'' by Cryptic Studios North was going to be a third person action game running on Unreal Engine 4, for Steam, Xbox Live and PSN, with the Velociraptor trainer Owen Grady as a playable character.

** According to footage in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAP0SF7xuWI this commercial,]] in an early build of ''Jet Set Radio Future'', Yoyo had a smaller health capacity and was able to hold more than 30 spray cans (notice how the spray can icon does not turn green).

** In ''Future'', Hayashi was originally going to use a katana. [[http://jsrf-inside.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/yeah-this-is-dj-professor-k-baby.html The second picture]] shows it.

** An issue of Nintendo power announced revealed to readers about a 32-bit ''Super Kid Icarus'' title coming to the SNES. Never mentioned again and no photos or footage exists.
** ''Icarus'', a game for the Wii made by Factor 5, the creators of the ''VideoGame/RogueSquadron'' game series. The game would have followed an older Pit who could fly without aid. The game would have been more mature, with Pit's design reflecting that. Nintendo rejected it since they felt the game was too much of a departure from the series, even former Factor 5 developers felt they were missing the point.
** ''Creator/RetroStudios'' attempted a pitch to make a new installment. Since they had no gameplay prototype to show, it didn't go through. One of the reasons ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'' exists is because gameplay was conceived before the decision to make it a Kid Icarus title was made.

** The game was originally supposed to have an entire other section in which you played an FBI agent named Jacob while he attempted to track down the cause of Heaven Smiles, and ultimately discovered that [[spoiler:Kun Lan was really an old man living in an insane asylum]].
** The original plot was supposed to have all been set up by [[spoiler:the aforementioned FBI agent]], utilizing a prediction machine called "Miss Jacob", whose probability of a correct prediction rose after each successful prediction and would, after 49 successful predictions, have a 1:1 chance of making a successful 50th prediction; as such he would be manipulating the appearances of the Heaven Smiles and the [=Killer7=]'s reactions to them, getting greater and greater probabilities from "Miss Jacob", in an attempt to use that guaranteed successful prediction to [[ClapYourHandsIfYouBelieve force a source of the Heaven Smiles, the "Last Shot Smile", into existence]], so he could kill it and [[NoOntologicalInertia eradicate them entirely]]. The supplementary ''Hand in killer7'' material is still based on this version of the story, which is [[MindScrew part of what makes the actual game so confusing]].

** The book ''VideoGame/HalfLife2: Raising the Bar'' reveals a lot of ideas that were removed from either ''VideoGame/HalfLife1'' or its sequel. Gordon Freeman went through a number of designs (despite never being seen anywhere but on the boxart), including one with a large beard and bulky olive-green HEV suit that was nicknamed "Ivan the Space Biker" by the production staff. Several major gameplay elements such as AI allies and the gunships targeting the player's rockets were created by accident. Along with the usual array of scrapped monsters and level designs, various characters were taken out or combined into one. Alyx Vance was originally the daughter of a military leader, Captain Vance. When the area he appeared in, the Air Exchange, was cut, so too was the character and Alyx became Eli's daughter. Just a few weeks before the announcement of the game, Alyx was a generic videogame heroine, with "a two-toned bodysuit with knee-high boots" and Dr. Breen spent much of the development cycle half-transformed into a Combine alien. Compare the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCEQaMD8yj4 final attack on White Forest in the original]] to the retail battle.
** The leaked beta contains much of the concepts unfinished or not, everything from the unfinished version of Eli talking about portal storms as being sentient beings to Captain Vance and the remnants of Earth's forces fighting the Combine with weapons that aren't in the final game, quite a bit of the storyline for better or worse was streamlined, merged, or cut out entirely. Originally there was supposed to be another day's worth of levels between Nova Prospekt and the rebel attack on City 17 (for references the entire finished game took place over less than three), hence why those two points were bridged by the "very slow teleport" that could simultaneously send you back to City 17 and fill some time for the rebels to get their act together.

** [[http://half-life.wikia.com/wiki/Mr._Friendly Mr. Friendly]], an enemy that was set to be in the first ''Half-Life''. It would be able to knock off Freeman's glasses and cause his vision to go blurred, which was considered an impressive effect for back then, but cut for being annoying. Also, it would kill Freeman by '''raping him'''.

** ''The Orange Box'' originally was meant to come in two forms - while the version we got included the already-released ''Half-Life 2'' and ''Episode One'' alongside the new ''Episode Two'', ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'', and ''VideoGame/{{Portal}}'', there were plans to release a cut-down version, "The Black Box", which only included the new stuff for a reduced price. This ended up being scrapped, though Valve did try to make up for it by introducing a system to give away extra copies of ''[=HL2=]'' and ''[=Ep1=]'' if you already owned them, and still honoring third-party deals to get the Black Box, such as through vouchers included with Radeon's then-new HD 2900 graphics card.

** Imagine what ''VideoGame/Halo2'' could have been if Bungie hadn't messed up during development (they basically wasted half of their allotted time creating a graphics and game engine that could never have been implemented on the Xbox hardware):
*** There were originally going to be levels aboard the Covenant Assault Carrier (there wasn't supposed to be a bomb aboard the ''Cairo''; Master Chief was originally going to jump off the ''Cairo'', obliterate all the Covenant inside the carrier, fight a new Covenant species which would have served as a boss battle, then take control of a Wraith and destroy the core of the ship) and a Forerunner ''Tank''. Also, the final few levels at the end of the game were supposed to be about the Master Chief going through Truth's ship and back to Earth.

** ''VideoGame/MystIVRevelation'' was initially intended to include another set of puzzles in Haven, involving animal tracks and dietary preferences. Technical delays led to these challenges being omitted from play, although clues that were intended to help complete the puzzle can still be found in Achenar's ship and elsewhere in that Age.

* Cyan Worlds came up with the concept for ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' as a proposal to Creator/{{Sunsoft}}... who only wanted the console rights, anticipating selling it for the [[UsefulNotes/SNESCDROM SNES CD-ROM]]. Cyan kept the PC rights, partnered with Creator/BroderbundSoftware, and the resulting game drove not only the genre but [=CD-ROM=] hardware as a whole. Given that the [=SNES CD-ROM=] never materialized in the first place, gaming could easily have been robbed of one of its most iconic products.

* Cyan Worlds came up with the concept for ''VideoGame/{{Myst}}'' as a proposal to Creator/{{Sunsoft}}... who only wanted the console rights, anticipating selling it for the UsefulNotes/SNESCDROM. Cyan kept the PC rights, partnered with Creator/BroderbundSoftware, and the resulting game drove not only the genre but [=CD-ROM=] hardware as a whole. Given that the [=SNES CD-ROM=] never materialized in the first place, gaming could easily have been robbed of one of its most iconic products.

* ''VideoGame/MystIVRevelation'' was initially intended to include another set of puzzles in Haven, involving animal tracks and dietary preferences. Technical delays led to these challenges being omitted from play, although clues that were intended to help complete the puzzle can still be found in Achenar's ship and elsewhere in that Age.

* ''VideoGame/InheritTheEarth: Quest For The Orb''. WordOfGod confirms: ''“Our biggest conflict was simple: the developers wanted something that was rather adult in nature. The publishers [[AnimationAgeGhetto saw animals and equated it with children]], and so forced us at every turn to cater to the 8-12 range, up to and including removing any death scenes to keep a Children's Rating.”'' And so, some of the deepest and most interesting foreshadowing never got anywhere.

** [[WordOfGod Rumor has it]] that there are three characters in ''Future'' who were DummiedOut in the Japanese version, and had their files removed in the American and European releases. Their names were reportedly Wave, Numa, and Check. However, due to copies of the Japanese version being ''[[CrackIsCheaper even more expensive]]'' [[CrackIsCheaper than copies of the American version]] (by itself, not with ''Sega GT''), no one has been able to confirm this. [[http://jetsetradio.wikia.com/wiki/Jet_Set_Radio_Future Information on this can be found here]].

** One could write a whole page about the original plans for ''[=KOF2001=]''. WordOfGod says that the game was originally meant to be an epic installment similar to ''97'', to wrap up the NESTS storyline. The game was said to return to the 3 vs 3 format, with a hero team consisting of K', Kula and Krizalid, who inexplicably returned. A sub boss team similar to ''97''[='s=] Orochi team was apparently planned, consisting of Ron, a cloned version of Krizalid, and Zero before fighting Father NESTS, the final boss. But then Eolith happened, and we got K' on his old team, Kula lumped in with Foxy and two of Eolith's creations, and Krizaild totally removed, though his voice clips remain in the game's files. Ron and the clone Krizalid became strikers for Zero, and NESTS was killed off in the cutscenes to make room for Eolith's new boss, Igniz. The validity of all this information is debated, but ''2001'' went on to become possibly the least popular game in the entire series, or at least the canon games. What could have been indeed…

** The "Birth by Sleep: Volume Two" secret ending of ''Birth by Sleep Final Mix'' hinted at a sequel for the PS Vita...[[WordOfGod that Nomura has now confirmed will not happen]], as [[ExecutiveMeddling executive producers]], for better or worse, thought there had been more than enough portable KH games, so the project was scrapped and focus was put solely on developing ''Dream Drop Distance'' and ''Kingdom Hearts III''.

* ''VideoGame/MightAndMagic VI'' was originally planned to take place on the world of the novels. When the world was changed to Enroth (the world ''VideoGame/HeroesOfMightAndMagic I and II'' had taken place on), the planned third novel in the trilogy fell through as well. One of the reasons it was specifically 3DO that bought New World Computing was that Jon van Caneghem wanted to make a ''Might & Magic Online'', and 3DO had just published [[VideoGame/{{Meridian59}} what was probably the first MMORPG]]. For various reasons, the project never managed to get off the ground, and it wasn't until ''years'' after 3DO went under that the fans heard about this.

** ''VideoGame/KirbyPlanetRobobot'' was a SpiritualSuccessor to ''VideoGame/KirbyTripleDeluxe''. The game would've brought back the Hypernova ability, but was eventually replaced with the Robobot Armor, most likely to avoid retreating old ground.

*** Luxord's Mystery Gear joke weapon was originally going to be a stack of ten-dollar bills, rather than a deck of cards shaped like four-leaf clovers.

** [[Characters/FinalFantasyX Rikku] was supposed to be in the first game, but was replaced by Yuffie after the developers thought it would be too confusing to have two characters with very similar names (Riku and Rikku). There was also a Bahamut summon planned at one point, which can be added back into the game by hacking, but selecting the option just causes the game to crash. Also, [[Characters/FinalFantasyVIII Irvine]] was also set to appear, but was replaced by Wakka.
** Older trailers of the first game showed many things that didn't get into the final release. For example, Riku having a scene at the top of Big Ben in Neverland, Kairi having a larger role at the end of Hollow Bastion, and Donald and Goofy using their classic cartoon outfits in battle, though those outfits eventually did show up in the game's epilogue.
** Before Sora, either WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck or Mickey was going to be the main protagonist; but since there was a lot of disagreement between who it would be, they created Sora.

** ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' characters like [[Characters/FinalFantasyX Rikku]] and [[Characters/FinalFantasyVII Vincent]] were also supposed to be in the first game (the former taking Yuffie's role, and the latter taking Cloud's, explaining the alterations to Yuffie and Cloud's costumes in the first game), along with ''Final Fantasy'' summons like Bahamut. Also, [[Characters/FinalFantasyVIII Irvine]] was also set to appear, but was replaced by Wakka.

** Marc Laidlaw, the head writer of the first two ''Half-Life'' games, [[https://github.com/Jackathan/MarcLaidlaw-Epistle3/blob/master/Epistle3_Corrected.md eventually released a plot summary for ''Episode Three'']] on his site after a decade of no progress being made on the game. It would be revealed that the Borealis had the ability to travel through time and space instantaneously, which would lead to Alyx and Judith getting into a debate over whether to destroy the ship or not. Alyx would eventually shoot Judith and pilot the Borealis towards the Combine's command center in a suicide attack, but would be teleported away by the G-Man before impact; leaving Gordon to be rescued by the Vortiguants. Breen would have also appeared again, having his consciousness copied into an Advisor body before his death.

*** The original game started development internally as a real time strategy game (essentially ''VideoGame/{{Myth}}'' [[RecycledInSpace Recycled]] [[AC:[[RecycledInSpace IN SPACE]]]],) but by the time it was publicly announced, it had become a third-person shooter with vast and seamless open environments, a WideOpenSandbox campaign set in a persistent world, and a far stronger emphasis on vehicle combat and CoOpMultiplayer with dozens of players; also, it was to be a simultaneous Mac and Windows release. The RTS concept eventually became ''VideoGame/HaloWars''. It was also stated by Creator/{{Bungie}} that the game was originally going to contain twenty-five missions rather than the ten that were shipped. One has to wonder why the ''Halo'' series as a whole was cut down so much.

*** The flashlight was originally meant to be an [[GunAccessories accessory]], only usable if the player had the Assault Rifle or Shotgun equipped. This was changed to be a helmet-mounted flashlight, though late enough in development that the light still changes direction with your weapon when reloading or [[PistolWhipping smacking Covenant in the face with it]].

*** Oh, and to top it all off, Bungie confessed that ''Halo 2'' and ''3'' were [[TwoPartTrilogy supposed to be one game]], which gives a plausible explanation as to why ''VideoGame/{{Halo 3}}'' was so short.
** ''VideoGame/{{Halo 3}}''. Guardian Level. Ripping out its eye and killing it with it. Yes, The Guardians, [[CutscenePowerToTheMax Really Killed By Us]]. ''The Art of Halo 3'' also showed a weapon that later became ''VideoGame/HaloReach'''s DMR, meant to replace the Battle Rifle.

*** NOBLE Team was originally going to escape the glassing of New Alexandria by hijacking a Covenant [[SpiderTank Scarab]], which the player would then ''personally pilot out of the city''.

*** NOBLE Team was originally going to be comprised of seven members, but was later slimmed down to six. Two ideas for Noble Seven remain as {{Development Gag}}s: Thom-A293 is the deceased Spartan whom Noble Six is replacing at the start of the game, while Rosenda-A344 is mentioned in background materials as a possible substitute for Emile should NOBLE Team be deployed against Insurrectionists.

* There were plans for a ''VideoGame/KidIcarus'' game for the Wii made by Factor 5, the creators of the ''VideoGame/RogueSquadron'' game series. The game would have followed an older Pit who could fly without aid. The game would have been more mature, with Pit's design reflecting that.

** ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'' was originally supposed to have areas based on [[UsefulNotes/NewYorkState upstate New York and Long Island]]. This was scrapped early in development, though references to an area called "[[ShoutOut the]] [[TheGreatGatsby Carraways]]" (presumably based on the Hamptons) still exist in the final product and in the [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIVTheLostAndDamned expansion]] [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIVTheBalladOfGayTony packs]].

* ''[[Videogame/MechWarrior MechWarrior Living Legends]]'' had an open BetaTest for 1.5 years [[ScrewedByTheLawyers before the lawyers of the new]], AllegedlyFreeGame yanked ''Living Legends'' non-commercial ''Mechwarrior'' license away [[note]]because they didn't want to "double up their efforts" to compete with a NoBudget game ([[DisproportionateRetribution with about a thousand players]]) that, embarrassingly, was pumping out content faster[[/note]]. 0.7.1 was the last release and the developer's swan song, incorporating multiple new vehicles and features along with a plethora of balancing. In a series of posts on the forums, the developers highlighted dozens of features that were in development but they didn't have the time to complete before being shut down, such as the series signature [[CharacterCustomization Mechlab]], over a [[http://forum.mechlivinglegends.net/index.php/topic,18950.0.html dozen new vehicles]] including the cherished ''Marauder'' mech and new PoweredArmor classes, game modes, [[http://forum.mechlivinglegends.net/index.php/topic,18955.0.html soundtrack]], plus {{blooper}}s from [[http://forum.mechlivinglegends.net/index.php/topic,19000.0.html alpha testing]].

* The ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheTempleOfDoom'' ArcadeGame started production around the same time as the film, and plans to make it a FullMotionVideo laserdisc game, which would require additional footage to be shot explicitly for it, were abandoned when the producers realized just how expensive that would be.

** ''VideoGame/Kirby64TheCrystalShards'' originally began as a sequel to Kirby's Cream Course titled "Kirby Bowl 64". One of the game's elements had Kirby riding on a warp star through the stage. When the developers decided to expand this concept the game became the Nintendo 64 version of ''VideoGame/KirbysAirRide''. The project would get shelved indefinitely and would then become Kirby 64.

* ''VideoGame/InheritTheEarth: Quest For The Orb''. WordOfGod confirms: ''“Our biggest conflict was simple: the developers wanted something that was rather adult in nature. The publishers [[AnimationAgeGhetto saw animals and equated it with children]], and so forced us at every turn to cater to the 8-12 range, up to and including removing any death scenes to keep a Children's Rating.”'' And so, some of the deepest and most interesting foreshadowing never got anywhere.

*** Mephisto was planned to make a {{Cameo}} appearance during one of Blackheart's super moves.

*** The iconic POWs originally were blue pallete swaps of Morden's troop. Furthermore, instead of giving items, rescued POWs would either climb to the top of the Metal Slug and fire their bazooka, or stay next to it and throw grenades.

* At one point, the original ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoClassic'' was conceived as a [[http://web.archive.org/web/20100714103007/http://www.gamepro.com/article/features/215761/creating-his-living-world-in-a-box/ Sim-esque open sandbox world]] that had the player interacting with '''dinosaurs''' that walk around the streets of a city. Later on in development, the game was called "Race N' Chase", and allowed players to take the role of a good guy catching criminals.
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoViceCity'' had a very strange case of this. Tear gas was available as a weapon in the first copies of the game, just to be removed completely in later editions.
* The ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'' mission "Saint Mark's Bistro" was originally going to have the player chase the target through the streets of Portland Island. Due to the large amount of work that implementing an entire district of a city for one mission, the mission was instead placed inside the Bistro.
* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIV'' was originally supposed to have areas based on [[UsefulNotes/NewYorkState upstate New York and Long Island]]. This was scrapped early in development, though references to an area called "[[ShoutOut the]] [[TheGreatGatsby Carraways]]" (presumably based on the Hamptons) still exist in the final product and in the [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIVTheLostAndDamned expansion]] [[VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoIVTheBalladOfGayTony packs]].