Movie tie-in titles were once a big cash cow in the gaming market. They provided a way to capitalize on an established property and practically guarantee a profit. Plus, on the off chance that they were of decent quality, then players could relive their favorite films in interactive form. Not all of these products made it to store shelves, though.
RELATED:Most Successful Video Game Movie Adaptations Never Released In The West
Several movie-based games met cancellation at various developmental stages. Many of these tie into hot properties and boasted some intriguing gameplay ideas, so they should have made their money back easily. This makes their demise all the more perplexing.
7Indiana Jones
Everyone’s favorite adventuring archaeologist saw a resurgence in the late 2000s. Not only was he getting a new movie inKingdom of the Crystal Skull, but he was also embarking onanother video game journeyon the PS3 and Xbox 360. The footage looked promising, thanks in no small part to the physics engine used inStar Wars: The Force Unleashed. Ultimately, though,Indiana Jonesmet the same fate as that unfinished trilogy.
The game saw numerous delays. Much of these stemmed from internal struggles. Finally, the game was canceled in 2009. Now, it’s just a curious piece of gaming history. To add insult to injury, it didn’t even get a spot in the museum.
6Star Wars 1313
TheStar Warssaga has seen no shortage of canceled titles, but the one that hurts the most for many fans is1313. Here, players take the role of a bounty hunter in the Coruscant criminal underworld, running and gunning their way through a slew of cinematic set pieces. This caused onlookers to label it, “Unchartedin Space,“which is no bad thing.
RELATED:Cancelled Star Wars Games You Never Knew Existed
Well,Disneyseemed to think it was. After acquiring theStar Warslicense and handing off the game rights toEA, the House of Mouse started with a clean slate. As such, most projects in development met untimely ends. That’s the way it went for1313.
5The Dark Knight
Christopher Nolan’s secondBatmanfilm is among the most successful blockbusters ever. Of course, any studio would want a tie-in game to further capitalize on that success, and EA sought to do just that withThe Dark Knight.
To do this, they recruited Pandemic Studios: the folks behind large-scale war games likeStar Wars: BattlefrontandThe Lord of the Rings: Conquest. They aimed to translate that scale to an open-world action-stealth title here. Players would freely explore Gotham City and combat its criminal element with Batman’s high-tech arsenal and shadowy tactics. Sadly, shifting direction mid-development and failing to meet deadlines caused EA to cancel the game. On the upside,fans later saw the same concept and systemsin Rocksteady’sArkhamseries.
4Pirates Of The Caribbean: Armada Of The Damned
ThePirates of the Caribbeanfilms showed that there was a market for seafaring scallywags. Fans had seen several titles based on those movies, but developer Propaganda Games saw the potential to expand beyond the exploits of Captain Jack Sparrow. It’s a big ocean, after all.
The designers aimed to take advantage of that with an open-world RPG. Players could sail the mystical Caribbean waters with their own ship and crew, alternating between land and naval combat. Unfortunately, Disney’s restructuring led to the ambitious project’s cancellation, but elements of it still popped up in subsequent releases. The musical score created for the game was used inLEGO Pirates of the Caribbean, andplayers got their free-roaming plunder and pillage fixwithAssassin’s Creed 4: Black Flag. Even better, the upcomingSkull & Boneslooks to carry that baton into the next generation.
3Kill Bill
This should have been a perfect fit with the subject matter.Quentin Tarantino flickshave always been violent affairs, and this one has a healthy dose of hack-and-slash action. Vivendi sought to translate that simple formula to a video game in the early 2000s. What’s more, is that Tarantino himself was onboard as a consultant.
It’s all the more perplexing, then, how quickly the hype evaporated. The project went quiet for unknown reasons, and the game never saw the light of day. Vivendi being swallowed up byActivisionwas the final nail in the coffin.
2Casino Royale
This is ironic considering the impact thatJames Bondhas had on the gaming industry,revolutionizing first-person shooters withGoldenEye 007. The spy series went back to basics with 2006’sCasino Royale, and EA sought to complement the reboot with a tie-in. Sadly, this title saw a swift cancellation when it couldn’t meet the film’s release. The resulting money loss caused a fallout between EA andMGM.
RELATED:Project 007: Things We’d Love To See In The Upcoming James Bond Game
This freed Activision andTreyarchto form a new alliance with the Bond property, releasing aQuantum of Solacegame in 2008. Though based on the eponymous sequel, the tie-in also lets fans play throughCasino Royale. It’s similar to how theLord of the Rings: The Two Towersgame incorporatedThe Fellowship of the Ringinto its level selection, giving fans two titles for the price of one. In that sense, it’s hard to complain about the way things turned out.
1Spider-Man 4
Here’s a rare case of cancellation on two fronts.Spider-Mangames usually proved popular. That only amplified with the video game tie-in of 2004’sSpider-Man 2,which finally fulfilled the promise of swinging around an open-world New York City. WhileSpider-Man 3wasn’t as successful–as a movie or game–director Sam Raimi resolved to redeem the series with the next entry. As such,Prototypedeveloper Radical Entertainment aimed to do the same.
Sadly, the filmmaker’s falling out withSonyand subsequent franchise reboot meant that theSpider-Man 4game was also canned. That said, the webhead saw many more games–some based on comics and others drawing from the rebootedAmazing Spider-Manflicks–but audiences would see no more titles inspired by the Raimi films. That is if you don’t countFriend or Foe, which most fans don’t.
