People had a lot of ideas for these games, but they were never finished.
The website Kickstarter is great because it lets people share their ideas with the world and lets people support the author by giving money to help them finish their project. Most of the time, there are different levels of promises that let people give more money and get extra goodies if the project gets funded. The project is only made and the people who promised money are charged if it meets its goals.
On Kickstarter, you can find projects for clothes, plush toys, board games, and of course video games. It looked like a lot of these projects would be great, and they even had excited fans, but they were stopped before they could even start.
Apocalypse Now
This project, Apocalypse Now, was put on Kickstarter on January 25, 2017, and it looked very promising. It was based on the movie of the same name. Not only did Apocalypse Now have the popular backing of a big movie, but it was also the brainchild of many big names in the gaming industry, who worked on big games like Gears of War and Fallout. Even Francis Ford Coppola, the director of the movie, supported the idea behind the game.
There was going to be a dip into psychological horror while the story of war went on. Other movies, like Jacob’s Ladder, have done a good job of exploring similar themes about war and how it affects people. This one could have been just as satisfying. Even though it had a lot of promise, it only raised $170,000 of its $900,000 goal through crowdfunding, and that amount was only a fifth of what it cost to make the whole thing. Its short, unsuccessful effort ended on January 27.
Rock Band 4 For PC
A lot of people love the rhythm game Rock Band. It lets players rock out to rock and alternative music tracks with controllers that look like guitars and speakers, making them feel like they are in the band. The fourth game, which came out on Xbox One and PlayStation 4, had more rock music and songs by famous bands like Elvis Presley and The Cure.
Rock Band 4 was supposed to come out on PC, which would have given developers another platform to reach players. There were even big plans to add Steam Workshop support, which would have let users make and share their own songs. With a crazy goal of $1,500,000, Penalty Kick Online had a very hard time getting approved. Harmonix’s hope for a PC version of Rock Band 4 ended on April 5, 2016, when they only raised $792,817.
Midnight Stranger
Many old games are being remade and reinvented for a modern audience on more modern gear, so the idea of remakes is not a new one. FMV games are unique because they combine video game characters and settings with real-life actors and actresses. Midnight Stranger is one of these games. The first version of Midnight Stranger came out in 1994. It’s a socializing experience that puts players in a club late at night and lets them play a realistic part.
As long as the stretch goals were met, the Kickstarter said the game would be available as a free browser game that could be played on current computers. But Midnight Strangers didn’t even reach its lowest goal of $13,000, which is one of the lowest goals ever set for a Kickstarter game project. That being said, it only raised $4,100, making it one of the worst Kickstarter projects ever.
Allison Road
After PT’s success and fame, many spiritual successors came out to offer gamers a replacement for the scrapped Silent Hills game. Allison Road looked like it might be the best of them. The prototype gameplay demo showed the game’s subtle story, which the player has to piece together as they walk through a house with looping halls that clearly took inspiration from PT’s. They have to stay alive while avoiding whatever dark entity is stalking the hallways.
Lilith shared their idea and project on Kickstarter in the hopes of getting the money they needed to make their dream come true. Fans didn’t trust Allison Road enough, though, as it only raised $186,949 (£145,959) of its $320,201 (£250,000) goal. Allison Road is now in limbo because its unsuccessful campaign finished in October 2015. The money is a lot, but all of it is lost. The creators said that work would continue with a new developer, but they haven’t posted anything on their social media in years. The idea is definitely dead, just like Silent Hills.
Ever, Jane
At first glance, an MMORPG set in the Regency era and based on the works of classical author Jane Austen doesn’t seem like it would be a big hit. However, Ever, Jane did look like it was going to take off, but it failed before it could be fully released. Unlike games like Final Fantasy 14 or World of Warcraft, its main gameplay was based on mystery and romance. It promised a unique experience that interested enough players to get funding for it.
It raised more than $100,000, with promises adding up to $109,563. People could get a taste of what the game would be like by playing closed betas and prototypes. Sadly, the game never came out fully, and in late 2020, the servers shut down because of money problems. People who played got a taste of what could have been. Even though people saw the promise and were willing to pay a subscription fee, Ever, Jane ended up being another failed Kickstarter project.
Shadow Of The Eternals
Shadows of the Eternals, a spiritual sequel to Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem, may have been heard of by fans of the game. It was supposed to be a survival horror game, and the people who worked on the first game were in charge of this one. Fans were hoping for a game that would be just as good as or even better than Eternal Darkness. There were screenshots and trailers to give people an idea of what the journey would be like and how it would play with their deepest fears.
The Kickstarter started with a big goal of $750,000, but fans only pledged $323,950, making it hard to reach the goal. After their first campaign didn’t work, Precursor Games tried a second one with a smaller goal, but it also didn’t get enough money. Even though the word “canceled” was never used, Shadows of the Eternal has been on hold since 2013. It is very unlikely that it will ever come back to life.
A Vampyre Story: Year One
As a possible follow-up to A Vampyre Story, Year One would have continued the story of vampiress Mona De Lafitte. It would have shown how she was locked up in Catle Warg, the same place she flees from in the first game, and how she met her friend Froderick the Bat. The second game in the series, A Vampyre Story: Year One, would have had point-and-click gameplay and a cute vampire story at its core. The first game was a cult favorite among fans, so the Kickstarter campaign for this one should have done well.
Unfortunately, the game was never made because it didn’t reach its goal. Year One only raised $77,413 of its $200,000 goal, and the Kickstarter ended in tears on July 1, 2013. Although this happened, work on the game continued for a while. However, it was never finished, so Vampyre players will never know what could have been.