The Best Video Games Never Made

[CountDVB]

Ghost Rider (2017)
Platform: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows
Developer: Capcom

Ghost Rider, later retitled as Ghost Rider I, is a 2017 action-adventure game developed and published by Capcom. Based on the Marvel comics antihero, Ghost Rider, it tells an original narrative that is inspired by the comic book mythos though with a unique version of the character made for the game. The narrative also takes prominent influence from Judeo-Christian mythos and demonology. The gameplay is also heavily inspired by the Devil May Cry series, also developed by Capcom.

The story stars a 'lost' iteration of the Ghost Rider that was active over in the 2000s simply named D. According to D, he was bound to a powerful spirit of vengeance named Sam, and both of whom need to work together to regain their lost names. They are promised by an angel that if they go and hunt down various demons, they will be able to go and reclaim what they have lost. The two are joined by the new Ghost Rider of the 2010s in Robbie Reyes along with various other occult characters such as Nico Minoru, Daimon Hellstrom, and various others. The antagonists are various demons from the Marvel universe with the villain here being Kazann, a powerful fallen angel. While Kazann manages to deny the two their objective, he is forced to admit the circumstances they were sealed was because they were becoming too dangerous in the eyes of certain powers and so were tricked into self-sacrifice.

The game had a troubled development cycle due to the lack of direction of where to take it and languished for a while. However, a new team picked up on it and would go in a wildly new direction. The head writer noted he wanted the series to stand out from the rest of the Riders and took inspiration from Devil May Cry's Dante. As he put it, "D relishes being a superhero, especially one like the Ghost Rider. He embraces the occult madness of his life, but also enjoys helping people. He's pretty optimistic and friendly, especially in his line of work. He's also pretty grounded in a way. " D was meant to be a placeholder name, but stuck as the first letter of his name.

Additionally, the result of the troubled writing meant the team had plenty of leeway, including in name-dropping or even including various lesser-known characters. The writing team in particular used it as a chance to allude to various stories and other heroes, especially younger ones. Gameplay-wise, it has been described as a simplified version of Devil May Cry, with the Ghost Rider using a combination of the hellfire chain, firearms and magic to go and take down his enemies. In fact, Capcom noted the game served to help come up with concepts in Devil May Cry 5. The game doesn't focus as much for realistic graphics, having a bit of a stylized artstyle (including some inspiration from anime) along wth a decent soundtrack.

The game would be quite successful financially and criticially. For hardcore Marvel fans, they've enjoyed the numerous references to younger heroes such as the Young Avengers and the like. The game would also have some influence in the comics. One notable example would be the rise of the "NiRob" ship, that of the pairing between Robbie Reyes and Nico Minoru; this would end up influencing the upcoming Runaways comic. Overall, the game's success would confirm the path over for a sequel game.

 

[Spektroid]

VFL: Video Football League (2002)
Developed by Retro Studios
Published by Nintendo
Platforms: Nintendo GameCube

A screenshot from early on in development, when the game was still titled NFL Retro Football
​

In 1998, Nintendo, alongside Iguana Entertainment founder Jeff Spangenberg, founded Retro Studios in Austin, Texas, with the intent of using it to develop more "mature" games for their at the time upcoming console, the Nintendo GameCube. Shortly afterwards, Retro would get to work on their first four projects - an action adventure game that would turn into Metroid Prime, a role-playing game named Raven Blade, a vehicular combat game similar to Twisted Metal named Thunder Rally, and a football game. From the very beginning, VFL's development was rocky; the game began life as a pitch for a Mario football game, before turning into a regular football simulator with the NFL license, due to Nintendo's insistence on having Retro develop more "mature" games. Later on, in the year 2000, Shigeru Miyamoto stopped by Retro to see how all four games were coming along. He expressed disappointment in most of them, but was impressed by the action adventure game (called MetaForce at the time) and recommended they use the Metroid license for it. This suggestion would not only save MetaForce, but also VFL, which, up until this point, had been named NFL Retro Football. Before then, Retro was concerned that the game would sell poorly, due to the existence of the Madden NFL, NFL 2K, and NFL Blitz franchises - all of which were coming to the GameCube. However, the team working on NFL Retro Football were inspired by Miyamoto's suggestion to the MetaForce team to use the Metroid license - one which had remained dormant since the Super Nintendo era - to look into Nintendo's past for inspiration. And thus, with a few tweaks and the removal of the NFL license, NFL Retro Football was reborn as VFL: Video Football League, a game heavily inspired by and taking place in the same universe as the Punch-Out franchise. This would end up being the turning point for the game's development, as while Raven Blade and Thunder Rally would be delayed to allocate more resources to the development of Metroid Prime, VFL managed to squeeze by and release around the same time as Metroid Prime.

Since its release in 2002, VFL has been praised by many as one of the best football games of all time, with its story mode in particular going on to inspire other games such as Blitz: The League and Madden NFL 18's Longshot mode. The game was also a financial success, leading to more games within the series being developed and cementing VFL's status as a mainstay franchise on Nintendo consoles, even receiving a stage and multiple trophies in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Gameplay
You play as "The Kid", an unnamed rookie quarterback who has just been drafted by the Brooklyn Shock, the worst team in all of the Video Football League. While the Shock were once a force to be reckoned with, their luck would come crashing down in 1952, when their star quarterback was exposed as a dirty cheater, leading to their championships being revoked and allowing their arch-rival, the New York Dragons, to rise to prominence. Since then, the Shock have been the textbook definition of a poverty franchise, consistently placing last within the league. As their new QB, it's your job to get this ragtag franchise through the 2002 season, cooperating with the Shock's head coach, offensive coordinator, and the other players on the team to bring the franchise to heights it hasn't seen since the 1950s.

Like Punch-Out, the game's story mode sees you going up against different opponents, whose strategies and difficulty differ from one another. Take the Milwaukee Badgers, for example - as your first opponent within the season, they're absolute pushovers. Meanwhile, the New York Dragons are much tougher, both when you face them in the regular season and especially within the Video Bowl, where they act as the game's final bosses. Other teams may have certain areas of specialty that you'll have to account for; the Atlanta Beasts have a strong defense, but are incompetent offensively, and the Detroit Drifters would be unnotable if it weren't for the fact they have one of the best RBs in the entire league. In total, the story mode is comprised of 16 games - 10 within the regular season, 5 within the playoffs, and the Video Bowl, this game's equivalent to the Super Bowl. While you can technically progress after losing a game in the regular season, if you lose more than 5 games, you'll be disqualified from the playoffs.

In addition to the story mode, the game also contains an exhibition mode, in which you can play as any team against any other team. The roster of teams you can pick from includes:

• Brooklyn Shock​
• New York Dragons​
• Columbus Generals​
• Boston Pirates​
• Atlanta Beasts​
• Houston Cobras​
• Miami Warriors​
• Dallas Bandits​
• Los Angeles Firebirds​
• Portland Orcas​
• Nevada Vultures​
• Denver Bighorns​
• Chicago Clowns​
• Detroit Drifters​
• Milwaukee Badgers​
• Toronto Stags​

 

[CountDVB]

Ghost Rider II (2020)
Platform: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Playstation 5, Xbox X/S, Windows
Developer: Capcom

Ghost Rider II is a 2020 action-adventure game developed and published by Capcom. It is the sequel to Ghost Rider I, released back in 2017. The game follows up on the plot elements left behind from the first game, which sees D and Sam continue to wage war against the forces of Hell alongside their allies in a bid to regain their lost names and subsequent memories. While the combat remains simple enough for beginners to pick, it has also been fleshed out more, especially with the success of Devil May Cry 5. The game would end up being released in early 2020 and see prominent success, especially thanks due to the lockdowns caused by COVID.

The game takes place a couple years after the events of the last game, which sees D as the Lost Ghost Rider tracking down various demons for information on the incident that led to him and Sam losing their power. The past few years have seen their threat escalate to where the seven prominent archdemons of Hell decide to go and try to kill the two of them before they go and fully destroy the system of power within Hell. Meanwhile, some of the other forces of Hell see this as their change to try and get their own power. The story sees D and Sam track down and begin fighting the various Archdemons, all while communicating with various other more obscure heroes and the like.

However, the big twist would come in the middle of the story. After killing Asmodeus, Beelzebub and Mammom, the Archdemons of Lust, Gluttony and Greed respectively, they face against the Satan himself, the great adversary. At the end of the fight however, he and Sam end up merging together and revealing the truth. Sam gains his full name: Samael, one of the mightiest archangels and being "the Poison of God". Samael once functioned as the Satan, as the accuser of humanty. However, he would be struck down by other forces for being a threat. While this does continue on the fight, Samael getting his whole identity back begins driving a wedge between him and D. This would climax over after the duo defeat Lucifer himself, as the Archdemon of Pride. D and Samael would seperate, due to the contract being fulfilled. However, Samael declines to join back with D due to having his celestial duties of being a destroyer. After an unbeatable boss fight, D is sent back down to Earth. While defeated, he remains unbroken and claims he will continue fighting, believing the war against Hell isn't over.

The game garnered critical acclaim and sales due to the flashier presentation and theatrics. The gameplay got some improvements and many were surprised by the twist over at the end there. Many also enjoyed the growing interactions between the Lost Ghost Rider and various other characters. Either through side missions or just through dialogue while traveling through areas. This includes interactions and even conversations with members of the Young Avengers, the Runaways, the Power Pack or other obscure heroes. According to the writing team, it is a reminder of D being a younger hero along with world-buiding and storycrafting (such as building the NiRob ship, giving advice to the Runaways or so on). They claim that it also helps sow the seeds for future games in this continuity. The game also has various homages to some of the bigger name heroes and villains here, both in audio and other inclusions. From D's mention of Stephen Strange (discussing Nico's apprenticeship under him) to him being a fan of Spider-Man. Speaking of Spider-Man, many would be bemused to learn the Lost Rider's vehicle of choice is a motor-scooter, which some saw as a shoutout to the Raimi's Spider-Man 2. Overall, the game was considered another success and many wondered if there would be a third game.

 

[CountDVB]

Ghost Rider III (2024)
Platform: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Playstation 5, Xbox X/S, Windows
Developer: Capcom

Ghost Rider III is a 2024 action-adventure game developed and published by Capcom. It is the sequel to Ghost Rider II, released back in 2020. As a result of how the contract was written regarding the planned games, versions of the game for the Xbox One and Playstation 4 would still be made despite the release of the game being 2024. The game follows up the events of the previous game, which would see Samael leave D for unknown heavenly goals and D promising to track him down and continue being a rider. The game would spend plenty of time in development, focusing on content and replayability first and foremost.

Taking place years after II, it would see D having returned over into becoming a Ghost Rider though rather than having his purple flames (when he was bonded with Samael), he would have none other than dark gray flames. It would be revealed that D has bonded with a new prominent spirit, Azrael, a prominent psychopomp and the Angel of Death during Samael's absence. Additionally, Azrael is also an archangel in Islamic lore. D's contract with Azrael was done to deal with the fallout of the death of the Archdemons and deal with the other Hell Lords. Additionally, the two go and deal with other missions and sides, linked to tracking down Samael. Additionally, the playstyle has changed a bit with some new special moves in the like reflecting the changed spirit and the like, being more defensive and meticulous compared to the more aggressive style over of the old one.

The game is larger than the previous two and showcases even more focus on the characters. One major note is the inclusion of the other Ghost Riders: while Robbie Reyes appeared since the beginning, Johnny Blaze and Daniel Ketch were only alluded to in the previous games. However, they would finally appear here and would be suprisingly heartwarming. Blaze was active in the late 1970s to the 1980s as a Ghost Rider and would manage to achieve a form of retirement, settling down and even having a family. He returns from retirement after a sabbatical has him embrace the side of being a Rider along with finding a balance wth his family (though with Blaze in his 60s, his children have families of their own by now.) Ketch meanwhile was active in the 1980s and the 1990s and would go through similar troubles before finding his own happy ending, settling with Alejandra Jones, who was his partner Rider for a while.

Other major characters appear, usually in the missions and correspondance over with D, especially the younger heroes. However, perhaps one shock would be the revelation of D's girlfriend... none other than Sooraya Qadir, aka the mutant superheroine Dust. Despite the shock, the two have a surpisingly touching and caring relationship there. It's also revealed that part of the reason D bonded with Azrael is for her approval (given how Azrael is considered as important as Micheal, Gabriel and Raphael in Muslim lore). Dust is portrayed as a bit exasperated, but very touched by his grandiose talks of affection. One particular sweet moment comes from a long mission resulting in D giving Dust a niqab made of Unstable Molecules (the same material that the Fantastic 4 outfits are made of), with him stating it would make her superheroing much easier and protecting her from the elements (such as water, intense wind and intense heat). He also notes further niqabs are made, but he wanted her to have at least one promptly. It also implies that D has also been in Afghanistan, helping her deal with the terrorists (he also notes they haven't needed to go in months) along with learning some Pashtun and Arabic (with him implying he's taught her Spanish).

Regarding the plot, the Hell Lords are seen are those of Marvel lore though some (such as Mephisto) were absent in the story (it's revealed a couple were saved over with DLC). The bosses included those like Satannish, Belasco, Blackheart, and even a couple of the Fear Lords trying to exploit the power vaccuum. The final boss would be none other than Samael himself, who was also busy, but it's clear that his personal darkness has been taking over. So you and your allies fight him with his concubines (including Lilith) to go and remind him of who he is. It's left open-ended if D rejoined with Samael or if Azrael is with him instead, though you do unlock the original moveset with Samael after you've beaten the story. The game also surprises players with DLC missions with two major ones. One focuses over on D dealing with Mephisto (with the plot loosely based on the Heroes Reborn storyline) along with allusions to One More Day. Another one has D fight none other than Cthon, the elder god of dark magic to save Wanda, here aided by a reunion of the Young Avengers (it also counts as the first time Teddy Altman interacts with his father in Mar-Vell, albeit the latter as a ghost. It's a touching moment and the first Marvel gives his son a parting gift, a bit of his power. This allows Teddy to fly without shapeshifting wings among a couple other tricks.)

The game is considered a standout success. Many enjoyed the growing character interactions and complex parts of the story, namely in how one goes about when a partnership is broken and you succeeded in a major goal. Many praised the evolving gameplay even with the confusion in learning the new style. One note of the game was how much it embraces the 2000s era nostalgia that was starting to bloom at the time. The soundtrack and the visuals were oozing with 2000s era charm and style to it, which was already indulgent with how the music direction borrowed from its DMC inspiration. Many also loved the inclusion of further characters within the story, creating a distinct lore that sees focus on some of the neglected heroes. This would have even bigger ramifications over as it is debated whether D would be introduced over within the comics (the current concensus is the writer is open to it, but negotiations are stalled by editorial." While there have not been any confirmatons of a new game, any felt if it was jsut a trilogy, it'd be more than acceptable.

 

[kinnikuniverse]

Fuck, man, i shouldn't have written the Kenshin Last Blade thing...

 

[Nivek]

Fuck, man, i shouldn't have written the Kenshin Last Blade thing...

Why it was OK

 

[Duke Andrew of Dank]

Right now I'm thinking of my idea for a take on a direct sequel to Super Princess Peach, and wanted feedback on some ideas.

- It'd be developed by Midway Studios, which in TTL is also the studio that produces Mario Kart titles from Double Dash onwards.
- Wapeach, Wario, and Waluigi are working for Tatanga the main villain.
- Princess Peach and Princess Daisy are both the playable character, with Peach trying to rescue her kid brother Prince Cream from the Waru Gang who kidnapped him.
- No vibe scepter or anything like that this time.

 

[Duke Andrew of Dank]

Super Mario Bros: Plumbers & Princesses (2006)
Platform: Nintendo-Phillips DualScreen (DSN)

Famously the first 2D Mario adventure in the decade since Super Mario World 3 in 1994, this game took the classic Mario formula, added a dash of modernity from 3D Mario, a twist of inspiration from Rare's Donkey Kong Country trilogy, and shook well. This results in a game with several quality of life improvements over the past titles, most notably the omission of time limits in each level. The graphical style of this game takes an art style of OTL's Super Princess Peach, and combines it with the essentials of the gameplay featured in the original Super Mario World trilogy on the SNES. Our game has our four heroes; Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, and Princess Daisy; pursue Bowser, Kamek, and Bowser Jr after they kidnap Peach's younger brother Cream, who was kidnapped by Bowser and Bowser Jr. Each player character has their own unique physics in gameplay - Mario is the jack-of-all-trades with good speed and jump height, Luigi has poorer traction but higher speed and jump height, Peach is the slowest of the characters but also can glide using her dress, and Daisy is faster than Peach but can't glide as far.

The game also features limited voice acting and cutscences, with them being mainly used to depict the player characters reacting to various events in the story, and some of these reactions change depending on the character. For instance when Bowser is reduced to Dry Bowser at the end of World 1, Mario just stares on at Bowser, or Luigi looks away with his cap over his eyes, or Peach covers her mouth in horror, or Daisy gives Bowser a taunting gesture as if to say "haha serves you right". The three main villains also have some dialogue, for example the aeformentioned cutscene ends with Kamek swearing he'll make the player character pay as he takes off with Prince Cream in tow. The music is supervised by Koji Kondo and composed by Asuka Ohta and Hajime Wakai, with many of the themes from OTL's NSMBDS being featured in this game, albeit with several more unique tunes included for the different variety of overworlds to increase variety.

As usual for the 2D Mario games, many of the traditional power-ups appear from the original NES and SNES titles. Among these are the Super Mushroom, Fire Flower, Ice Flower, Frog Suit, Starman, and Mini Mushroom. A new power-up also appears in the form of the Mega Mushroom, which causes player character to briefly grow to a humongus size and be near invincible for a few seconds. Another power-up that's new to this game is the Blue Shell, which lets players slide like a Koopa shell to make faster progress - this one is a favorite of speedrunners. The player characters also are able to use several moves that were previously limited to 3D Mario games like the ground pound, wall jump, and triple jump to make some of the more challenging sections easier.

In the overworld, player characters can meet with Toadette for clues about where new collectables known as Star Coins are hidden in each level. These Star Coins are hidden in secret bonus rooms where the player must complete a mini-game to earn them. The Star coins are key to unlocking every level due to them being used to open various paths in the overworld. All the Star Coins are also required to reach a secret level in each world, which in turn unlocks a pathway to the special world. Toadsworth also appears to offer power-ups to the heroes on their quest via minigames.

The story, as detailed in the instruction manual, begins as the plumbers and princesses, along with Toadette and Toadsworth, are enjoying a picnic in a place known as Herb Country while Peach's younger brother Cream plays in the nearby meadow. However, a cloud of lightning suddenly strikes a nearby town and the heroes go into the town to see if everything is okay. They return just in time to catch Kamek in the act of capturing Cream, and immediately bolt after Kamek in pursuit. There are a total of eight regular games in this world, with one additional world that serves as the post-game secret world once the main game is completed. Interestingly, the Koopalings are absent from this game in favor of more original bosses, the majority of which are the same bosses from OTL's NSMBDS. The minibosses of the worlds make for simpler but still fun confrontations. In keeping with the setting's herb and spice motif, the worlds in this game are named after various herbs and spices.

Basil Coastline: Your mundane grassland/beach world which also includes some underground worlds, with Bowser Jr being fought in a tower. Much like OTL, the final confrontation of this world is Bowser, who gets dipped in lava and reduced to Dry Bowser by the bridge being collapsed.

Tumeric Flatland: A desert world where most of the time is spent exploring the remains of a Pueblo-like civilization and in some cases, as well as a midboss fight with Kamek. Concluding this world is a confrontation with a mummified Pokey.

Ginger Beach: The fusion of beach and underwater world motifs as the heroes venture through water levels and along a beach. The midway boss is a quartet of Reznors, which a large Cheep-cheep as the final world boss.

Mustard Swamps: This jungle level is filled with poisonous yellow water which the heroes must avoid as much as possble, with a haunted house level or two added in. Pom-Pom appears as a midway boss, with the final boss being King Goomboss, who's grown in size and must have his head ground-pounded.

Peppermint Plateau: A snowy overworld which involves climbing the snowy trees, exploring icy caverns, and even a ghost house. The midway boss here is a horde of Chargin Chucks, with Petey Pirahna as the final boss.

Allspice Caves: This cave world has a prehistoric theme, including lots of dinosaurs skulls but with the addition of journeys through abandoned mines. Boom-Boom is fought as a midway boss with the main boss being a monty mole who shoots bullet bills at you from a tank.

Oregano Industries: Located on the other side of the Allspice Caves, this world includes travelling through hazardous industrial areas to reach a midway boss fight with Kamek, followed by a fight with Lakithunder, a lakitu riding a thunder cloud.

Cayenne Volcano: The final world of this game and Bowser's latest secret lair. Conventional volcano/wassteland motifs meets a steampunk vibe as you venture across the wasteland to a mid-boss with Dry Bowser. This is followed by a final assault into the volcano lair and the final boss with Bowser Jr, Kamek, and a now-ressurected Bowser all trying to take you down at once. One all three are beaten, the heroes free Prince Cream, with the relived heroes drawing him in for a group hug.

Umami Heavens: The secret world of the games, consisting of harder remixes of various previous levels. These levels are only for the players dedicated enough to find all the Star Coins and use them to open up all the secret exits. The conclusion of this barrage of diffictulty is a confronation with Bowser, Kamek, and Junior at you fight all three of them at once, with Bowser chasing you down in a propellor car as the final trick up his sleeve.

Super Mario Bros: Plumbers & Princesses is released to critical and commercial success. Many critics and fans praise the game for its reinvention of the 2D Mario formula and variety of playable characters and the resulting replay value. However, some criticism is raised about the lower originally in terms of levels, some of the bosses, and worlds and the lack of post-game content is divisive with some disliking it while others argue that the replay value makes up for it, and that the DS being a handheld makes the lower amount of content much easier to ignore. That said, these critiques would definitely be taken into account when Nintendo planned the grand return of 2D Mario to home consoles with Super Mario Brothers: The Koopalings Return.

 

[Toa AxiomMan]

DarkWorld (2006)
Platform: Playstation 2
Developer: Clover Studio
Publisher: Capcom

a character action hack and slash game akin to Devil May Cry albeit with the dungeon crawling and exploration of Legend of Zelda and the and platforming of Prince of Persia: Sands of Time as well inspired by the classic Universal Monsters, which some call it Capcom's answer to Castlevania. the game follows Adam Frankenstein, the famous monster from Mary Shelly's novel and well monster hunter who's kinda like an expy of both Guts from Berserk and DC's Frankenstein fighting off against the threat of Dracula and his attempts to threaten to take over the world with his army of monsters, not only that but also Adam dealing with his own guilt and self reflection too, Adam mostly uses his electricity powered fists and other weapons like his lance for example and etc for melee combat and his firearms for long range not unlike Dante, the game itself also is jam packed with stuff like various worlds and levels like a dark castle, ruins, various european villages and towns, some nice little easter eggs to both Devil May Cry, Resident Evil and Darkstalkers and obviously some nods to the classic Universal films themselves at one point, as well as bosses ranging from the likes of The Wolf Man, The Mummy, The Gill Man, Le Fantom/Erik, Invisible Man, and the assortment of other monsters etc and eventually Dracula himself.

the game was released in October 2006 where it was received some good reviews with most praising for it's gothic atmosphere and gameplay as well as it's story, as a result it was one of the best selling titles on the PS2, due it's success Adam ultimately ended up as a fighter in Marvel vs Capcom 3 as well as a guest fighter in Street Fighter IV and made several cameos in other Capcom games like in Devil May Cry 4 where he shows up both as a boss and guest character