Sadly, a lot of big game projects don’t ever make it through the development process. The first gameplay footage of one such lost title — a 3D version of South Park for the original Xbox — just popped up over the weekend.
NintendoAge forum moderator Qizmaster bought an old Xbox development kit last month, and he apparently discovered a mysterious unreleased South Park game lurking on its hard drive. YouTube channel HappyConsoleGamer has now captured and shared footage from this early-stage gameplay, reports Kotaku.
It’s makes for a fascinating look at the development process, showing how much work goes into games that never see the light of day.
South Park for Xbox features a combat system, multiplayer support, and a free-driving mode, and it’s set in a large open world. It kind of looks like a South Park version of The Simpsons: Hit and Run or a Grand Theft Auto game.
Oregon-based studio Buzz Monkey Software was apparently behind this unreleased title — it’s the same studio that made the PlayStation 2 and Wii versions of Tomb Raider: Underworld. Zynga acquired Buzz Monkey Software back in 2012.