5 Shocking Canceled Gaming Sequels You Never Knew Existed!

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Working in the gaming industry may appear rosy with millions of fans for popular franchises, but a single mistake can cause delays or even cancellations of upcoming projects. This repeated error results in wasted effort, resources, talent, and money. In extreme cases, studios collapse financially, leaving beloved intellectual properties to languish alongside forgotten games in the realm of oblivion.

Despite the passage of time, the video game industry remains robust and consistently pushes forward each year. However, there are certain episodes in its history that continue to leave a bitter taste. Thus, let’s revisit some abandoned follow-ups to well-known franchises, such as Prince of Persia and Silent Hill, which might have graced our screens if they had not been canceled.

Project Sabbath, the Canceled Sequel to Batman: Arkham Knight

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The renowned Batman Arkham series by Rocksteady Studios requires no introduction; every installment in this legendary action-adventure collection, from the 2009 release of Arkham Asylum to the 2015 launch of Arkham Knight, redefined graphics, gameplay, and storytelling during their respective eras. Consequently, it’s not shocking that Warner Bros. Games is moving forward with an Arkham Knight sequel. What does come as a surprise, though, is their decision to reverse course and shelve the project during its early development stages.

The sequel to Arkham Knight, code-named Project Sabbath, was envisioned to unfold approximately ten years later, drawing inspiration from the Batman Beyond comic series. The new protagonist would be a younger Damian Wayne, while an older Bruce Wayne would assume the role of the supportive figure, much like Alfred did for Batman.

Key details about this project included a larger and more populated Gotham City, with civilians patrolling its streets; the Batbike serving as Damian’s primary mode of transport; and combat mechanics modeled on the Nemesis System from Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor.

Furthermore, this game would have featured a chilling rogues’ gallery that included characters like Harley Quinn, the Court of Owls, Black Mask’s daughter, Gorilla Grodd, and numerous other supervillains.

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It’s worth noting that Project Sabbath never reached completion as Warner Bros. shifted their focus towards live-service games post the launch of Arkham Knight. Many believe this change in strategy is likely what led to Project Sabbath being abandoned, and there’s a strong argument to support that theory.

Hideo Kojima’s Silent Hills Project (P.T.)

Notable among canceled sequels in the horror genre is Hideo Kojima’s Silent Hills. With Norman Reedus starring and directed by both Hideo Kojima and Guillermo Del Toro, it would have been the eighth mainline game of the Silent Hill series. Kojima Productions even released a short playable teaser in August 2015 to generate excitement, with the P.T. demo receiving great acclaim. However, an unexpected turn of events occurred when Hideo Kojima was let go by publisher Konami, which led to Norman Reedus and Guillermo del Toro leaving the project as well.

Several months passed, and the Silent Hills project found itself among other canceled video games, such as Project Sabbath (Batman), leaving fans to wonder what a Hideo Kojima-created horror game might have looked like. However, there’s some consolation in knowing that Norman Reedus and Guillermo del Toro teamed up with him for Death Stranding, his next endeavor.

Prince of Persia: Redemption

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Back in 2020, there was some resurfaced footage that showed what appeared to be an unpublished Prince of Persia game. Ubisoft chose not to comment on the matter, but after the video featuring the gameplay went viral, a former employee revealed it was intended for a sequel called Prince of Persia: Redemption, which had been proposed as early as 2011.

The game featured parkour reminiscent of Assassin’s Creed and a protagonist with a time-reversal skill. Unfortunately, the project didn’t come to fruition, but you can still find conceptual artwork for it online.

Sleeping Dogs 2

Today, “Sleeping Dogs” is widely recognized as a cult classic, leaving many fans wondering why a follow-up game wasn’t produced. Interestingly, a sequel was actually in the works, but it was halted following a return on investment (ROI) assessment by publisher Square Enix. Plans for a direct sequel, continuing the story of Wei Shen, were made and a proposal was submitted. Regrettably, despite “Sleeping Dogs” selling well, the sales figures weren’t sufficient to convince Square Enix to greenlight a sequel.

Reflecting on the situation now, it’s quite regrettable that substantial groundwork had been laid for the development of Sleeping Dogs 2, only for it to be canceled in late 2013 as reported by Vice. Instead, Square Enix tasked United Front Games with creating a multiplayer spin-off game titled Triad Wars, which was also eventually scrapped due to negative feedback during its beta phase. As a result, United Front Games ceased operations by the end of 2016. Although it’s been years since Sleeping Dogs was last in the spotlight, whenever its name resurfaces, a wave of nostalgia inevitably returns.

Dead Space 4

The fourth installment of “Dead Space,” titled “Dead Space 4,” was initially cancelled not once but twice. When “Dead Space 3” fell short of revenue expectations upon its release in 2013, the plans for a sequel were abandoned. Interestingly, Visceral Games had already conceived ideas for the continuation of Isaac’s narrative. This marked the first cancellation of “Dead Space 4.” Just a few months after this decision, Visceral Games itself was shut down.

In 2023, EA’s Motive Studio resurrected the Dead Space franchise with a remake. This revival received critical acclaim, but unfortunately, it didn’t meet commercial expectations yet again. There were discussions about developing Dead Space 4 if the remake had succeeded, but given its lackluster performance, the franchise was once more shelved.

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2025-03-25 04:10