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List of cancelled Game Boy games

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This is a list of cancelled Game Boy video games. The Game Boy is a handheld video game console released by Nintendo in 1989. It was Nintendo's first portable game console, and enjoyed great success until being succeeded by the Game Boy Color (GBC) in 1998. During this time, several games being developed for the system were cancelled for reasons such as financial difficulties, poor market climate, and the forthcoming release of the GBC, with some games being moved to that system instead. Many of these games were not known about in detail or in any capacity until 2020, when ROM images of several game prototypes were leaked onto the internet as part of a larger Nintendo data leak.[1][2] This list documents all known games that were confirmed to be announced or in development for the Game Boy Color at some point, but did not end up being released for it in any capacity.

Games

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There are currently 20 games on this list.[a]

Title(s) Notes/Reasons Developer Publisher
10-Pin Bowling Originally announced for the original Game Boy, the game underwent further revisions and was released as a Game Boy Color-only game in 1999.[3] Morning Star Multimedia Majesco Sales
Akira An adaptation of the 1988 anime film Akira was planned for release on Super NES, Sega Genesis and Sega CD in 1995, with Game Boy and Game Gear games based on the film also being considered. Gameplay and content varied wildly among versions, but disagreements in the direction of the games with THQ occurred and the game fell onto the backburner, never releasing for any system.[4] Tom Create THQ
Armadillo Gaiden A sequel to Armadillo (1991) was planned for release on Game Boy, but the game was cancelled and the work done on it was retooled into Ultraman Ball (1994).[5] IGS IGS
Baby's Day Out A video game adaptation of the 1994 film Baby's Day Out was announced for Game Boy, Super NES, and Sega Genesis, and advertised on the film's VHS release. The game involved the player using a cursor to keep the film's baby out of trouble. Despite being far enough along for publications to receive review copies of the Genesis version in late 1994, no versions of the game were ever released. The few reviews that were published were generally not positive, citing slow and boring gameplay.[6] Designer Software Hi Tech Expressions
Densetsu no Stafy Early prototyping for the first entry in Tose's The Legendary Starfy series began on the Game Boy in 1995, but was put on hold before being resuming in 1998, moving the project to Game Boy Color. In 1999, the team was asked to shift development once again to the Game Boy Advance, for which it released in 2002.[7] TOSE Nintendo
Diablo Junior Following the release of Diablo II (2000), a team of developers at Blizzard Entertainment pitched a prequel to Diablo (1997) for Game Boy Advance. However, it was decided to move the project to the original Game Boy due to its larger install base. Concepts such as multiple connected versions with alternate playable characters were explored during development. Ultimately, the decision was made to cancel the project due to concerns about the game's commercial viability and the team's unfamiliarity with making games for Game Boy.[8] Blizzard South Blizzard Entertainment
Edd the Duck The video game Baby T-Rex (1993) was re-skinned by its developers to feature characters from several different licenses for release in different regions of the world, including We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story, Agro, and Bamse. One of these revisions, featuring UK puppet character Edd the Duck, was never released. A ROM of Edd the Duck would later be discovered as part of the 2020 Nintendo data leak.[2] Beam Software
Elite A demo for a Game Boy port of Elite (1984) was produced in 1994, but the project was never picked up. A ROM of the demo was later released online by Elite co-designer Ian Bell.[9] Hybrid Technology
Hello Kitty Pocket Camera A version of Nintendo's Game Boy Camera accessory themed after Sanrio's Hello Kitty franchise was in development, with various graphics and elements replaced with Hello Kitty characters. An advertisement for the device was packaged with the Pocket Hello Kitty, stating it would be released in December 1998 alongside the Hello Kitty Pocket Printer, a themed variant of the Game Boy Printer. However, neither accessory was ever released. A ROM of the Pocket Camera software would later be discovered as part of the 2020 Nintendo data leak.[1] Nintendo Nintendo
Home Alone 2: Kevin's Dream / Bobby's World A video game loosely based on the film Home Alone 2: Lost in New York, taking place in Kevin McCallister's dreams, was announced for Game Boy in 1994. Later that same year, it was confirmed that the game had been retooled and was now based on the animated series Bobby's World, featuring the same premise, gameplay, and stages but different characters. Ultimately, neither version of the game was released.[10] Unexpected Development Hi Tech Expressions
Hyouryuu Shounen Keith An action RPG in the vein of The Legend of Zelda was featured in an issue of Famitsu magazine, stating it would be released in November 1990. However, the game never materialized in any capacity.[11] Sony Imagesoft
Infogenius Productivity Pak: Berlitz Language Translator series In September 1991, GameTek launched the Infogenius Productivity Pak line of applications, including Berlitz French Translator and Berlitz Spanish Translator, translation dictionaries based on the Berlitz Method of language learning. Additional Translator applications were planned for German, Italian, and Japanese, but were never released.[12] Imagineering GameTek
John Madden Football Ports of John Madden Football '93 (1992) for Game Boy and NES were scheduled for release by the end of 1993, to be published by Ubi Soft. However, both versions were ultimately cancelled. A ROM of the Game Boy version would later be discovered as part of the 2020 Nintendo data leak.[13] NMS Software Ubi Soft
Peaky Blinder A side-scrolling game involving the player controlling "Peaky", a literal amalgamation and personification of garbage, which aspires to overcome his life in the slums to become a respectable person in a nice house. The game featured a shapeshifting gameplay mechanic for fighting enemies. Announced for a wide variety of platforms - SNES, Game Boy, Sega Game Gear, Sega CD, and the Sega Genesis, the game never released in any capacity for any platforms.[14][15] Sales Curve Interactive
Rap City / Rap Quest A video game starring music artist Vanilla Ice was in development, though access to Ice's music was not included as part of the licensing deal. The game was later renamed from Rap City to Rap Quest, and Ice's likeness was removed due to his waning popularity. While Rap Quest was finished, it ultimately failed to materialize. A finished ROM would later be discovered as part of the 2020 Nintendo data leak.[16][17] Equilibrium THQ
Sutte Hakkun GB A port of Sutte Hakkun (1997) was developed for Game Boy and Game Boy Color, but was cancelled without ever being officially announced. ROMs of these ports would later be discovered as part of the 2020 Nintendo data leak.[1] Nintendo Nintendo
Super Battletoads A Game Boy port of the arcade game Battletoads (1994) was fully developed and set for release under the name Super Battletoads. However, due to the commercial failure of the arcade release, publisher Tradewest decided to cancel the Game Boy version.[18] Rare Inc. Tradewest
Wily & Right no RockBoard: That's Paradise A Game Boy port of the Famicom game Wily & Right no RockBoard: That's Paradise (1993) was developed for the Game Boy, but never saw release. A ROM of the cancelled version was later discovered as part of the 2020 Nintendo data leak.[1] Dual Capcom
WorkBoy The WorkBoy was an unreleased Game Boy add-on featuring a large keyboard that connected to the system via the link cable port. Using a proprietary piece of Game Boy software, users could use their Game Boy like a personal digital assistant, including tools such as a calendar, a notes application, a translator, a currency conversion calculator, and other similar functions. While shown at the 1992 Consumer Electronics Show and planned for release later that year, Fabtek president Frank Ballouz decided to cancel the accessory after a Game Boy price cut would have made the accessory more expensive than the system itself. Only one prototype of the WorkBoy is confirmed to exist, which is currently in Ballouz's possession. In 2020, video game historian Liam Robertson documented the WorkBoy's story, using Ballouz's prototype and a ROM of the software found in the 2020 Nintendo data leak to publicly exhibit the software's full functionality for the first time.[19] Source Research and Development Fabtek / Nintendo
WWF WrestleMania A Game Boy port of WWF WrestleMania (1989) was designed by John Pickford in 1990. However, this version was never released.[20] Zippo Games Acclaim Entertainment

Notes

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  1. ^ This number is always up to date by this script.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Walker, Ian (September 10, 2020). "New Nintendo Leak Includes Numerous Unreleased Game Boy Games". Kotaku. G/O Media. Archived from the original on September 11, 2020. Retrieved November 23, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Klepek, Patrick (September 11, 2020). "Nintendo's Secrets Are Continuing to Leak, Revealing Its Unknown History". VICE. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  3. ^ "Pak Watch Release Forecast". Nintendo Power. No. 135. November 1998. p. 114.
  4. ^ Szczepaniak, John (September 2012). "Jim Gregory interview - AKIRA". Archived from the original on January 2, 2014. Retrieved April 11, 2018.
  5. ^ Chonosuke, Kujiratake (March 22, 2022). Super Famicom & Game Boy Cancelled Game Encyclopedia. p. 147. ISBN 9784866733043.
  6. ^ "Baby's Day Out GB". Computer and Video Games. No. 155.
  7. ^ Dillard, Corbie (May 22, 2009). "Interviews: Nintendo/TOSE - The Legendary Starfy". Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
  8. ^ Craddock, David L. (November 11, 2019). "The Story Of Blizzard's Diablo Junior, The Game Boy Epic That Never Was". Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 20, 2024.
  9. ^ Bell, Ian. "Unpublished Elite Demos". The Elite Home Page. Ian C G Bell's Home Page. Retrieved December 5, 2020.
  10. ^ "Pak Watch Update". Nintendo Power. No. 67. December 1994. p. 113.
  11. ^ "A fully-fledged RPG is now available on Game Boy!". Famitsu. No. 113. November 9, 1990. p. 151.
  12. ^ "InfoGenius Productivity Pak". Nintendo Power. No. 26. July 1991. p. 61.
  13. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (September 16, 2020). "Ubisoft's Madden for Game Boy just arrived from an alternate universe". Polygon. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  14. ^ "Overseas ProSpects". GamePro. No. 53. IDG. April 1993. pp. 172–174.
  15. ^ "News: Raving Blinder". Mean Machines Sega. No. 15. EMAP. January 1994. pp. 10–16.
  16. ^ Doolan, Liam (October 30, 2018). "Video: Learn About The Unreleased Game Boy Title Starring The Rapper Vanilla Ice". Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  17. ^ Lane, Gavin (December 20, 2021). "Random: Vanilla Ice Never Looked Sharper Than In 8-Bit Form On Analogue Pocket". Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 28, 2024.
  18. ^ Gach, Ethan (July 6, 2018). "Rare Finished Making a Battletoads for Game Boy That Never Came Out". Kotaku. Archived from the original on January 30, 2021. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  19. ^ Bankhurst, Adam (December 27, 2020). "A Lost Game Boy Add-On Called the WorkBoy Has Been Found After 28 Years". IGN. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
  20. ^ "WWF Wrestling". Zee-3 Digital Publishing. Archived from the original on December 6, 2022. Retrieved June 21, 2022.
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