Is it Better to Burn Out Than to Fade Away?

Electronic Gaming Monthly via 1UP has a short feature about a few fairly high-profile games that were suddenly cancelled. Unannounced games get cancelled internally fairly frequently, but it's a different story when it's a game that has been announced and promoted, especially if it's something people are actually looking forward to. Sometimes, it's a real shame when a really promising project just isn't in the cards for whatever reason. Of course, it frequently also turns out that it's really better for all of us that the game in question never hit shelves. One such game was Thrill Kill, originally set for release on PlayStation.

This would've been the first four-player brawler for a home console...had it been released. It would also have been the first fighting game in which you could perform lewd acts with a midget on stilts. And to think that some people argue that games aren't art. ... Good taste killed Thrill Kill; when megagiant Electronic Arts purchased the game's publisher, Virgin Interactive, it decided that dismembering a French maid in graphic detail wasn't really keeping with the company's family-friendly image. The game engine lived on and eventually powered the unremarkable Wu-Tang: Shaolin Style (PS1). ... Thrill Kill was designed around shock value and titillation rather than, you know, good gameplay. And four-player action is no longer a novelty; be content with your Super Smash Bros. and Power Stone.