10 Features You Didn't Know Were Cut From Classic Video Games
Marvel's Ultimate Alliance would've been VERY different...
During the development phase, a video game will usually go through a lot of content that is cut before the final product is released. It might seem wasteful, but it's an important part of the process - throwing stuff together without removing what doesn't work is how we ended up with Sonic '06.
The thing is, most features that are discarded remain completely unknown to the public, leaving us to speculate about what might've been deleted from certain titles before we got our hands on them.
Maybe Halo was originally a BurgerTime spin-off starring Master Chef? Maybe the first version of Pong had an advanced physics engine and high-poly 3D graphics before being simplified for style?
Maybe, at some point early in development, Mighty No. 9 was actually fun. Na, that last one is just too preposterous.
But even though game development is usually a tightly guarded process, every now and then we get a glimpse at the features that were removed from our favorite video games before they hit store shelves.
Sometimes, those older versions would've been even better.
10. GoldenEye 007 Would Have Let You Play As Four Different James Bonds
GoldenEye 007 (the N64 classic, not the inferior-but-still-better-than-expected Wii version) was famous in part for its cheat menu options like Paintball Mode and DK Mode, but there was one feature that was sadly cut before the game was finished: All Bonds Mode.
All Bonds Mode would have unlocked the versions of James Bond played by Sean Connery, Roger Moore, and Timothy Dalton, for use in multiplayer deathmatches - in addition to the default Pierce Brosnan version.
Each character would have featured the actor's real likeness and signature attire worn by them as Bond, though it's unknown whether Connery's version would've included his trademark old-timey sexism.
Unfortunately, the fun of playing as three highly-respected Bond actors (and Timothy Dalton) was outweighed by legal concerns - namely, that you kinda have to pay people if you want to use their faces in video games.
Before Rare removed this feature, the dev team had one final first-to-100 deathmatch featuring all four Bonds, which the Roger Moore version won by a single point. Be sure to bring that up the next time you hear a debate about who the best 007 was - it's been settled with video game science.