10 Video Game Franchises KILLED By Development Hell

For a little while, TimeSplitters was one of the most celebrated games in the FPS genre. Before the likes of Halo and Call of Duty came to the forefront and, for better or worse, made everything serious and cinematic; TimeSplitters’ fast-paced, manic gameplay and wild sense of humour made it a beloved series across all platforms.

In 2008 developers Free Radical went into administration during early design stages of a fourth entry. Crytek, who bought out the company, had a hard line on TimeSplitters 4. They cancelled the project and said that they “might return to it” if there was “enough fan demand”.

For six years fans and developers alike lamented TimeSplitters being chained up in Crytek’s basement as the company repeatedly denied that there was enough interest in letting it see the light of day.

Crytek folded in 2014, which felt like the last glimmer of hope for TimeSplitters being snuffed out.

In 2018 however, Koch Media (a subsidiary of THQ Nordic) acquired the rights to the IP. Development began in 2021 on a new title, but it remains to be seen if TimeSplitters can rise from the ashes.

With Crytek keeping it hostage for so long, it’s possible that the audience desire really isn’t as strong as it could’ve been if TimeSplitters 4 hadn’t taken over 17 years to release.