8 Video Games With Playable Cut Content
Never meant to be seen.
Not until inquisitive minds start spelunking into the depths of a game's unused code, does it become clear how much content goes missing in the transition between conception and mass production.
More often than not, that abandoned code resides in digital limbo for good reason; unwanted cast-offs superseded by superior programming are rarely kept around - you've seen the Matrix, you know the grim fate that awaits such purposeless programs - for long.
But even in that sorry, unfinished state, some take it upon themselves to document every last binary sequence, if only for the off chance that something - anything - can be salvaged and brought back to life.
In the case of Obsidian's Knights of the Old Republic sequel, excavation efforts led to the discovery and restoration of game-changing content that never made the cut, due simply to LucasArts' strict deadlines. Similar troves of buried treasure were unearthed for Bethesda and FromSoftware's world-renowned RPGs, but they're the exception.
On the merit of the above discoveries alone, it pays to be a nosy parker, but the practice doesn't always yield beneficial results. After all, would a reality where San Andreas' infamous Hot Coffee was never discovered really be so terrible?
You're best off asking Rockstar for the answer to that one.
8. Dark Souls
Dark Souls' popularity has prompted several excavations of its code in an effort to unearth answers to some of Lordran's unsolved (nice troll with the Pendant, Miyazaki-san), mysteries.
Why, for instance, does literal cat lady Alvina warn the player of Shiva when he appears as nought but a friendly weapon collector? Likewise, why does unused dialogue for New Londo resident Ingward point to a non-existent showdown with a Kaathe loyalist atop an algae-encrusted church roof?
Well, Chosen Undead, the answers come in the form of these two snippets of footage.
It's just as well that Jar Eel was cut, having another barrier gating access to the Four Kings would have been too much for our shrivelled undead hearts to handle.
To experience both cuts first-hand, you'll have to secure yourself a save editor and have a tinker, but unless you have knowledge in that field, our advice would be to admire the content from a safe, non-game-breaking distance.