A cancelled Resident Evil Game Boy Color port has resurfaced in a nearly complete state

Just in time for Christmas, Resident Evil fans may have received a surprising early gift from the world of lost video games. For those who didn’t know, Resident Evil was supposed to receive a Game Boy Colour port that was apparently cancelled at the last moment.

Video game preservation site, Games That Weren’t, has shared sneak peeks of the final build of the cancelled Game Boy Colour port of Resident Evil. The game was reportedly being developed at the tail end of the 1990s by HotGen Studios.

The apparent final build of the Resident Evil Game Boy Colour edition is approximately 98% complete. It features enemies such as Tyrant and ending sequences that were previously inaccessible in earlier prototypes.

Resident Evil’s Game Boy port was no doubt an ambitious endeavour to bring the PlayStation cult-classic’s fixed camera angles, pre-rendered background stills, tank controls, and survival horror to Nintendo’s portable gaming console.

HotGen was working with Fluid Studios at the time to meticulously recreate the Spencer Mansion using scaled 2D sprites, in an attempt to create the illusion of forced perspective. The rest of the game kept much of the original dialogue, puzzles, and story intact. However, voice acting was out of the question for the Game Boy, so it was replaced with on-screen text.

The game’s cancellation had been a mystery. Producer Jon Oldham shared years ago, “Fergus McGovern, who was a good friend, approached me to try and do Resident Evil on the Game Boy. Fluid Studios, with Nigel Speight, developed the entire game in 3D. Apparently, Mikami had said it couldn’t be done and refused to allow it to be finished. We all got paid up, but it never saw the light of day.”

Nigel Speight also shared his experience and said, “If I remember correctly, I would say the game was about 75-85% complete. Originally, the game was supposed to be about 35% of the original PlayStation version, and we were going to elongate the storyline to keep reusing rooms.”

Frith, who provided the 98% build, shared the same story, stating that the “original creator of Resident Evil” didn’t feel that the Game Boy Colour was good enough for the series.

The earliest known build was found back in 2011. However, its incomplete state rendered it unplayable. However, this final build is much closer to the game’s state when Capcom cancelled the project in 2000.

So far, early testers have reported completing Jill Valentine’s campaign from start to finish. Others have reported anomalies, such as unlimited ammo and bugs that prevent players from combining herbs and save files, which become corrupted after repeated use.

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