Old games that never made into digital distribution

[Sarafan]

Here's another one that wasn't mentioned yet: Alpha Protocol. The game combines Mass Effect gameplay with modern, espionage setting. The non-linear story construction gives the possibility to make a lot of choices that have consequences. The game was formerly available on Steam, but was withdrawn due to music copyright issues. Bringing it back to sale would mean re-licensing some of the songs. Looks like it's not worth the hassle for the publisher. Right now you can buy a Steam key from some resellers. Some of them have shady reputation and the price is over the roof. Thankfully I still have a physical copy of the game.

 

[Brian Boru]

What about Mercenaries 2?

Tripped over it in today's Gameranx video and it sounds promising, an open world sandbox shooter from the 00s. I fished around a bit but it doesn't seem to be easily available digitally. Looks like EA owns the IP, so no wonder if it's awkward to get at.

That Wiki link says…
"As of 2023, there are two Mercenaries games available"
…so if anyone knows where I can look at buying it, please share

 

[Sarafan]

What about Mercenaries 2?

Tripped over it in today's Gameranx video and it sounds promising, an open world sandbox shooter from the 00s. I fished around a bit but it doesn't seem to be easily available digitally. Looks like EA owns the IP, so no wonder if it's awkward to get at.

That Wiki link says…
"As of 2023, there are two Mercenaries games available"
…so if anyone knows where I can look at buying it, please share

I never played this game TBH. Sounds fun though. It appears that the only option is buying it on an auction. It might require online activation though, so it might be impossible to install it from a used copy.

 

[Pifanjr]

What about Mercenaries 2?

Tripped over it in today's Gameranx video and it sounds promising, an open world sandbox shooter from the 00s. I fished around a bit but it doesn't seem to be easily available digitally. Looks like EA owns the IP, so no wonder if it's awkward to get at.

That Wiki link says…
"As of 2023, there are two Mercenaries games available"
…so if anyone knows where I can look at buying it, please share

I played a bit of Mercenaries 2 at my friend's house and it's a lot of fun. You get a lot of toys (explosives) to play (explode stuff) with. You don't really need all of them, but most of the fun is in coming up with ridiculous solutions to the problems the game gives you. Like sticking a cluster bomb beacon on a car, driving it at a ramp pointing at the enemy camp and jumping out at the last second, then enjoying the fireworks.

However, when I borrowed it I discovered there's a mandatory racing mission at the beginning and I couldn't get through it, so I rage-quit and returned the game.

 

[JarlBSoD]

Black & White 1 and 2 are great examples. But there are more: Aliens vs Predator 2, No One Lives Forever, Need for Speed Most Wanted (2005) and probably many more. I'll add them when I refresh my memory enough. It seems impossible that these titles will return to sale at some point. However this was also the case with Blade Runner and Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain before GOG re-released them, so who knows? Maybe we'll get a pleasant surprise some day.

I just dug out of my archives some CDs from old magazines with full versions of games and you won't believe how many nice titles aren't available online. Did you know that in Poland we had a very good game inspired by Homeworld? It's called Project Earth: Starmageddon and don't dream that it'll be available some day in digital distribution. You can find here and there though. Basically the game has some original gameplay concepts that add to the Homeworld heritage. And it had cutting-edge graphics when it was released in 2002. Unpolished diamond that has been lost in time...

Edit: Mechwarrior series! I forgot about Mechwarrior series! And Starsiege! Does someone here still remember the game? It's basically a Mechwarrior clone from late 90s. But a really, really good clone...

Mechwarrior 4 and Mercenaries was released to the public for free by MS some years ago, They don't seem to have the download on any official site anymore but as far as i know it is still free to download legaly.

Never mind that, It was Mechcommande they released, but i seem to remember them releaseing Mechwarrior 4 aswell but i can't find info about it.

 

[JarlBSoD]

As for games i miss in digital format. there are loads of them, basicly my entire case of 300 games on CD and DVD since i don't have a DVD player anymore

 

[Sarafan]

Never mind that, It was Mechcommande they released, but i seem to remember them releaseing Mechwarrior 4 aswell but i can't find info about it.

You're more or less right. Mechwarrior 4 stand alone add-on (Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries) was released for free a few years ago by MekTek. The official site is long gone though, but of course you can find this version over the internet without any problems.

As for games i miss in digital format. there are loads of them, basicly my entire case of 300 games on CD and DVD since i don't have a DVD player anymore

I still have one and I even use it from time to time. There are external DVD players on USB. You might try getting one.

 

[JarlBSoD]

You're more or less right. Mechwarrior 4 stand alone add-on (Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries) was released for free a few years ago by MekTek. The official site is long gone though, but of course you can find this version over the internet without any problems.


I still have one and I even use it from time to time. There are external DVD players on USB. You might try getting one.

Been thinking about getting one, but you know, just never get to it :/

 

[Sarafan]

Two more titles to the list:

Spider-Man Shattered Dimensions - one of the best Spider-Man games in history. It was overshadowed by Spider-Man games from Insomniac in the past years, but it's still great. It features three distinctive settings with different gameplay. If you find this game somewhere and like super heroes, I strongly recommend it.

G-Police - simulator/shooter set in a distant future, where you're taking the role of a pilot in a law enforcement unit. The game features a really good story which you're exploring through briefings and FMVs. I finished the game multiple times. It has very interesting and diverse missions.

 

[Sarafan]

It looks like we can remove Alpha Protocol from the list. The game reappeared on GOG after being for years in publishing limbo: https://www.gog.com/en/game/alpha_protocol. And yes, the game is available only there. It’ll probably stay this way for a longer period of time. The price isn’t low for almost 15 year old game, but it’s still acceptable. I’m not in a rush however. I own a boxed version.

 

[DreamCuPS]

/
This one had not only not made into digital, but also, remains a PS2 exclusive. Thats a shame, cause it really rocks.

 

[ExtraWildGames]

Lots old arcade games developed on more obscure code bases/tech are still only available through emulation mostly. I find it very unfortunate that to be the case, because that's history just being thrown into the trash of the medium, and I don't really like that.

 

[isleepinabed]

^I think, personally, this is mixed between old games that never made it into digital distribution, and the fact that I only own a computer so I can't get digitally distributed games on consoles I don't have.
Regarding arcade games I was surprised to see quite a lot of them have come out on the Arcade Archives series on Switch and PS5 but not on Steam.
It seems like every month some new old games get re-released, in original or remade form. Currently I'm playing through the wonderfully named The Hokkaido Serial Murder Case The Okhotsk Disappearance ~Memories in Ice, Tearful Figurine~. For 2025 I'm looking forward to the Lunar Remastered Collection as well as the Capcom Fighting Collection 2 (for Project Justice, which I played a lot on the Dreamcast).
Being released digitally is also not foolproof - they can just as easily be taken out of distribution. Hard media also tends to degrade, hardware breaks down or is unusable etc.
Long story short the ones I have most felt like replaying that I can't anymore are:
- A Mind Forever Voyaging
- Outrun 2
- Sentient

Who knows, one day?

 

[ExtraWildGames]

God...

I hope the new Clovers studio rereleases their old stuff besides Okami.