Bloody Hell, Everwild! Rare's Lost Game Peeks Out From Beyond The Veil

AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·

Bloody Hell, Everwild! Rare's Lost Game Peeks Out From Beyond The Veil

Rare's cancelled *Everwild* has given up some of its secrets through newly surfaced screenshots from an artist's portfolio, revealing tantalising hints of a magical farming/base-building system involving 'Figments,' while also highlighting the bittersweet contrast between corporate promises and development realities.

Right, so you know that feeling when you're rummaging through an old attic, perhaps looking for a forgotten spellbook, and instead you stumble upon a half-finished blueprint for a reality-bending machine? That's precisely the vibe I'm getting from the latest gaming news, mate. It’s less about what *is* and more about what *could have been*, and frankly, it's wilder than a badger in a magic shop. As initially spotted and reported by Eurogamer's Ed Nightingale, some elusive screenshots of Rare's ill-fated *Everwild* have just surfaced, peeking out from an artist's portfolio website like a shy, digital ghost.

For those who've been living under a particularly large rock (or perhaps got lost in a dimension where *Elder Scrolls VI* is already out), *Everwild* was Rare's next big thing after *Sea of Thieves*. First announced back in 2019, it immediately dropped jaws with an animated trailer that showcased a world dripping in vibrant colours, teeming with exquisitely strange fantasy creatures, and brimming with an almost ethereal beauty. It was all very 'blow a hole through reality and find yourself in Narnia, but with more bioluminescent fungi'.

Then, in 2020, we got another trailer, showing these mysterious player characters, dubbed 'Eternals', interacting with and 'soothing' these wondrous beasties. It was all very zen, very beautiful, very... vague. We saw the 'what' – a gorgeous, living world – but the 'how' of gameplay remained as elusive as a leprechaun's gold. Was it an adventure game? A creature-care sim? A walking simulator with really pretty trees? Nobody, not even my trusty crystal ball (which is mostly just a polished trackball from a vintage arcade machine), could tell us for sure. And before we had a chance to conjure up any solid theories, poof! *Everwild* vanished, cancelled earlier this year amidst wider layoffs at Microsoft.

And now, here we are, sifting through the digital tea leaves. These newly emerged screenshots, reportedly from a build close to the game's untimely demise, offer us the most concrete look yet at *Everwild's* inner workings. They reveal glimpses of the game's UI, specifically its inventory menu. And crikey, there are some intriguing labels: 'Favourites', 'Figments', 'Tools', 'Mosaics', 'Seeds', and 'Plants'.

'Figments', in particular, have my curiosity antennae twitching like a wizard's wand on a full moon. They're described as 'strange little plant creatures'. You've got an inventory full of seeds and plants, alongside tools and these 'Figments'? That sounds an awful lot like some sort of magical farming, creature husbandry, or perhaps even base-building customisation. Imagine cultivating these ethereal plant-creatures, growing unique flora, and crafting structures within that stunning world. My mind immediately conjures images of a whimsical *Stardew Valley* meets *Breath of the Wild*'s aesthetic, but with that unique Rare charm woven into its very fabric.

One screenshot even shows the player character standing by a stone circle, a classic trope for mystical rituals or ancient gathering places. This suggests a blend of nature management with exploration and perhaps even a narrative focused on ancient lore. Was it going to be a cosy life-sim, or an expansive adventure where your base-building was integral to taming a wild, magical world? The sheer potential packed into those few menu options is almost heartbreaking.

Now, here's where my gently skeptical, occasionally chaotic inner wizard starts muttering. You see, back in February of this year, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer was quoted talking about the 'progress' Rare was making, stating they could 'give those teams time'. Remember that? Fair dinkum, that statement has aged about as well as a potion of instant decay, hasn't it? To hear such optimism about 'giving teams time' just months before a project is unceremoniously canned due to 'widespread layoffs' feels... well, it feels like a bit of a kick in the spellbook. It highlights the often-stark disconnect between corporate rhetoric and the harsh realities faced by development teams.

It makes you wonder, doesn't it? What really happened behind the scenes? Was it a budget issue? A vision clash? Or simply a casualty of broader corporate restructuring? The gaming industry, bless its ever-churning heart, is a magical beast of creation and destruction, where brilliant ideas can be snuffed out before they ever truly bloom. And sadly, *Everwild* seems to have joined the growing pantheon of 'what if' games, much like the recently leaked snippets of the also-cancelled *Perfect Dark* reboot. It’s a bitter pill to swallow, especially when you consider the sheer talent housed within a studio like Rare.

So, what does this digital archaeology tell us? It reminds us that game development is a perilous journey, even for seasoned studios. It also shines a light on the passionate individuals, like the artists, whose work sometimes outlives the projects themselves, allowing us these precious, fleeting glimpses. For Rare, their future beyond *Sea of Thieves* is now a blank parchment, waiting for a new spell to be cast. Let's hope whatever they conjure up next gets the time and magic it deserves, unlike our dear, departed *Everwild*. It might be gone, but these screenshots ensure its potential, its wild, vibrant spirit, won't be entirely forgotten. And that, mate, is a bit of magic in itself.

Tags: Rare, Everwild, Game Development, Gaming Industry, Cancelled Games

Original article: Eurogamer