The Ghost Game Revealed: A Look at Rare's Everwild
For years, Everwild has been shrouded in mystery, like a ghostly presence in the gaming world. Announced with great fanfare in 2019, this ambitious multiplayer project from Rare quickly encountered a series of challenges during its development, ultimately falling victim to the notorious development hell.
The game's journey was marked by shifts in leadership and reports of a creative reboot in 2021. These changes haunted Everwild until its unfortunate demise as part of the sweeping restructuring at Xbox this year. Given its lengthy development period, reportedly starting as early as 2014, the cancellation after over a decade is a bitter pill to swallow.
But here's where it gets intriguing... Despite the troubled development cycle, we've managed to uncover a treasure trove of information. While we only had two cinematic trailers to go on, a recent discovery has shed new light on this elusive game.
Unveiling Everwild's Secrets: UI and Screenshots
A collection of development screenshots has surfaced, offering a rare glimpse into the inner workings of Everwild. These images, sourced from an artist who worked on the game, provide a fascinating insight into the project's features and user interface (UI).
The screenshots primarily showcase the interfaces, but they also reveal in-game captures that adhere to the distinctive visual style we saw in the trailers. One image shows the player character standing near a large, marked stone circle, while another depicts them in front of a mysterious temple.
Diving into the UI, we get an in-depth look at the inventory screen, which is divided into six unique tabs: Favourites, Figments, Tools, Mosaics, Seeds, and Plants. While the Tools and Favourites tabs are fairly standard, the other sections are where things get really interesting.
Take the Figments tab, for example. It displays a collection of small, colorful creatures, one specifically labeled as a "Light Figment." This suggests a system for collecting or utilizing these creatures, adding an intriguing layer to the gameplay. Similarly, the Mosaics tab could have served a decorative purpose, with some mosaics depicting characters and animals from the trailers, including the iconic deer-like creature.
In another screenshot, we get a closer look at the Plants (or Seeds) tab. This section is straightforward: an area dedicated to various seeds for planting, including a "Shrub Seed." It indicates that players would have had access to a comprehensive plant compendium, adding depth to the game's ecosystem.
The artist's website also reveals some intriguing interface details. Rare reportedly leveraged player data from Sea of Thieves to design Everwild's settings system, aiming to understand player preferences and interactions.
As for Rare's future, it's hard to say. Some of the Everwild team will likely be reassigned to Sea of Thieves (excluding those who were laid off), further bolstering the live service title. But for fans of Rare's iconic franchises like Banjo-Kazooie and Killer Instinct, there's a glimmer of hope. Rumors from a few years ago suggested that new games for these franchises were in the works. Now, we can only speculate and wait to see if these beloved franchises will make a comeback.
And this is the part most people miss... Everwild isn't the only canceled Rare game making headlines. Recently, gameplay details and concept screens of Xbox's scrapped Perfect Dark reboot surfaced, adding another layer to the story.
Stay tuned to MP1st for the latest gaming news and updates! Follow us on Bluesky, X, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and Google News to stay connected and be part of the conversation.
