[UPDATE: The images have been removed at the owner's request.]

While the franchise has been muddled with lackluster sequels and mediocre tie-ins, Jurassic Park has persevered as one of the most beloved movies of the '90s. When news broke that a new sequel would be released in the Jurassic Park series, a whopping 22 years after the release of the internet, fans of the series could barely contain their excitement.

While the ensuing film has divided critics, the general consensus is that Jurassic World was a fun popcorn movie that has helped renew interest in the long dormant franchise. And considering the mass appeal of the film, fans all but expected a video game adaption would be released. But, unlike its sequel brethren, Jurassic World wasn’t given any proper video game tie-ins, although there was a LEGO Jurassic World release.

Turns out, Jurassic World was set to get the video game treatment at one point in time, but the title was quietly canceled relatively early in development. The gaming public was not meant to know about this shuttered game, but a recent discovery by Jurassic Park supefans JurassicWorld.org has turned up plenty of information on the game that never was.

According to the uncovered information, the title was being developed by Cryptic Studios Seattle, the developer responsible for MMOs such as Star Trek Online and Neverwinter. While Cryptic is known for their MMO work, it isn’t clear if the Jurassic World game was to be an MMO.

According to test footage of the title, Jurassic World was being crafted as an open-world game that would have turned players loose on Isla Nublar. While the footage shows a game very early in development, it confirms that the title was being developed using Unreal Engine 4.

The Internet sleuths also turned up images of in-game models, including a Chris Pratt-looking character, a woman in shorts, and a number of dinosaurs, including a Tyrannosaurus Rex, Spinosaurus, and a Velociraptor. The leak included motion tests of the dinosaurs, showing the quickness of the Velociraptor and the lumbering fury of the Tyrannosaurus Rex, but the videos have since been pulled for copyright reasons.

Further digging turned up vague references to the title on various developer’s LinkedIn pages, where entries on the “unannounced project” hinted that the title was destined for release on Xbox Live, PlayStation Network, and Steam.

The closure of Cryptic Studio’s Seattle office killed progress on the game, and the company opted to simply cancel the title rather than continuing work on it. While the Jurassic Park franchise has a spotty history with video game adaptions, the assets point towards a game that at least looked the part. While titles such as Chronicles of Riddick: Assault On Dark Athena have proven that good movie tie-ins exist, odds are this Jurassic World game is well and truly extinct.

Source: JurassicWorld