Samurai Shodown 64 Prototype Surfaces After 20 Years in a Collector’s Backyard
When it comes to collecting rare video games, sometimes it pays to dig deep – quite literally. Just as hundreds of unsold copies of E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial for the Atari 2600 surfaced in New Mexico in 2014, finally capping off years of speculation, so too has a prototype cartridge for Samurai Shodown turned up buried in the most unlikely of places: beneath a tree in a back garden.
Prototypes are often considered a Holy Grail among enthusiasts, as they can provide valuable insight into a game’s development, expose the inner workings of cherished classics, and sometimes even showcase aspects that didn’t make the final cut. Most recently, we reported back in January that an early build of the original Sonic the Hedgehog for the Genesis had found its way onto the internet, and featured, amongst other things, an unfinished Spring Yard Zone and a (thankfully) H2O-deficient Labyrinth Zone.
In the case of Samurai Shodown, the tale is even more bizarre. California-based pinball machine repairman Craig Weiss, called to a job in Sacramento, spotted old pallets containing a variety of oddities buried beneath a fallen tree in his client’s yard. What started as a quick and simple paycheck soon turned priceless as he discovered that these had once belonged to a former SNK employee, and included several items that fans of the company had thought irretrievably lost after its US closure in 2000.
Among Weiss’ lucky finds was an unreleased prototype of Samurai Shodown for the Hyper Neo Geo 64. A rare game at the best of times – with copies routinely selling for upward of $100 online – the cartridge is particularly special in that it represents an incredibly brief period of time for SNK. In the late 90s, with 3D gaming becoming the norm, the Hyper Neo Geo was their attempt to tap into that rapidly developing market, only to be claimed by many of the technical pitfalls which sunk fellow competitors like the Panasonic 3DO and Phillips CDi. Soon after, SNK refocused its attention on the base Neo Geo, and in the end a meagre total of seven titles materialised for the doomed console; one of which has now had its prototype show up in somebody’s garden. In many ways, a fitting fate.
Weiss went on to contact YouTuber Anthony Bacon, who specialises in lost gaming media on his channel Video Game Esoterica, for more details. Bacon has put out a video with an in-depth look at the excavated cartridge’s contents. You can check it out below.
Are you excited by this remarkable find? Are there any other long-lost gaming treasures you’d love to see be discovered someday? Let us know in the comments below!
[Via GameRant]
