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Nintendo Cancels 'Giant Robot Project' Wii U Game's Development

Nintendo confirmed with gaming news website Polygon that it will not make the "Project Giant Robot" Wii U game. The company told the website, “we made this decision after considering our overall product and development strategy.”

The earnings report than Nintendo issued on Tuesday did not mention "Project Giant Robot." Nintendo's third quarter earnings report had still listed the project as an upcoming title.

Video game designer and producer Shigeru Miyamoto said in an interview with TIME in March, "'Project Giant Robot' was something we started as a second project, and unfortunately we haven't yet decided to turn that into a full game."

A Nintendo nine-month earnings report in early 2015 slated the game for release in Japan and the United States in 2015. Miyamoto introduced his "Project Giant Robot" game at E3 in 2014. He described the game at that time:

Players control sky-scraping automatons, angling the Wii U GamePad in front of a TV screen while shifting their torsos left and right or up and down to maneuver the robot's upper-body while thumbing the controller's joysticks to punch or grab — almost like a full-body game of Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots. The GamePad shows you what the robot sees, while the TV screen offers a zoomed-back view, letting onlookers — as well as you — admire your tromping, pummeling handiwork.

Nintendo revealed last March its "Project Guard" title as Star Fox Guard, a separate game bundled with the Star Fox Zero Wii U game. Miyamoto had demoed both games with "Project Giant Robot."

Nintendo revealed as of this week that production has ended in Japan on both currently available Wii U console sets. Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime confirmed in January that The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild will be Nintendo's last title developed for the Wii U. The game will launch on both Nintendo Switch and Wii U on March 3.

Source: Polygon (Chelsea Stark)