
Ewok Adventure
Released: Never
Systems: Atari 2600
The Basics
Parker Brothers' 1983 video game catalog contained an advertisement for Ewok Adventure, a Star Wars game that was never released. For years, Star Wars and 2600 fans alike wondered if even a single copy of this mysterious game existed.
Flying high.
Then in early 1997, around the time when the original trilogy was rereleased in the theaters, a prototype copy of Ewok Adventure was discovered.
The Details
According to Dan Skelton of the 2600 Connection magazine, the prototype was in the hands of a noncollector who had received it from his father's friend (who was an employee of Parker Brothers). The game had just been sitting on a shelf for years.
The shield generator.
Because Ewok Adventure is so rare, details concerning it are scarce. According to Skelton, the gameplay is similar to Activison's Sky Jinks and involves controlling an ewok as he glides over the forest moon of Endor. You can also control AT-STs and speederbikes. At certain times during the game, the ultimate goal is the destruction of the shield generator that controls the force field around the Death Star.
Why did Parker Brothers abandon Ewok Adventure? No one can say for sure, but the most likely scenario is that it did not want to risk losing money distributing a game that probably wouldn't sell well. The entire video game industry was in a severe slump at the time, and the popularity of the 2600 was waning.
The Verdict
Unfortunately, it is unlikely any of us will ever get a chance to play Ewok Adventure, and judging from Skelton's description and the available screenshots, that's a real shame.
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