Twenty-two years after its planned launch date, Kien is finally being released for Game Boy Advance players in 2024.
The action role-playing game platform was originally due to be launched in 2002, at the height of Game Boy Advance's prominence as Nintendo's handheld console of the day.
But, due to cancellations and delays, the fantasy-genre game never materialised.
That is about to change, as its publisher Incub8 and indie development studio AgeofGames have announced the game will be out in April or May this year.
Enticing players who may need a refresh or blurb for the physical game teasers: “For 7,000 years the planet of Malkut has been wisely ruled by the Seven Masters of the Absolute. But chaos has been reborn as evil corrupts the Land of Harmony.”
A two-decade release teaser may be a rarity, but console games going from "in development" to seemingly abandoned is more common.
In hopes that others may follow Kien's lead, here are four games unreleased or unfinished.
Silent Hills - 2012
This entry is a sore spot for many serious gamers; perfectly set up to be one of the scariest and most interesting gaming experiences of the time, yet Silent Hills never saw the light of day.
Hideo Kojima’s creation is a single-player horror game that stars Norman Reedus as the protagonist role and credits Mexican filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro as one of its directors.
First in development in 2012, details were kept under wraps until a playable teaser was released in 2014, showing audiences what to expect from the complete game.
Having players navigate a seemingly endless looping hallway, haunting spectres lurking in the shadows, as they aim to solve a murder made for a bumper-horror experience.
The teaser achieved so much with so little – manipulating sound from the speakers and sensation from the controller to truly horrify players – demonstrating that Kojima's genius could become a whole new genre and present an unforgettable game.
Unfortunately, the relationship between Konami and Hideo Kojima, the company producing the game, deteriorated and they parted ways in 2015.
Konami still owns the Silent Hill franchise, and Kojima has his own game production studio now, so the prospect of ever playing the full-fledged game is next to zero.
Agent - 2009
Rockstar Games is one of the most influential studios today, and with titles like Grand Theft Auto 5 and Red Dead Redemption 2, fans have come to expect a near-perfect experience from the company.
Back in 2009, Rockstar announced a brand new game titled Agent, described as a stealth action experience centred around espionage and assassinations.
The teaser generated lots of excitement from fans and within the industry, with Sam Houser, one of the company's founders, saying Agent was the game they had been wanting to make for some time.
Unfortunately for fans who were excited about the project, production would stall owing to shifting focus to other games, including LA Noire.
Knowing the level of detail and finesse Rockstar pours into creating worlds, it's a shame that gamers missed out on this spy game experience from the studio.
Star Wars: Battlefront III - 2006
The first two Battlefronts, released in 2004 and 2005, were very popular titles. The games allowed fans of the franchise to experience an all-out battle between the rebels and the empire.
A third game was due for release in 2006, but was sadly cancelled at the last minute, leaving a near-complete game to linger in limbo.
The franchise has since been rebooted after Star Wars returned to the big screen with a new trilogy.
In recent years, footage from the axed game has reached the internet, with many lamenting the missed opportunity of a great experience.
The footage shows different stages and abilities, which would have been a big upgrade on what was available in the second game in the series.
BC - 2002
It is a short and succinct title for a game with huge potential.
Developed by Intrepid Computer Entertainment for the original Xbox, the game excited fans with its premise of prehistoric survival and combat against dinosaurs and the elements.
Its developers also spoke highly of BC’s larger-than-life potential, as dinosaurs would be so much bigger than the playable character.
The game was also skewed for adult gamers, promising to be more gruesome in its combat sequences than competition at the time.
Yet in 2004, after two years of sharing details and screengrabs of the game, BC was cancelled.
Reasons behind the cancellation were not shared, but years later, Peter Molyneux, one of the heads of the company developing BC, said it was mostly due to their other game Fable being further down the development line.
But with Kien finally making it over the line in 2024, all hope is not lost.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
The Pope's itinerary
Sunday, February 3, 2019 - Rome to Abu Dhabi
1pm: departure by plane from Rome / Fiumicino to Abu Dhabi
10pm: arrival at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
Monday, February 4
12pm: welcome ceremony at the main entrance of the Presidential Palace
12.20pm: visit Abu Dhabi Crown Prince at Presidential Palace
5pm: private meeting with Muslim Council of Elders at Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque
6.10pm: Inter-religious in the Founder's Memorial
Tuesday, February 5 - Abu Dhabi to Rome
9.15am: private visit to undisclosed cathedral
10.30am: public mass at Zayed Sports City – with a homily by Pope Francis
12.40pm: farewell at Abu Dhabi Presidential Airport
1pm: departure by plane to Rome
5pm: arrival at the Rome / Ciampino International Airport
MO
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How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
Mobile phone packages comparison
Veere di Wedding
Dir: Shashanka Ghosh
Starring: Kareena Kapoo-Khan, Sonam Kapoor, Swara Bhaskar and Shikha Talsania
Verdict: 4 Stars
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Company%20profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
THE BIO
Ms Davison came to Dubai from Kerala after her marriage in 1996 when she was 21-years-old
Since 2001, Ms Davison has worked at many affordable schools such as Our Own English High School in Sharjah, and The Apple International School and Amled School in Dubai
Favourite Book: The Alchemist
Favourite quote: Failing to prepare is preparing to fail
Favourite place to Travel to: Vienna
Favourite cuisine: Italian food
Favourite Movie : Scent of a Woman
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
Arabian Gulf League fixtures:
Friday:
- Emirates v Hatta, 5.15pm
- Al Wahda v Al Dhafra, 5.25pm
- Al Ain v Shabab Al Ahli Dubai, 8.15pm
Saturday:
- Dibba v Ajman, 5.15pm
- Sharjah v Al Wasl, 5.20pm
- Al Jazira v Al Nasr, 8.15pm
So what is Spicy Chickenjoy?
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
RECORD%20BREAKER
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MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Temple numbers
Expected completion: 2022
Height: 24 meters
Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people
Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people
First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time
First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres
Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres
Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor
