KyoZz
Tag, you're it.
Thx to the lead developer:
Cancelled ‘because the economy crashed hard. It killed the publisher, the studio (Factor 5), and the game.’
‘The goal was to present super brawls as they were seen in the cartoons and comics. JLU was our main touchstone.’
The game would’ve included ‘Aerial brawling, large urban environments, crashing through buildings, fast target engagement, knocking your foe into the next block, shockwaves from hits, impact grooves in the streets or building sides… all of it.’
The developers had a ‘fully working as a prototype and were shifting to full production when the crash hit. All the main gameplay was in place and had been proven out.’
They ‘didn’t want to rely on traditional gaming crutches of the IP – kryptonite and fighting robots. There were rules about the big blue boy scout (pre-Snyder obviously), but we were to surround Supes with foes more in his power range.’
The game was ‘supposed to release alongside the sequel to the Bryan Singer Superman Returns film (which also clearly never happened).’
‘While the gameplay may have been based on JLU, the environments were based heavily on both the Superman animated series and early 20th century artist Hugh Ferriss - featuring elevated highways, railways, and airships.’
‘In addition to us just appreciating the visual aesthetic (and that is worked with the animated series style), the layers of motion at every elevation in the city created a city that felt alive no matter where you were - important in a game where much takes place in the air.’
Source: Reddit/Twitter