A lost video game is a video game that is no longer known to exist in any studio archives, private collections, or public archives.

Terminology

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Examples

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Much of the Satellaview library is considered lost, as its titles were broadcast via satellite in real time and were downloaded onto rewritable cartridges that could only contain a single game's data.[1][2]

Rediscovered games

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It is not unheard of for games that were previously considered lost to be rediscovered. A notable example is SegaSonic Bros., a Sonic the Hedgehog-themed falling block puzzle game designed by Bubble Bobble creator Fukio Mitsuji.[3] The game failed Japanese location tests in 1992, so it was not widely released and considered lost for many years.[3][4] However, a working cabinet was discovered in 2016,[4][5] and the ROM image was released online in 2018.[3]

References

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  1. ^ Wawro, Alex (8 November 2016). "Preservationists find and acquire rare Kirby Satellaview games". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 29 April 2019. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
  2. ^ Linneman, John (26 January 2020). "Cooly Skunk: how a lost Super NES game was miraculously recovered via satellite download". Eurogamer. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
  3. ^ a b c Katala, Kurt (December 9, 2018). "SegaSonic Bros". Hardcore Gaming 101. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  4. ^ a b Dransfield, Ian (February 5, 2016). "Has a lost Sonic arcade game been unearthed?". Digital Spy. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  5. ^ Thorpe, Nick (February 5, 2016). "Has A Scrapped Sonic Game Been Found?". Retro Gamer. Retrieved March 7, 2020.