As part of the superhero boom in the early 2000s that saw licensed films release in time for their silver-screen counterpart, there was meant to be a Daredevil: The Man Without Fear game. It began development in 2002 as a third-person action game for PlayStation 2, but after Marvel saw (and liked) the first prototype, they stepped in to oversee the project and have final say in all decisions (since they owned the rights to the character, so of course). When the game’s publisher, Encore, saw potential sales success with the movie, development expanded to PC and Xbox, and the game turned into an open-world action game set for release in early 2003, alongside the film. After that, boy OH BOY did the drama begin…

Sony wanted to see some sort of Tony Hawk Pro Skater-style grind mechanic for Daredevil, Marvel was becoming unhappy with the project’s evolution, and Microsoft seemed to just stay out of any conversation. This led to many delays, drama, and resignations, and while a near finished game was made (that mainly appeased Sony’s wishes), Marvel felt the game strayed too far from the established lore of the character from the comics. The result was Marvel pulling the license so the company couldn’t release it. Despite how far the game strayed from the source material, Daredevil: The Man Without Fear probably could’ve stood well on its own alongside the other acclaimed superhero games of the time period.