Twisted Metal was a beloved PlayStation car combat series that brought a tidal wave of nostalgia. Firesprite almost revived it via a reboot, but just when rumors about a first look at the game started coming along, PlayStation cancelled the entry altogether.

PlayStation laid off 8% of its workforce earlier last year, which, in the process, also saw the live-service project being affected. Now, a new report has revealed that the project was aiming for a battle royale experience with third-person elements unique to the franchise.

Why it matters: While Twisted Metal was cancelled about one year ago, learning more about the project has caused more controversy in the gaming scene. Twisted Metal featured some of the best games in the vehicular combat genre.
As reported by MP1st, the website of one of the UI programmers has now revealed new images and descriptions regarding the reboot. It was internally codenamed Project Copper, with evidence suggesting it was a battle royale experience.

The title was going to feature out-of-vehicle third-person shooter gameplay, which would have made it a more traditional battle royale than a vehicle combat entry. The objective of the gameplay loop was your typical ‘be the last one standing.’

Additionally, some censored images reinforce these ideas, confirming that players would have fought with each other in a third-person perspective using weapons. There were also unique mechanics, such as earning credits to avoid elimination. Some argue that the game going towards the battle royale route might have backfired.
Lastly, the highly anticipated reboot was in development using Unreal Engine 5, which would have given the franchise quite a modern look. However, because of this failed revival, it’s unclear whether Sony will attempt to bring the franchise back again.

Do you think the cancelled Twisted Metal reboot would have been successful in the already convoluted genre, or was Sony right to cancel it?