The forgotten Resident Evil Game Boy Color version is finally playable

A nearly complete build of the canceled Resident Evil port for Game Boy Color has surfaced online, preserved by Games That Weren’t in late 2025. This ambitious project from developer HotGen aimed to adapt the full PlayStation survival horror classic onto 8-bit handheld hardware. HotGen began work in mid-1999, using scaled sprites for 3D perspectives over pre-rendered backgrounds to mimic the original game’s style. The team retained core elements like locations, puzzles, and dialogue, but replaced speech with text due to cartridge limits. Developers Nigel Speight and Pete Frith recall it reaching 75-98% completion, with demos shown at E3 1999 and a planned Christmas release that slipped to early 2000. Capcom halted the project in February 2000, deeming it subpar for the platform despite testing nearing completion. Rumors suggest Resident Evil creator Shinji Mikami felt the Game Boy Color unworthy, though technical constraints like CPU power and storage forced compromises. Tragically, lead artist Martin Smith passed away during development. Games That Weren’t released a “final” 98% complete ROM from Pete Frith, featuring intro credits, end sequences, and the Tyrant boss, potentially making it playable end-to-end. Earlier 2011 leaks were incomplete, but this version removes debug modes and adds more content, including hacks for endings, Tyrant fights, and a music/SFX player. Assets like sprites and WAV samples are also extracted.

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