Plants vs. Zombies action-adventure title reportedly canceled for a never-released Star Wars game

In 2016, the developers at PopCap Vancouver were reportedly working on an ambitious action-adventure title comparable to the likes of Uncharted and Arkham Knight for the Plants vs. Zombies franchise. But it never saw the light of day, as reported by IGN. The title was ultimately scrapped for an unnamed Star Wars project spearheaded by Visceral, which was also eventually canceled.

Dubbed “Project Hot Tub,” this promising addition to the Plants vs. Zombies catalog was meant to branch out the beloved, family-friendly title into completely new territory. Project Hot Tub was expected to be the franchise’s first venture outside of its tower defense roots and followed two teenage sibling protagonists as they were thrust back in time into a zombie apocalypse.

The untitled action-adventure game reportedly made significant promises, boasting an “open corridor” progression such as Uncharted while drawing inspiration for combat from Arkham Knight. Project Hot Tub was well underway up until its sudden cancellation and was even set for a 2017 release, according to IGN. The team supposedly had not run into deadline, budget, or scope issues, though nonetheless was still shut down for Visceral’s Star Wars game, which was also scrapped later that year.

After months of making headway, the PopCap Vancouver team reportedly met representatives from EA to determine the fate of their project. IGN sources report that the presentation itself was well received, but in the days following, the project was still shut down and many were moved to the unreleased Star Wars project. The Plants Vs. Zombies franchise continued to expand without Project Hot Tub, notably releasing two more Garden Warfare titles, a collectible card game, and another addition to the tower defense core game.

All that now remains of Project Hot Tub are early screengrabs of the game’s supposed environment and settings. With the project now firmly in the past, we can only speculate on how the Plants Vs. Zombies title, a reported amalgamation inspired by several titles, could have turned out and how this may influence the future of the franchise.