Unused & Removed Features/Wii

Drawn to Life: The Next Chapter (Wii) likely has the most cut and unused content out of any Drawn to Life Series game. This is explained by this quotes from Art Director, Ken Capelli.

“DTL was supposed to be a simple "safety" production that allowed other studio creative leads to focus on a big 1st-party project for Microsoft Game Studio. When the MGS project wound down and we put eyes back on DTL, we saw that the product was a shockingly scattered mess, barely playable/ parts on the floor, nowhere near being able to produce the expected alpha/ beta/ gold dates - it became an all-hands-on-deck emergency...My senior Art Lead and UI Art Director came into it with me, sleeves rolled up, to focus on lining up each area of the game (characters/ props/ cinematics, levels, user interface/ drawing tool). It was only as we were in the midst of alpha that I was able to offer visual feedback to help pull it all together with polish (TBH most of the individual assets developed by the team looked great, really cute and clean).”

–Ken Capelli

Characters

Early Raposa

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, early models for multiple Raposa can be found. This includes models for Raposa that did not make the final cut of the game, including Dr. Cure, Tubba, and NavyJ. These models ended up getting converted into images that were used for the crowd in the Raposa Sports minigames.

Mayor

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, a model of Mayor can be found, although all the documentation found in the package suggests that he was never meant to appear in any capacity outside of the statue and cutscenes.

Early Circi Designs

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, three early designs for Circi can be found. The third bears a striking similarity to Mari in terms of color palette.

Early Monkey King Designs

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, multiple early designs for the Monkey King can be found. Some of these designs seem to suggest that the Monkey King was meant to be the boss of Jangala at one point in development.

Snow People

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, concept art for a group of snow people can be found. It is unknown if they were meant to be sentient characters or decoration for Icy Wastes levels.

Jinxy

According to the Game Design Document (GDD) shared by Lead Designer Jason Weesner, there was supposed to be a character named "Jinxy" who would have needed to been saved. It is unknown if Jinxy was ever intended to appear, or if he was purely a placeholder name for this one example.

Eastern Winds Raposa

Zak and Mac

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, one of the Game Design Documents mentions a pair of brothers that would've been rescued in Eastern Winds. Underneath the attached image is the caption:

“In this example, Zak is on the left and Mac is on the right. We can see that Zak’s island is serene (God Rays and flowers). However, Mac’s island is under attack by Shadow Fliers. The player’s job is to defeat the enemies and then use the switch on Mac’s island (and the junction island between) to activate the rainbow bridges and reunite the brothers.”

–GDD

This mission would've been in the 3rd level of Eastern Winds, dubbed "Stormy Towns" at this point in development.

Other Eastern Winds Raposa

Other named and unnamed Raposa appear in the Eastern Winds levels:

• Hans – Stuck in Icy Wastes
• Doug – Owns the oldest windmill in "Horizon Town"
• Farmer – Owns a pair of prize winning farm animal at the "Sky Farms"
• Farmer’s Neighbor – Wants three prize winning animals to show his neighbor up at the "Sky Farms"
• Hollow Island Owner – Owns multiple hollow houses "Above the Storm"
• Gardener – Lost their garden "Above the Storm"

Repair Guy

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, one of the Game Design Documents mentions a Raposa known as Repair Guy. It seems like this revision of the document uses character descriptions from a beta version of the original Drawn to Life, and Repair Guy's reads as follows:

“No one knows his name, they just call him the repair guy) He’s like “Hey everyone it’s me!” And they are like “Heeeey…. Uh… Repair guy!” And he’s like “Awww I knew you wouldn’t forget me!” (Mayor asks Mari “What was his name?” She’s like “Why you asking me I never knew it.”)”

–Game Design Document

The document also mentions him being rescued with a daughter, something that may be a remnant from the development of Drawn to Life.

Fire Bill

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, one of the Game Design Documents mentions a Raposa known as Fire Bill. It seems like this revision of the document uses character descriptions from a beta version of the original Drawn to Life^{[Citation needed]} , and Fire Bill's reads as follows:

“Comes back to help the Raposa after the village fire.”

–Game Design Document

The document also mentions him being rescued with two assistants, something that may be a remnant from the development of Drawn to Life. The "village fire" mentioned in his description may be referring to the cut Fire Minigame from the original Drawn to Life.

Objects

Book of Life

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, two models for the Book of Life can be found. The second model is supposedly in the final game, but goes unused for an unknown reason.

Ink Well

As seen on Ken Capelli's website, there were plans to have an Ink Well appear in the game. In the package shared by Ken Capelli, it was revealed that the Ink Well would've been found in Wilfre's Lair as the spawn point for Boss. It is unknown why it was replaced with the Ink Barrel in the final game.

Enemies

Bird

In the game's files, there is an enemy named "junglebird."

Thanks to Lead Designer Jason Weesner, we now know that this enemy was supposed to be a Jangala equivalent to the Snow Bird, dropping on the Hero whenever they approached.

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, concept art, textures, and a model for this enemy were discovered.

Ink Goon

The Ink Goon was an enemy slated to appear in Shadow City levels. It would have acted similar to the Bonobo or Snow Warrior in that it would patrol an area and then charge at the Hero once they were close enough. It would have acted very zombie-like, with both of its arms out towards the Hero.

As shown in this promotional video, its possible that it was cut very late into development, as what may be a model for the monster can be seen.

Ink Bomb

Concept Art=

The Ink Bomb was an enemy slated to appear in Shadow City and Icy Wastes levels. When it saw the Hero, it would have charged towards them. When the Hero attacked it, it would have begun to inflate, only to explode shortly after.

Ink Giant

The Ink Giant was an enemy slated to appear in Shadow City levels. It would have walked around its area, swinging its legs up high with each step, allowing the Hero to walk underneath it. It would also jump in the air and try to land on the Hero. Its weak spot would have been it's head.

Ink Tosser

The Ink Tosser was an enemy slated to appear in Shadow City, Icy Wastes, and Eastern Winds levels. It would have acted similarly to the Dart Bonobo, as it would have fired balls of ink at the Hero when they got close enough.

Ink Flyer

The Ink Flyer was an enemy slated to appear in Shadow City and Eastern Winds levels. This enemy was supposed to be a Shadow City equivalent to the Snow Cat, chasing the Hero throughout their area, either until the Hero was out of range, or they died. It would have come in two sizes, small and large. This enemy would have also appeared during the fight against the Boss.

Ink Bouncer

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, an enemy known as the Ink Bouncer can be found in a revision of the GDD. As shown in this promotional video, its possible that it was cut very late into development, as its model can be seen.

Squirrel Enemy

In the games files are references to a squirrel enemy. However, no such enemy appears in the final game. The existence of this squirrel enemy was also shown by a statement made by concept artist Jeannie Schafer:

“I vaguely remember a flying squirrel... lol.”

–Jeannie Schafer

Thanks to Lead Designer Jason Weesner, we now know that this enemy was supposed to be a Eastern Winds equivalent to the Snow Bird, dropping on the Hero whenever they approached.

Giant Golden Baki

As shown in this promotional video, the giant variant of the Golden Baki was originally supposed to appear in the game. It was cut during development for an unknown reason. They were apparently slated to appear in the Icy Wastes levels along with the Snow Cat and Bonobo. In the package shared by Ken Capelli, the model for this Baki was found.

Beta Bonobo

As shown in this promotional video, the Bonobo were originally going to have a different design. Their appearance was changes during development for an unknown reason. They were apparently slated to appear in the Icy Wastes levels along with the Snow Cat and Golden Baki. In the package shared by Ken Capelli, the model for this Baki was found.

Bosses

Tree King

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, one of the Game Design Documents lists the Tree King as the boss of Jangala. There is no information known about the Tree King, as its section of the GDD is empty with the exception of its name and art.

Unknown Jangala Boss

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, a model titled "boss" can be found in a directory with cut props from Jangala levels. It is unknown what this model's purpose would have been, or if it even would have been a boss at all. A model titled "boss_Zed" is an exact replica of "boss," with the only difference being that boss_Zed does not have eyes.

Scribble Monster Concept Art

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, concept art for the Giant Scribble Monster can be found. In this art, the actual scribble monster is nowhere to be found, and the Artifacts of Power have a slightly different design. An interesting note is that the Pen and Pencil are not found in this design.

Creations

Hero Attachments

Mermaid Tail

The Mermaid Tail was the planned Hero attachment for the scrapped Water World. According to the Game Design Documents, the player would have originally sunk to the bottom of water pools, and this creation would have been required to swim through them. The player would have been able to get a temporary boost by pressing . According to either Billy Delli-Gatti or Casey Holtz, Scott Rogers said that the mermaid tail was also planned to be part of the original game, but this has not been confirmed by anyone.

Hockey Player

The Hockey Player was the planned Hero attachment for Icy Wastes. According to the Game Design Documents, this would have functioned exactly like the Skates and Sword do in tandem, albeit the hockey stick would have swung up instead of down, like the sword. The skates from this was adapted into the Skates, and the Hockey motif was incorporated into the Raposa Sports minigame.

Spacesuit

The Spacesuit was the planned Hero attachment for the scrapped Space World. Very little is known about this attachment, as none of the Game Design Documents elaborate on it in any way.

Scrapped Ideas

Among the cut Hero attachments, many more were drafted up, but never fully conceptualized. For Shadow City, the player was planned to get Platform Shoes, allowing them to jump higher and "kick the crap out of things." Also for Shadow City, a Shadow Disguise was considered that would've allowed the Hero to not aggro Shadow enemies. For Icy Wastes, a Big Power Glove would have given the player a stronger punch that would've allowed them to break through bigger objects. Also for Icy Wastes, Drill Bit Gloves would have allowed the player to drill through objects.

Vehicles

Zeppelin

There is some leftover code relating to an unused Zeppelin vehicle. The Game Design Documents shared by Ken Capelli shed more light on the Zeppelin, revealing that it would have been similar to the Helicopter. However, instead of being fast, it was meant to be much stronger than the Helicopter. It functioned in three different parts - the balloon, the gondola, and the blades.

Miscellaneous

Jungle Ants

In the game's files, there is an entry named "jungleants."

Thanks to Lead Designer Jason Weesner, we know that the Jungle Ants were supposed to be a creation found in Jangala. They would have acted as a moving platform according to the GDD that he shared. In this document, the creation is titled "Ant with Leaf."

“The player draws a leaf that a giant worker ant carries in its mouth. The leaf acts as a platform that the player can stand on as the ant moves.
The any can climb up walls, creating an ant elevator.
The ants can walk in tight groups on the ground, forming a fast moving leaf conveyor belt.”

–GDD

In the package shared by Ken Capelli, the premade design for this creation was found. The design for the leaf would end up being resized and used as the template for the Leaves of Ages creation.

Music

Tutorial

File:TutorialWii.ogg

This track is unused in the game and it likely would have been used in a tutorial, either for the platforming section or the drawing mode.

Boss Theme (Intro)

File:BossThemeIntro.ogg

This track is unused in the game and it likely would have played in the Boss's room before the rising Shadow is activated.

Beta UI and Menus

As shown in this promotional video and the GDD, the UI for the game was originally very different.

Coin Counter

The Coin Counter is the only counter present at the top of the screen; no life counter is present. The design is more rugged than the final design and has no shimmer.

Creation Easel

The Creation Easel seemed to remain mostly unchanged during development, only lacking the palette icon on the front.

Hero Drawing UI

The Creation UI for the Hero was changed drastically during development. All of the drawing segments have the same color outline, there is an icon of the generic female icon in the top right, there are undo and redo arrows where the Joint Editor and Load Template buttons are in the final build. There is also a downward pointing triangle in a circle where the Instructional Prompt button is in the final build.

Drawing Tool UI

In addition to the Hero UI, the left sidebar also went through many changes during development.

In February of 2009, there was no set background, with the drawing background for the Forest Gate being used instead. Many of the icons on the left sidebar looked less polished than in any other public build, and the icons at the top are identical to those in the October 2009 build, with a few distinct differences.

For example, in this build, there are two extra icons, a green square with a star icon on it, and a blue square with an "X" on it. The "OK" button is also not in the center of the panel, rather being a square on the far right side. The notebook itself is also distinct, as it does not have any lines on it.

In the October 2009 build, the preview window was a full 3D area, instead of the two flat objects it is in the final build. The color picker was a lot less polished and there is no scrolling pattern in the background. The same undo and redo arrows, along with the downward pointing triangle in a circle from the Hero UI, are also present.

Book of Life Startup

The menu for the Wii game was originally planned to act similarly to that of the DS games. You would have been able to draw on the main screen and access your files on the next. The player would have been able to start a New Game, Load a Game, or access the Options, all of which function similarly to how they do in the final build.

Levels

Beta Jangala Level

As seen on Ken Capelli's website, Jangala used to have a very different background and slightly different tree models. As can be seen in the image, the Bonobo were set to appear in Jangala.

This image is from the build on November 18th, 2008, a little under a year before the game was released.

Beta Shadow City Outer Walls

As shown in this promotional video, Shadow City Outer Walls originally had a different appearance. The background is different in the final build - being more plain, as it is just a purple background. However, the Sinking Platform is still present where it is in the final build. The Sword is also able to be drawn, something that isn't available until the Icy Wastes in the final build.

Beta Icy Wastes

As shown in this promotional video, the Icy Wastes seem to be the most polished of all the gates, at least during this stage of development. The background is modeled, there are more details in the level, and a giant Golden Baki and a Bonobo can be seen roaming the level.

Credits

The Credits for this game were originally going to be much more important to the game as a whole. After collecting the Branches from the Tree of Ages, the celebration sequence would have started and a fake-out Credits sequence would have played. Halfway through, there would have been an explosion at the Mayor's House, and Circi would have begun her speech about loving Wilfre, all while the Giant Scribble Monster rose above her. The fight would have ensued, and the real credits sequence would have played. However, at the moment the explosion happened in the fake-out credits, there would have been a pause in the music before finishing out the crawl.