Vapourware: The tech that never was

Sim Mars
Sim Mars was a game in development by Maxis around 1998, and would've taken Sim City into the cosmos, ready for dumping on the Red Planet. Sadly, the game was put on hold after the phenomenal success of girl-favourite The Sims. There simply weren't enough resources or people available to concurrently work on Sim Mars and The Sims, and the importance of continuing the Sims franchise was deemed more beneficial to the company and to gamers.

It's probably fair to say that The Sims has more potential than Sim Mars ever would have had. Can you imagine some of the expansion pack titles we could've seen? Sim Mars: Funny Looking Rocks or perhaps Sim Mars: Bonus Clouds. Oh, and let's not forget the potential killer Sim Mars: Things That Look Like Stuff Found On Earth.

Somehow it doesn't fill us with the same God-like excitement The Sims gives us, or that Spore promises to give us.

As a matter of fact...
In an expansion pack for The Sims, called The Sims: Vacation, an arcade game playable by in-game Sims is called Sim Mars. Its description is rumoured to be that of the original Maxis title, and reads: "Direct mankind's first mission to the red planet! Launch rockets and deploy robot probes! Deploy teams to search for alien resources! Establish and run a network of specialised colonies to create a self-sufficient civilisation! Provide your colony with food, shelter, and power! Fast, furious, adrenaline-pumping action!"