Canceled Twisted Metal Game Was Part Vehicular Combat, Part Shooter, Part Battle Royale, Dev Says

Brand new images of Sony's canceled Twisted Metal game have surfaced online, hinting at a live-service title blending the franchise's signature vehicular combat with battle royale mechanics. A former UI developer at Sony-owned Firesprite, the game's developer, uploaded several blurred screenshots to their online portfolio. Though labeled "Under NDA," the images are associated with the codename "Project Copper," believed to be the internal name for the unannounced Twisted Metal game.

Firesprite described Project Copper as a "third-person vehicular action combat game based on a classic IP owned by PlayStation," adding that it featured "third-person shooter mechanics wrapped with third-person vehicle combat with the objective of being the last one standing." (Source: MP1st)

Sony's cancellation of Twisted Metal was part of the February 2024 layoffs. At the time, the game was "not yet greenlit" but in development at Firesprite, a studio directly affected by the cuts.

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The Twisted Metal project's demise reflects Sony's shift away from live-service games following a period of significant investment. This change in strategy followed the cancellation of The Last of Us Online by Naughty Dog in December 2023 due to the extensive resources required for long-term live-service support. While Helldivers 2 from Arrowhead Studios was a massive success (12 million copies sold in 12 weeks), Sony's Concord live-service shooter was a notable failure, shutting down after only a few weeks due to extremely low player numbers. In January, Sony also canceled two further unannounced live-service titles, one a God of War game from Bluepoint and another from Bend Studio (Days Gone developers).

Although a new Twisted Metal game seems unlikely, the Twisted Metal TV series starring Anthony Mackie continues with Season 2 on Peacock. IGN's review of Season 1 awarded it an 8/10, praising its "miraculously enjoyable blend of comedy, violence, and thoughtfulness," despite its occasionally excessive humor.