Update []:
The recent resurrection of The Owl Project has taken a turn, with the original creator, Atari Owl, posting a statement saying that LordKraken's recent announcement on the Atari Age forum was made without consent.
"The recently posted video purporting to be of the Owl Project is not mine," says Atari Owl. "There are many differences both large and small, but it is not my code, it is just something made to look like it."
He adds that he has "never given any consent , nor will I give any consent to the use of any names, story, characters, graphics, textures, images, models, code, gameplay or any other associated Intellectual Property from the Owl Project to be used by anybody else. Indeed, nobody has ever approached me to obtain my consent."
Atari Owl also refutes the notion that the project was "abandoned or canned." He adds that "several admittedly long breaks have been taken due to health concerns", but "only a small proportion of the game and its capabilities has ever been demonstrated."
Ominously, Atari Owl then states that he "separated" himself from the Jaguar homebrew community "many years ago" and has "no plans to return, or to answer any questions about the project. I will continue at whatever pace I enjoy and announce things when/if I feel appropriate."
"Whilst imitation might indeed be the sincerest form of flattery, any projects claiming to be the Owl Project, or imitating it, are/have been made expressly without my consent," the statement concludes.
Original Story []: An "ambitious experimental title" for the Atari Jaguar has been revived, 15 years after its development was halted.
The Owl Project was shown off back in 2010 and is a 3D open-world adventure which pushes the console to its limits.
However, it would seem that development came to an end not long afterwards, and a prototype has been gathering dust in the hands of a collector – until now.
LordKraken announced on the Atari Age forum that he has legally acquired a 2011 alpha version of the game:
"I have the most fantastic and unexpected news you could imagine!
I got my hands (legally!) on the legendary The Owl Project!!! After being shelved for fifteen years, the latest version of this long‑lost game can finally be revealed.
Originally developed as an ambitious experimental title for the Atari Jaguar, it was never completed or released. I recently rediscovered the project on a Jaguar unit I acquired from a German collector and managed to restore it. This video presents the first public look at this forgotten piece of Jaguar development history."