Earthworm Jim 4 has reportedly been canceled — and might’ve never had a chance to begin with

A new report shows that Earthworm Jim 4 is no longer in development and may never have been allowed to enter production. The recent evidence shows that those behind the game’s announcement have been hoping that its cancelation would go quietly unnoticed. Unfortunately for them, nothing escapes the earthworm’s dedicated fan base.

Earthworm Jim 4, originally announced by creator Doug TenNapel and Intellivision’s CEO Tommy Tallarico following the reveal of the Amico, seems to have been doomed to fail from the start. A post from OutofcontextEarthwormJim on Twitter shows a Discord conversation in which they explain how the game has been canceled and speculate that Intellivision may not even have had the rights to make it.

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OutofcontextEarthwormJim adds that the company was either warned away from making the game without the legal rights to it or just canceled it when it became evident it would never acquire those rights. The company’s hopes of this being swept under the rug have been dashed, though. As the user says, “When you’ve been waiting for 25 years for something to happen, you notice, lol.”

After the initial announcement of Earthworm Jim 4, TenNapel launched an Indiegogo campaign for Earthworm Jim: Launch the Cow — a graphic novel reboot for the series, and the campaign raised almost one million dollars. The novel was released in 2019, and a sequel was also launched on the platform.

In the years that followed, Intellivision delayed the release of the Amico console again and again. Fans and backers are demanding refunds, though the company remains adamant that it will bring it to market one day. Whether the console materializes in the future or not, all we have to remember is that Earthworm Jim 4 is a concept teaser trailer showing Jim running across a beach for 20 seconds.

The Earthworm Jim games are a series of platformers that follow Earthworm Jim as he battles his way around alien planets using his unique wormy abilities. The character is an earthworm in a robotic suit, allowing him to use himself as a whip and even spin his head around to glide. The games are beloved by fans, and you can see some concepts that would go on to influence 3D platformers in future console generations. Re-releases on smartphones and other consoles have been well-received, but nothing stirred the fan base up like the fourth game’s announcement.