Long-Lost NES Port of Populous Recovered After Nearly Three Decades
Hot off the heels of Sensible Soccer, the completed but unreleased Nintendo Entertainment System version of Bullfrog's influential god game Populous has been fully recovered. Games That Weren't successfully retrieved the final backup from an archive during disk recovery work in 2025, making this legendary title playable for the first time since its development in the 1990s.
Originally developed by Enigma Variations for Electronic Arts/Bullfrog, the NES port was fully completed but never published. According to former producer Darren Melbourne, publisher Imagineer ultimately decided against releasing the game, believing the NES platform had passed its commercial prime. Despite the development team's considerable time and effort, the completed game was archived and forgotten until now.
Populous, first released for home computers in 1989, pioneered the "god game" genre where players assume divine powers to shape landscapes and guide civilizations. This NES adaptation faithfully recreates the experience despite hardware limitations. While somewhat muted in color palette compared to other versions, the port reportedly "works and plays very well" according to Games That Weren't.
The recovery also brings to light previously unheard NES music from renowned composer David Whittaker, who adapted Rob Hubbard's original score for the Nintendo hardware. This adds significant historical value to the discovery for video game music enthusiasts.
Technical testing reveals the game functions properly on MESEN and Nestopia emulators, though it experiences graphical issues on FCEUX and potentially other emulation platforms. Games That Weren't has made the ROM available for download on their website.
This recovery follows the recent rediscovery of another lost NES title, Sensible Soccer, suggesting more unreleased Nintendo Entertainment System games may still await discovery in archives and private collections.
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