Marionette

Marionette is a cancelled GameCube game by Nintendo. It started life on the N64 before being tested on the next gen system.

Development
The project was basically akin to a tech demo. People assumed it was a Mario game based on the name, which is incorrect; the puppet is not Mario.

Cancellation
Marionette was cancelled due to it being both complicated and simple. Perhaps they couldn't weave in a decent plot or flesh out the gameplay mechanics.