When THQ's assets were auctioned off, everyone was surprised that Vigil Games – creators of the lauded Darksiders series – was not picked up. According to THQ president Jason Rubin, it wasn't because of a lack of quality. He told us about a game Vigil was working on codenamed Crawler that was already turning heads.

In a wide-ranging interview about his time at the publisher/developer, Rubin told us that the auction process and the prices that THQ's studios and games fetched was not necessarily indicative of the quality of those assets. Case in point: Vigil Games. Rubin said that one Vigil title in particular really stood out. "When the teams got together recently to show each other their titles, Crawler dropped the most jaws. It is a fantastic idea, and truly unique. The fact that nobody bid for the team and title is a travesty. It makes no sense to me. If I weren’t barred from bidding as an insider, I would have been there with my checkbook. I’m sure that’s little consolation to the team, but that’s a fact."

If this title was so good, why did everyone pass on it? Rubin said there might be factors other than the game itself that got in the way. "Having just finished a product, Vigil was farthest from release of their next game, and we were not able to garner any interest from buyers, despite a herculean effort. Additionally, they were working on a new IP, which meant even more risk for a buyer."

Hopefully Vigil and Crawler will still find a buyer in the coming months so that gamers can experience the game for themselves.

For more on THQ's demise, check out our exclusive interview with Rubin.