This game was meant to be the main story source for LEGO's Bionicle toy series in the year 2001, but it was canceled soon before its intended release. According to LEGO, the game's quality was simply not up to their standards, however people involved with the game's development explained the real reason was that the Bionicle franchise had undergone a shift in management around that time, and the game didn't fit into LEGO's change of plans, especially their policies on the depiction of violence. There have been suggestions that this had something to do with the terrorist attacks of 9/11, and also that there may have been budgetary concerns as well. The development company, Saffire, was also faced with legal troubles for trying to avoid repeated bankruptcy, and it folded when the game was canceled.
The 2001 Bionicle comic series by DC Comics only lasted for three issues, and left the complete plot untold. This is because it was originally meant to tie into this game. When the comics continued in 2002, they glossed over the game's events and continued the story from where the game would have left off.
Along with the web-based Mata Nui Online Game (2001) (AKA the Mata Nui Online Game), this game picks up exactly where the GameBoy game LEGO Bionicle: Quest for the Toa (2001) left off. The MNOG continued the story from the perspective of the villagers at the insistence of LEGO, whereas this game was meant to focus on the mighty Toa heroes. After this game had been canceled, Templar Studios, the creators of MNOG, were instructed to cap off both game's stories. This explains why the final chapter of MNOG shows the events from both the villagers' and the heroes' perspectives.
This game was a highly sought-after "holy grail" for Bionicle fans for many years. Though it was never officially released, there are a number of beta disks in existence owned by various people, mostly former employees of the now defunct Saffire game developing company as well as LEGO. Over the years, there have been many attempts to locate these disks, however most of the supposed owners have either misplaced them or refused to stay in contact with the fans for different reasons. In 2010, a person known as "Deep Brick" released footage of the gameplay as well as the game's cutscenes and some other data, but refused to share the actual game to avoid legal issues with LEGO. There have been multiple fan efforts to keep in touch with people who might own the beta or alpha copies, until an unfinished version of the game's alpha was located in February 2018, seven and a half years after the Bionicle franchise was canceled. In April of the same year, a more complete beta-build of the game was also found, and though the game was never fully finished, fans are able to play it at last after a 16 year wait.
The game was heavily advertised in LEGO Bionicle's promotional material. The building instructions for the toys would feature screenshots taken from the game, other screencaps were publicized on the net, and a preliminary intro cinematic was made available on promotional CDs released in 2001. The game was also supposed to come with bonus items, such as the "Mask of Time" (the first-ever mask designed for the Bionicle series), as well as building instructions for various Bionicle animals. After the game's cancellation, these extras were released though other means.