brutal-legend
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Full Brutal Legend soundtrack released by EA Denmark
Fun fact: Heavy Metal was invented in Denmark in 1843 by Professor Garth Metallus in a horrible lab accident involving taut metal strings and a primitive electroacoustical transducer. The spirit of the rock music has innundated the nation ever since -- as such, we're not surprised that EA Denmark was the studio which recently revealed the 100-plus thrashing songs which will be included in Double Fine's upcoming epic rock story, Brütal Legend.The list has since been pulled from EA Denmark's site, but not before Kotaku snagged a screencap of a translated version of the page. We've got the whole kit n' caboodle posted after the jump. Unless EA makes some drastic changes to the final setlist, they're going to have to put a Surgeon General's warning on the game, telling players they're about to subject themselves to a terrible case of face melting.%Gallery-41208%
LA Times: Activision likely to receive 'little to no compensation' in Brutal Legend settlement
Here's a little addendum to the Brutal Legend settlement story that, should you be sympathetic to Double Fine in this situation (and, um, how could you not?), should bring a little smile to your face. The LA Times spoke to an unnamed person "familiar with the settlement," who offered some extra information about the deal. Overall, it looks like Activision was the "loser" in this agreement, though, of course, the whole point of settling was to avoid having a loser. First off, the source claims that the game will be released as planned in October. Second, the LA Times says, "it appears very likely that Activision received little to no compensation from Double Fine and agreed to a settlement to avoid losing its case in open court." Now that all that's dealt with, hopefully we can get back to talking about important things, like GWAR. %Gallery-41208%
Activision and Double Fine settle Brutal Legend lawsuit
On the day that attorneys for Activision and Double Fine were scheduled to present their arguments before a judge over a lawsuit filed by the former to delay the release of Brütal Legend, the Associated Press reports that both sides have settled. The AP article notes that it was Activision's legal team who notified the court of the settlement, and that an official notice outlining what sort of agreement was reached has yet to be filed with the court. Late last month, the judge in the case indicated he was not inclined to force Double to delay the game while the publishers engaged in legal posturing, and that he felt Activision didn't have "a likelihood of succeeding" in the matter.We're reaching out to Activision and Double Fine in hopes of finding out the specifics of the settlement and will update as we receive more info.[Via The New York Times; Thanks, Markusdragon!]
EA Q1 sales better than expected, still slow
We've been hearing recession tales of woe for months now in the video game industry. Today is no different, as EA is posting a net loss of $234 million for its financial Q1 sales year over year versus $95 million in losses during the same quarter last year. Unsurprisingly, titles like The Sims 3 and EA Sports Active -- you know, EA's best selling Wii game ever -- helped to boost sales, but overall game sales were lower "due to slowed hardware sales." Don't worry, though, as EA promises four new IPs for the holiday season (Dante's Inferno, Dragon Age: Origins, Brütal Legend and, presumably, Saboteur) and predicts increased revenue with tiny little titles like The Beatles: Rock Band and Madden 10 landing in the next few months. (We were so worried.)
Court not likely to delay Brutal Legend
During E3 2009, Activision fired its first volley in court, suing Brütal Legend developer Double Fine and asking that EA not be allowed to release the game as scheduled this October. Double Fine shot back with its own countersuit just over a week ago, and today, a tentative ruling in a Los Angeles courtroom denied the movement to stop the release of Brütal Legend.The Associated Press has Los Angeles Superior Court judge Craig Karlan pushing back the formal motions until August 6th, to allow both parties to further prepare their arguments -- and because his calendar is full at the moment (with dance parties, we assume). Though he called the case a "close call," he also noted that his tentative judgment is based on his belief that Activision's case doesn't have "a likelihood of success." Ouch.
Comic-Con 2009: The Tim Schafer chat
With only three short months until the October Rocktober 13 release of upcoming Double Fine game Brütal Legend, Tim Schafer and co. are out at the San Diego Comic Con in full force this week promoting their game. Lucky for us (and you!), he took time out of his busy schedule to talk with us about not just his upcoming game, but how he feels about the re-release of various LucasArts adventure titles, how much of a role he plays in the current lawsuit with Activision (spoilers: almost none), and even Gwar! Check out the whole thing after the break.
Video: Jack Black and Jellybean, the guitar-playing cat
As far as internet memes go, you can't do much better than amusing cat-themed images. Jack Black, sage that he is, knows this all too well. As such, the latest edition of Brutal Thoughts is packed to the brim with hilarious cat action. Granted, it's not quite as satisfying as the last, battle axe-infused episode, but it has its moments. Watch it now and be among the first to witness Jellybean, the cat with serious face-melting skills.Oh, there's some Brütal Legend footage in there too. Also with cats.
Double Fine countersues, says 'Activision will not kill Brutal Legend'
In the midst of all the confusion of E3 this year, ex-Brütal Legend publisher, Activision, decided to sue the game's developer, Double Fine, in order to "stop the release" of the game this October. But before all the exciting litigation can start on July 30, Double Fine has legally responded, filing a countersuit against Activision and claiming Activision's lawsuit is intended to hurt Double Fine and Brütal Legend itself."Double Fine's countersuit is a demonstration of our intention to fight for this game - Activision will not kill Brütal Legend," DF's Caroline Esmurdoc said in a statement released to Joystiq this afternoon. With this countersuit, the developer is seeking an official judge's ruling that it was free from its contract with Activision and thus allowed to sell the rights to Brütal Legend to the game's current publisher, EA. Interestingly, Double Fine claims that Brütal Legend was dropped in the Vivendi/Activision merger after "an effort to convert the game into a Guitar Hero sequel failed." What?! Now that is a piece of information we didn't expect to get out of this.[Thanks, Stix_Remix!]
We really want this Brutal Legend statue, and so will you
We already know you want this 1,000-of-a-kind Brütal Legend statue, even though you haven't yet perused the gallery of images found below, so we'll cut to the chase. These are going to be pretty hard to come by. All we know right now is that you'll find more information on how to get your hands on one of these hyper-detailed, 17-inch beauties -- depicting protagonist Eddie Riggs in mid-dismemberment -- on the official Brütal Legend website and Twitter feed. With 1,000 available, we have a suspicion some may eventually be available to buy, rather than win, but if that happens don't expect them to be cheap. And good luck winning one -- you've got us to compete with. %Gallery-68364%
Brutal Legend's four-on-four multiplayer (vaguely) detailed
Lo, what is this? Xbox.com's info page for Brütal Legend actually contains some noteworthy ... info on the game? It's true, and said info has to do with the game's yet-to-be-revealed multiplayer component -- y'know, the one that provided the basis for the single-player game's strategy elements?According to the site, the game will include a four-on-four XBL skirmish mode which "marries action combat with a strategic unit-control mechanic," and sees each player battling "as the leader of one of the factions in the game." Given that the single-player game will feature showdowns between whole armies comprised of numerous specialized units, we can see this "skirmish" becoming a full-on war -- a "battle of the bands," if you will, only with lives on the line in lieu of recording contracts. (Isn't it always better that way, really?)[Via Evil Avatar]
Jack Black + battle axe = awesome episode of Brutal Thoughts
We weren't fans of the last episode of Brütal Thoughts, Jack Black's bi-weekly video series promoting Brütal Legend. But boy, does this make up for it. Black wields a rather impressive battle axe and uses it to great effect! It's obvious the actor is having a lot of fun with his role; it suits him rather perfectly, no? Just make sure you watch all the way to the end -- things will be broken.See also: Tim Schafer electrocutes Jack Black on video Jack Black pumped for 'that Brutal Legend movie' Jack Black's latest 'Brutal Thoughts' missing Schafer, humor
Gwar headlines totally metal Brutal Legend concert
Notoriously noxious metal lords Gwar top the lineup of bands playing EA's "Brütal Legend Metal Meltdown" concert in San Diego, Calif., on the evening of July 23. (That's the first night of San Diego Comic-Con, which runs July 23 through 26 at the nearby San Diego Convention Center.) The costumed comedy shock-rockers will be joined by Canadian metal act 3 Inches of Blood, all-grrl thrashers Unholy Pink and Black Flag co-founder Keith Morris. Now, before you bellow, "That is so effing cool!" know that it gets better: the show is free. Well, at least for those lucky enough to be chosen from the concert's sign-up page. More deets can be found on the concert flyer after the break. [Image]
Tim Schafer walks us through Brutal Legend's beginning
Brütal Legend's Rocktober release is drawing closer, and the game's creator, Tim Schafer, has tossed us a bone in a pair of developer walkthroughs for the beginning sections of the game over at IGN. Be warned: The videos show off a great deal of content, so if you're trying to avoid spoilers, steer clear. For the rest of you, we suggest you don your spiked bracelet and sleeveless leather vest and peer past the break for some glorious metal action.Source - Brütal Legend developer walkthrough (part one)Source - Brütal Legend developer walkthrough (part two)
Rumor: EA cancels Wii Brutal Legend that might not even have existed [update]
[Update: EA's response: "Brütal Legend was never announced for the Wii." That's ... true ...]Remember the rumored Wii version of Brütal Legend? It was rumored that EA planned to release a Wii version of the game, developed by someone other than Double Fine. The very mention of the project made Tim Schafer uncomfortable.According to Destructoid, that Wii release, which we don't even know was real to start with, has been canceled. "Word has it that quality assurance testers who moved from Electronic Arts to Double Fine were recently let go," Destructoid notes, "after the demise of the project left their services unnecessary."Whether the game was real and canceled or never existed at all, the net effect would seem to be the same: no Brütal Legend game on Wii. If it really was so bad that EA decided to cancel the project, we can only feel grateful that the company didn't subject Wii fans to the kind of embarrassment we had to endure whenever a screenshot of the Wii Dead Rising came out.
Tim Schafer's Brutal Legend box art accolade
Whilst staring longingly at Tuesday's finally released cover art for Brütal Legend, something struck us as a little ... out of the ordinary. There they were, right above the game's logo: the words "A Tim Schafer Game." (With a seriously metal "S" in Schafer, we must say.) You see, unlike the wonderful world of film, it's a rarity that video games' creators get credit in promotional materials, let alone on their games' covers. Sure, there are exceptions, like Sid Meier, Hideo Kojima, Tom Clancy and John Madden. Oh, that's right. Those last two don't even make "their" games; they just get all the credit. For shame!But Tim Schafer? He makes the game (in more ways than one). Although his lone "solo" work to date -- Psychonauts -- was a critical success, it unfortunately didn't set cash registers ablaze, literally or figuratively. So, why the box-front accolade then? Two likely answers. The first is the fact that EA, in its early years, was fairly unique among computer game publishers in that it prominently displayed the names of its designers on their games' boxes -- so there's precedent. The other, perhaps stronger possibility: EA knows it's got something good, and is banking on Schafer and his Double Fine crew to keep on making EA-published games with his name on them, hopefully for many years to come.
Jack Black's latest 'Brutal Thoughts' missing Schafer, humor
Jack Black returns for yet another episode of "Brutal Thoughts." The weakest episode so far explores the "wild" world of roadies, courtesy of someone named "Meatbones." The punchline ... is rather mediocre. There's no Schafer in this episode, and even Black looks like he's phoning this one in. Give it a watch, and then relive the (much better) previous installments here: Tim Schafer electrocutes Jack Black on video Jack Black pumped for 'that Brutal Legend movie'
Brutal Legend box art unveiled, tiny [update: not so tiny anymore!]
Somehow, the itty-bitty, teeny-tiny reveal of the official Brütal Legend box art seems inappropriate. Given that the game itself has a huge personality and contains physically huge landmarks within its digital realm -- including things like a massive corpse pile, for example -- and some other big things -- big battles, big hair, etc -- the limited size of Gamestop's art seems pathetically small. Honestly, this isn't nearly big enough to fill the specially reserved spot on the Joysitq poster wall (right next to Shia, of course).We suppose it will have to do. For now.Update: Victory! EA has relinquished high-res versions of the cover art in what can only be described as an epic win for METAL. Make with the clicking below.%Gallery-66613%
Tim Schafer comments on Brutal Legend's disappearing Dio
So Dio's out of Brütal Legend and Tim Curry's in, but it has nothing to do with any ongoing feud between Dio and Ozzy 'Prince of Darkness' Osbourne, as speculated. Tim Schafer has issued a statement clarifying the reasons for the decision, stating that "Ronnie James Dio is an amazing singer and truly one of the great figures of Metal, but as the character of Doviculus evolved, we realized that Tim Curry was a better fit for the part."That's all it is. He's a "better fit." Schafer claims that it was Curry's role as The Lord of Darkness in the 1985 movie Legend which landed him the part of Doviculus, but we suspect it may be his most famous role, as Rocky Horror's Frankenfurter, which is the real reason behind the casting. Just you wait, Doviculus will be prancing around in stockings and a corset before the game is through. Yeah, we see you shiver with antici ... you know the rest.
Dio cut from Brutal Legend, replaced by Tim Curry
The "Holy Diver" himself, Ronnie James Dio of heavy metal band Dio, has reportedly been cut from Brütal Legend's voice actor list. Dio's management confirmed to Blabbermouth the removal of the lead singer's voice from the game, not citing any specific reasons, though it noted that actor Tim Curry will be filling the position.Speculation surrounding the cut points to a longstanding feud between Brütal Legend's "Guardian of Metal" Ozzy Osbourne and Dio, though we're not so sure that their feud would carry over into the Double Fine-developed, EA-published title. To be honest with you though, we're still reeling from the lack of inclusion of any members of Slayer. "Raining Blood" playing while the act itself takes place in game -- these things write themselves, people![Thanks, The Weaponeer] [Image credit]
E3 2009 highlights: The Xbox roundup
E3 was brütal! If you blinked, for a split/second, you missed something. Even if you were trine to keep up, it was a blur -- staying a.wake like that, you only pushed yourself to the brink of your own dark void. That's where Joystiq comes in; to crackdown on the madness; to reach out ... with conviction -- phew! Crysis averted. We've scoured the dark corners and survived the inferno to piece together this roundup of all things Xbox at E3. Why? Just 'cause we love you. So, draw nier and shift your eyes past the break.
