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Double Fine drops new mini-game 'My Game About Me'
There are plenty of games about heroes doing heroic things like saving kingdoms or talking to a girl for a long time about her favorite movies and then killing a giant robot weapon. Sadly, there just aren't that many games about the sort of things everyday folks do, like eating soup or trying to stay asleep. For us common masses, there is Double Fine's new mini-game: My Game About Me, created by staffer Nathan "Bagel" Stapley. Set up as sort of an Olympiad of Mediocrity, MGAM is one of the oddest games we've seen since ... well, since Epic Saga: Extreme Fighter. Give it a whirl, you'll see what we mean.[Thanks, Torin]
Tim Schafer would 'love' to make an XBLA game
We, like all good and wise people, love Tim Schafer. What we don't love is having to wait years between fresh infusions of Double Fine goodness. So it gave us no small amount of pleasure to hear that while speaking at the 2007 IGDA Leadership Forum, Schafer said he'd love to make a small XBLA game, even though he didn't have one in the works."We talk about making Xbox Live Arcade games all the time. Who doesn't want to make Xbox Live Arcade games?" he said. "It's like when you see a Great Dane taking a giant shit and then you see a poodle taking a little Tootsie Roll shit. The poodle is so cute, but at the end of the day you're still picking up shit. Seriously though, we'd love to make Xbox Live Arcade games, but we're really busy now." ... We're not exactly sure what you meant by that, Tim. But we're fairly sure we couldn't have said it better ourselves.
Playboy interviews Tim Schafer, among others
Don't worry: the designer and/or writer behind Psychonauts, Day of the Tentacle, and Secret of Monkey Island doesn't take his clothes off, but Tim Schafer does share some other interesting tidbits with Playboy, specifically concerning his entrance into the game industry, thoughts on sequelitis, and how getting turned down by Atari was one of the best things to ever happen to him.The interview with Schafer is part of a series of talks with game designers, which also includes Dave Jaffe, Alex Rigoupolos of Harmonix, and Sony Europe EVP Phil Harrison (who isn't actually a game designer, but we'll forgive Playboy for the lapse because they're trying so damn hard).
Schafer: No new Psychonauts on the way
Alright, the internet, you can officially stop dreaming about a sequel to Psychonauts and go back to dreaming about Brutal Legend. After a darkened version of the game's logo with the words "Coming Soon" on it appeared on the Double Fine site and started the rumor train, chief Tim Schafer had to be the one to put the penny on the track. He told Next-Gen, "the truth is we are just putting together a new page about 'The Excellent Game Psychonauts.' We're not announcing any new games or anything. Sorry if we confused anybody! We lightened up the image to hopefully make things clearer."Why do you build us up (build us up), buttercup? ... And why did we just call a man who could squish us between his meaty palms "buttercup"?
Brtal Legend official, Psychonauts 2 not in the cards [update]
We're a bit late getting to this news, so we're cobbling together two Double Fine headlines in one post. First and foremost, Brütal Legend has been officially announced by Sierra and Double Fine. The game stars a roadie named Eddie Riggs (played by Jack Black) as well as several rock icons including Lemmy from Motörhead, Rob Halford of Judas Priest, and Ronnie James Dio (NSFW). We don't know much about the game except that it tells the legend of the "Age of Metal." Double Fine's Tim Schafer says it best on the company's blog: " The moral of the story is that Brütal Legend is going to be the best f***ing game you have ever played." So there you go. Oh, and in case you're wondering, the image above is a special message from Lemmy and Tim Schafer to all the publishers that passed on Brûtal Legend. You can check out the first trailer for the game after the break.The other bit of Double Fine news is that it looks like a sequel to Psychonauts may be in the works. Listed on Double Fine's projects page is a banner featuring the Psychonauts cover art with the words "Coming Soon" emblazoned across it. It's hard to imagine the original being ported to any more platforms, so we're assuming that the banner refers to a wholly new project. Here's hoping.[Update: It was nice while it lasted, but Joystiq has learned that Double Fine's projects page does not signify that Psychonauts 2 is in the works. It turns out that that "coming soon" placeholder is merely for the upcoming page about the original game. Sigh.][Via Joystiq (and Joystiq)]Read -- Brütal Legend announcedRead -- Psychonauts 2
Psychonauts 2 in development?
Hot off the heels of Double Fine's announcement of Brütal Legend, we get this tasty little morsel of potential excellence. On Double Fine's projects page, beneath the link for Brütal Legend, we have the teaser image pictured above. No great mystery regarding its contents -- that's clearly Raz, and the logo for the first Psychonauts. Is Tim Schafer trying to not-so-subtly tell us that a sequel is in the works? Or is this some sort of twisted joke? (Schafer does, after all, have a "twisted mind," as many a press release have said). Not much else to speculate here. We'll keep our eyes peeled for any further announcements or information.[Update: Sadly, it seems that the "coming soon" image was merely intended to indicate an eventual info page for the original Psychonauts. Double Fine has recognized the confusion, and quietly un-darkened the image to make it more apparent. So no Psychonauts 2 after all. Color us disappointed.][Via Rock Paper Shotgun]
Brutal Legend is finally announced (officially)
Sure, we spotted the cover story on Game Informer over a week ago but up until now, Sierra has been mum on Tim Schafer's latest, Brütal Legend. That means Tim's been mum. Which was funny. On Friday, Sierra made the announcement and Schafer took to Double Fine's blog with the news. Sure, you may be inclined to laugh at Sierra but know that their intentions are pure. Read Tim's account of a mama bear, an eviscerated hunter, and Ronnie James Dio. We think Sierra is supposed to be the mama bear. Either way, Lemmy from Motorhead and Tim offer the above photographed message (Johnny Cash-style) to the publishers who didn't feel the metal.Want to let the world – and the establishment – know you love Brütal Legend? If you pre-order the game at GameStop you get a free t-shirt; alternatively, you can order a different t-shirt directly from the Double Fine store which ensures Tim Schafer can continue to live in the manner of comfort all great game designers have grown accustomed to. Peep the tees after the break. Brütal Legend is due out on Xbox 360 and PS3 in 2008 (the never reliable Gamestop lists 11/03/08).
Tim Schafer's Brutal Legend lands on Game Informer cover
"A Rock 'n Roll roadshow through the twisted mind of Tim Schafer?" That sounds fantastic, though we imagine it comes across like nails on a chalkboard to the publisher hoping to hear terms like "shooter," "sequel," "football," and "based on the hit movie" in the game pitch. Preferably, it'll be all of those.And for all we know, Double Fine's Brütal Legend could contain any of the above. For now, the only information we have is that obtained from the cover of the latest Game Informer magazine (we've confirmed the image is real), graciously snapped and posted by "Iksenpets" on the official Double Fine forums. The image reveals who we assume to be Jack Black's character -- an axe-wielding, axe-wielding roadie named Eddie Riggs. Oh, and when you check between the pages to find out more about Mr. Schafer's latest road trip, be sure to find out how NF HELL 4K2: The Movie: The Game is coming along.[Thanks, Max]
'Brutally Fun' countdown does not signal 'Brutal Legend' [update]
At 11:00 p.m. ET, the brutally fun countdown on Xbox.com will reach zero, thus signaling a time when Satan and His Minions will ride out from the Gates of the Underworld on flaming steeds of bone and hatred to conquer the world. Probably.In the event his conquest gets delayed, we're wagering a guess that the countdown will coincide with a new announcement from Tim Schafer's Double Fine studios, who recently registered a trademark for the title Brutal Legend. Of course, with all the work put into Epic Saga: Extreme Fighter, we really don't know how the developer would have had time to work on two projects at once.Double Fine's previous title, Psychonauts, was a critical darling whose lackluster sales can only be attributed to an unfortunately-timed pan-dimensional rift. Fortunately, we don't have long to wait and see what the countdown means (though its speculated connection to a Ninja Gaiden 2 announcement now appears unlikely).Update: And Brutal Legend eludes us yet again. The countdown was for Ninja Gaiden 2 after all -- we're disappointed and overjoyed at the same time.
Double Fine returns with Epic Saga: Extreme Fighter
As any video game journalist with a few free minutes will tell you, Psychonauts is a brilliant classic that never got the attention it so richly deserved. Thankfully for all of us tired of game journalists yammering on about his last stroke of brilliance, Tim Schafer and Double Fine studios have returned with a new stroke, a title perfectly poised for mass market success: Epic Saga: Extreme Fighter.We all love dark wizards and gnome kings, right? But what if a gnome king fought a dark wizard? That's the sort of question that ES: EF dares to simultaneously ask and answer. If your puny desktop rig can manage pushing all the pixels, you need to start playing this game today. Oh, didn't we mention? It's free![Thanks to everyone who sent this in.]
Not-so-secret projects probed
FiringSquad has done its best to out 18 high-profile "black ops" projects currently in development. While the site's sleuthing skills might not be up to par with Mr. Holmes', the report does a good job of rounding up under-the-radar titles that are begging for some attention.We'd like to direct the spotlight on two studios in particular: Tim Schafer's DoubleFine and Bungie expats Wideload, which are responsible for Psychonauts and Stubbs the Zombie, respectively (both titles landed in our top 10 'gems' of last generation). The two developers are hard at work on new projects; and with DoubleFine striking a publishing deal with Vivendi, its next game is sure to stir up more buzz (when it's time) than Majesco managed to generate for Psychonauts. Also, we can't wait to see what Warren Spector and Junction Point have under lock and key. Keep those ears (and eyes) glued to the street!
Tim Schafer talks new-gen, suggests XBL MySpace features
Double Fine founder Tim Schafer told Gamasutra that while he's mostly a single-player kind of guy, he has really enjoyed the Xbox Live system that "facilitates ... playing with people you know," he said. Schafer, speaking in general about all the new generation consoles, also suggested that Xbox Live incorporate some of the features found in social networking sites. "You know how funny it is to go on MySpace or Friendster and write testimonials," he said. "I wish you could post those kinds of things about each other."Schafer also expressed glee with his Nintendo Wii, specifically the controller, Twilight Princess and the Mii channel. "As soon as I got it, just sitting there making Miis and sending them to all my friends was incredibly entertaining for about the first four days." That prompted the developer into suggesting XBL incorporate testimonials. We're imagining a Mii-like avatar creation tool for Xbox Live, and how enjoyably devious that would be.Double Fine is responsible for last generation's award-winning, scholarly media darling Psychonauts, which suffered from economic-centric maladies (read: poor sales). Before that, Schafer's work included Grim Fandango and contributions to the Monkey Island series. Double Fine is currently working on an unknown project for an unknown medium.
Psychonauts and Valve make steamy, Steam-y love
Last night, reading about RoboBlitz coming to Steam, we knew we weren't alone in wondering where our promised Psychonauts was. The BAFTA award winning (congrats, guys!) critics darling may not have been the belle of the retail ball, but she was always beautiful to us ... and now, Steam subscribers everywhere can take her out dancing for the digitally distributed price of $19.99 starting tonight!If you're hearing the sweet, sweet sound of romance in the air, you may wanna turn down the Barry White and listen up, cause Psychonauts developer Tim Schafer has something he wants to say you ... and only you ... in his low, deep, gravelly baritone:"So for the press release. uh. man, it's tough because every single 'steam' related play on words has already been done," said Schafer. "Double Fine and Valve: With a love this hot, you know there's gotta be STEAM! How about that?"Ooooh! We like that, and we know you do as well, dear reader. Just when you thought we'd already beaten that equine to death, sawed its head off, and tucked it gently into Doug Lombardi's comfy bed, here comes the ever dependable Schafer, pitching in with one. final. sawing. thrust! Phew!That's hawt. The comic Psychonauts art director Scott Campbell made commemorating the tryst is even hawter.
Psychonauts picks up Steam in October
This just in from the astral projection: Double Fine productions' masterpiece Psychonauts will arrive on Steam in early October. That's right: no longer will you have to trudge five miles in the snow to seek out this underrated overlooked gem -- huzzah!The price has yet to be revealed. Psychonauts publisher Majesco has also announced that Bloodrayne 1 & 2 and Advent Rising will be available for Steam starting today. The original Bloodrayne will be $10, while the other two titles are $20 apiece.Tim Schafer et al. are currently working on another project, as-of-yet unannounced, to be published by Sierra.[Thanks, 1up_clock]
Vivendi and Double Fine have something next-gen a-cookin'
Double Fine, the er, fine fellows who brought us the dark and humorous (nearly Tim Burton-styled) Psychonauts, have recently teamed up with Vivendi Games. Even more recently is Vivendi's confirmation that they will be publishing Double Fine's next effort on the next-gen systems, under the new Sierra Entertainment label.The president of Double Fine and mastermind behind not only Psychonauts but also Day of the Tentacle and Grim Fandango had a few words about the team at Sierra. "Everyone we've met brings experience from a small developer background, so they know where we're coming from and what we have to do to make a great game." he says and we agree. The worst thing that happens to developers is being forced to change their image and ideas to suit their publisher's schedule (which is apparent in the rushed mess that was Grandia III... thanks, Square-Enix, for damaging Game Arts' image). No details on the game yet, but it'll probably be funny and uniquely styled, if prior games give any clues.
