Hello, this is Malacast Agent, from Malacast Editorial at mcasteditorial.blogspot.com, and I am here to give an idea of what the next Twisted Metal game in the series is going to be, or at least, should be close to in comparison to the latest games.
The company Eat, Sleep, Play is the official producers of the title series. Eat, Sleep, Play are the original people behind the first two Twisted Metal games in the series, Twisted Metal Small Bawl, Head-On, and of course, Twisted Metal: Black. Originally called SingleTrac™, then Incognito™ now the company is called Eat, Sleep, Play. Jaffe, being one of the original key designers on the first Twisted Metal, has also gone on to other great titles, aside from the Jet Moto series; there is also the God of War Trilogy.
Twisted Metal, for those who do not know the series, is a car-combat game, assumingly inspired by Death Race 2010(?) which inspired the 2008 film Death Race, which is as close to a Twisted Metal game as one may ever see. If you want a concept of how the game works, Death Race is as close as they get, although the concept of Twisted Metal is not a race to the finish, but the last car left running is victorious. The game is also not made up of prisoners buying for freedom, but for one wish by the always-elusive character Calypso.
Twisted Metal takes place originally in Los Angeles, and after the first game, seeing Los Angeles was left in trash and terror, spread throughout the world, creating a mass destruction on a global level of literally Twisted Metal. Over the fourteen yeas of its existence, the game has evolved from cartoon-ish graphics, to a darker, grimy, metallic feel that is found in the Twisted Metal: Black installment. Twisted Metal: Head-On recaptured that feeling one got from Twisted Metal: World Tour (TM2), which is still considered by fans to be the best game in the series thus far.
The basic concept of the game is that you select a character car driven by a unique character whose personality is reflected in their unrealistic armor-plated ride. Characters from the game that are most often found include: Roadkill, Specter, Hammerhead, Shadow, and of course, the game’s mascot; Sweet Tooth.
The game was originally supposed to be called High Octane, but was switched at the end of production due to a change of heart, or copyright infringement, but this led to the cutting out of actual video endings for each car victorious in the competition. You can catch the endings on YouTube or other video sites that host streaming video.
Twisted Metal holds a very strong place in the hearts of fans, which truly bleed metal and chrome. The game has a nostalgia feel that is not easily found in other games, like a cultural movement found in that era. The feeling is best felt when playing the game than explained in a simple blog post.
Twisted Metal is as of now an exclusive to Sony, and most likely will always be a game expected on the upcoming installments to the Sony Playstation hardware. The original two games have also been sold for PC, but have been seen as lesser games to the console counterparts. The age of the game franchise, and the absolute outcry for a new game stands the test of time to prove this game has social significance in the gaming universe.
This brings me to the purpose of this post: Twisted Metal on the Playstation 3. Some fans are concerned on how this game will play out, some are curious about just what’s going to become of the beloved series. Most fans will concur that Twisted Metal III and twisted Metal 4 were dark days for the series, but that cartoon-ish feel is what gave the game its fun, and its retro feel. Twisted Metal: Black took the series down a darker road, as most game series have fallen suit with that growing trend, but that is what I believe hurt the series: the game was too bland without the colorful look that made it unique. So, the question is, where could this series go? Will it follow Twisted Metal: Head-On, will it be a counterpart to the rarely seen game Twisted Metal: Lost (a re-hash of what was suppose to be Twisted Metal: Black II) or will it be something completely different than any fan expects? I will paint an idea of what we can be expecting this September (Supposedly).
If Mr. Jaffe considers following the classic game, and making perhaps a game that reminds us of Twisted Metal 2, then he may have either a winner on his hands, or an absolute failure. Dave Jaffe will want to mostly appeal more to the series than the fans cry, because that is what honestly has made the series better, and kept it original. Why would I want to play a game I already came up with the idea for, or even practically helped design? Eat, Sleep, Play will most likely not follow this path, but if they do, you’ll have a game that travels the globe to famous sites from countries around the world. I mean, it never gets boring blowing up the Eiffel Tower, but what else can one suspect if they follow suit with this idea?
So expect the colorful cars we love, similar characters from past games, and of course expect Sweet Tooth in some form, maybe even as a final boss, but expect the character in the new game. If Sweet Tooth is left out, although the character may have become stale, the fans may internally riot in a pissy outrage.
Now if the second path is taken, the path more likely to be taken due to the fact we live in such a scared world, and any game showing any vehicles ripping through buildings will just be too “realistic” for “children” to play is just taboo. So instead we may very well see Twisted Metal: Black….2? Or 2.5? Either way, we’ll get that fictional world where the concept will be more true to Death Race 2010/Death Race (2008/9) where prisoners will fight for a wish. The dark, gothic style will surely be bland but it’ll look “pretty” in Next-Gen graphics. The story will likely be set in a similar fictional world found in the past game, or another area of that game, we’ll know in previews to come.
Twisted Metal: Black on PS3, or a game based off that concept will more-than likely carry the M rating, where most other games only had the T Rating M= Mature, T= Teen, we’ll discover that the game will be far more violent, or the wrecks will be far more realistic than in previous games. I have heard fans personally crying out for Burnout-like crashes and explosions in Twisted Metal, but I expect more GTA IV style crashes and burns in the Twisted Metal Franchise. I expect these partly due to the fact the game was never meant to be that “realistic”, as it is Science Fiction-based, and always was a bit faulty and cartoon-like. If developers go down the TM: Black road, expect a darker, shade of grey from the game, and something more set to Goth culture than the nostalgia 90s culture given off by the first two games.
The third possibility I can see happening for Next Generation Twisted Metal for the PS3 is that it will be completely different than anything we’ve seen before, and the rules, and game itself may not even play the same. Granted, some characters may return, some will be new as well, not disinclining to mention new weapons and stages, but perhaps a change in the game entirety. The game may be more open, sand-box style than we’ve seen, instead of closed off courses, the levels may be more open than ever before, more secret passages to get to a main focal point, and I highly expect more puzzles to finish/move onto other levels.
I also expect that despite a change in story per character, that game play may be different for every single car, like if say one chooses the enigmatic Sweet Tooth, the game will play directly to that character through the tournament, where the cars played against will be for that car’s storyline in-particular. So if say the cab Yellow Jacket returns, the player choosing that car instead of say, Sweet Tooth will affect the game play. It’s difficult to explain what may happen, or how I see this new game being played out, but considering the amount of space the Eat, Sleep, Play crew have to fool around with, the game will be difficult, and have plenty of replay value. Most important though, I hope that the game is fun, and I hope that fans out there will expect the same integrity to this game as was put forth in previous titles.
Finally, I believe that if Eat, Sleep, Play decide to junk all past ideas for Twisted Metal, the game will most definitely be established to the now generation, and scrap the entire concept of the Twisted Metal tournament as seen in the 90s and early 00s. The game may even come about as racing style, which may make it too much like Full Auto, or kill the series off for the fans. Whatever happens, the truth is that few know what’s going to happen, and the rest of us just sit patiently waiting for the new game.
Twisted Metal for Next Generation, is set up for possible release in September, if not just at most an announcement on a release date and preview, should be an exciting game. I am hoping very much that the hard-workers at Eat, Sleep, Play release a great game, and hopefully release it soon to the fans starving for some car combat action.
Keep updated on the developments of this game, and previews/reviews of the latest books, movies, music, and of course video games right here at Malacast Editorial. Also, listen to shows being uploaded to YouTube at the Malacast Podcast. As always thank you for reading and supporting Malacast Editorial.
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