![]() ![]() I was talking to Ozzy because I hadn’t written his character as one who swore that much. DID ANY OF THEIR IDEAS OR FEEDBACK MAKE IT INTO THE GAME? If I knew when I was 14 that I would be having this conversation, I’d have died. I actually got to bring in my original vinyl copy of “Diary of a Madman” - which was the first album I ever bought - and have him sign it and ask him all these questions. He had a lot of great stories about his album covers. Then Ozzy just wanted to crack everybody up. He even invited me to his house to check out his knife collection. It turns out he’s really into ancient warfare and collecting swords and knives from old armies, and he’s really into science fiction about alternative futures where modern warfare is fought with medieval weapons. Lemmy was pretty quiet at first and we were really intimidated because he was the first of the metal gods to come into the studio. WHAT WAS IT LIKE WORKING WITH ICONS LIKE OZZY OSBOURNE, ROB HALFORD AND LEMMY? I don’t think anyone now wants to do their version of “Lord of the Rings.” We wanted to be that ambitious with this. I feel like heavy metal games are like “Lord of the Rings” in a certain way, where for years people had done various versions of “Lord of the Rings” and it wasn’t until Peter Jackson’s version that someone decided to do it completely and do it right. WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY “RIGHTFUL TREATMENT?” Once you get the artist on board, they can make things happen very quickly in terms of song approvals and stuff like that, because it was about them. We dealt with their management mostly for their name and likeness. People could tell we were going to be the one to give a heavy metal game its rightful treatment. There have been a couple of heavy metal games but nothing that big. Once we had him, everyone could tell it was a legitimate thing. ![]() We showed him our concept for the game and he agreed to do it on the spot. He’s just so sincere about it and we wanted Eddie Riggs to be like him. just unironically loved rock for both its awesome side and its ridiculous side at the same time. Early on when we were doing character design, we were inspired by Jack Black and the characters he plays where he just loves the music. AT WHAT POINT DID YOU START APPROACHING ARTISTS AND LABELS?įirst we got Jack (Black) involved in the project. Then give a guy a guitar for a ranged weapon and the combat just came out of that. Then the gameplay came out of what would satisfy that fantasy. At a moment’s notice they can deal with unexpected situations and fix anything with duct tape. So then we wondered who we could drop into that world, and I always thought roadies were great characters that can do anything. We wanted to create a world where you could go around every corner and see another heavy metal album cover. They just threw everything on there that they thought looked awesome. They’re not worried about something being too much, there’s no worry about going over the top. When you look at those great illustrations on Iron Maiden or Diamond Head albums, there’s an unbridled creativity there. It was a fantasy game inspired by the world of heavy metal album covers. In an interview with Billboard, Schafer talks about how the title stands apart from the broader music-game genre, how music can rise above the level of a mere soundtrack and what he believes “Brutal Legend” has in common with Peter Jackson’s “The Lord of the Rings” movies.ĭID YOU SET OUT TO MAKE AN ACTION/ADVENTURE GAME FIRST OR WAS IT A MUSIC-LED THING FROM THE START? The founder/president of Double Fine Productions has built a cult following in the videogame industry with such hits as “The Secret of Monkey Island” and “Psychonauts,” leading to a great deal of hype and anticipation for the upcoming “Brutal Legend.” The much-anticipated title is the brainchild of veteran game developer Tim Schafer, a heavy metal fanatic. The game draws heavily on the imagery and lyrics of heavy metal albums at all levels - from plot to art direction to dialogue - and features a soundtrack of more than 100 songs. It stars Jack Black as roadie Eddie Riggs and features appearances by Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford, Motorhead’s Lemmy Kilmister and Ozzy Osbourne. Unlike the play-along focus of the “Guitar Hero” and “Rock Band” franchises, “Brutal Legend” offers a comedic fantasy homage to the world of heavy metal. Actor Jack Black arrives for the premiere of "Year One" in New York June 15, 2009. ![]()
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