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Double Fine's Brain Wrongs 24 May, 2002, 06:45 / 3 comments


IGN Insider has posted some more information regarding Psyconauts, the new game from Double Fine Productions.
Tim Schafer, of Grim Fandango fame, wants to apply the depth and rich story driven content of a typcial PC adventure game to the simple action of a platform game...

...Raz has to develop his psychic abilities across a variety of different disciplines and earn merit badges for each one to become a Psychonaut. The game is organized more or less in 16 levels, but each level is actually inside the mind of sixteen different disturbed individuals

For those of you without IGN insider access, You can read some more, by clicking below.<:MORENEWS:>
Tim Schafer, of Grim Fandango fame, wants to apply the depth and rich story driven content of a typcial PC adventure game to the simple action of a platform game. The result is Psychonauts a game whose looks will surely belie its extremely sophisticated humor and attitude. Psychonauts are a super elite team of psychic powered agents charged with protecting the free world.

You play as Raz, an impetuous young boy who dreams of joining the elite squad one day. There's an intricate plot that explains Raz's family history and his former career as a circus performer, but when you start the game, he's just been accepted to the Psychonauts training camp where all young potential psychic warriors come to learn.

Raz has to develop his psychic abilities across a variety of different disciplines and earn merit badges for each one to become a Psychonaut. The game is organized more or less in 16 levels, but each level is actually inside the mind of sixteen different disturbed individuals. You as Raz have to enter those scrambled brains, where all of that person's delusions and paranoia are manifested as obstacles and characters that you'll have to deal with. We don't have a complete list of mental disorders but we do know there will be one guy who thinks he's Napoleon Bonaparte's brother, named Fred; an artist who only likes to paint on black velvet; a woman who's afraid of nearly every single thing under the sun; a guy who's a big conspiracy theorist and a giant lungfish monster who's actually afraid of your character Raz.

That's quite a collection of characters but the way their disorders come to life while you're running around their brains is truly something else. The black velvet artist for example is convinced that a snarling raging bull is going to be his ultimate demise, so while you're in his brain, you'll constantly have to be worried about a charging bull trying to run you down all the time. The artist also suffers from involuntary vocal spasms so you'll hear his spontaneous outbursts as they travel through his brain and out of his mouth.

The conspiracy theorist is convinced the government is out to get him so his mental delusions are manifested by a game world where all roads lead to his house and that government agents are lurking around everywhere. He thinks there's a Manchurian Candidate-style self destruct sequence waiting within in his mind and all it needs is for him to hear the right password to become activated. You actually meet the self destruct "guy" as a character simply hanging out in Conspiracy Man's head kicking back, doing nothing and waiting for that password. Indeed, just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you.
For more of the article sign up to IGN Insider or pester me to secretly steal and post it all on Mojo.

The game certainly looks colourful, and I love the art style. Judging From this article and the concept art I saw last year this game should be a true
PsycoSchafer-BrainWrongRomp through your mind.
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3 Comments

  • guybrushthedwarf on 24 May, 2002, 08:56…
    It looks great and i hope Tim Schafer will use the kind of humour that were in GF, it shold be really accurrate.
    Do you think there will be a PC conversion ?
  • Remi O on 24 May, 2002, 07:42…
    I'm quite looking forward to this game. It sounds totally biarre, and although I would have liked to see a pure adventure, this will be more than good enough for me.
  • spaff on 24 May, 2002, 07:55…
    i think it looks fantastic!!