Did you miss the initial run of PsychOdyssey? Fear not, 2 Player Production, Double Fine, and Fangamer have teamed up for a new release.
Two differences from the original: This is not a Steelbook, nor is it numbered. That aside, the content is the same and should be well worth the $65 price tag.
Run and buy.Twenty years ago today, The Excellent Game Psychonauts arrived on Xbox, and as previously indicated, Double Fine intends to observe the anniversary of their debut title with great pomp and circumstance. This won’t include anything too seismic, as they’re quick to clarify in a paragraph obviously meant to take the mickey out of any Remi-fueled misinformation campaigns:
Heads up that we don't have some super secret announcement. That's not me employing some misdirection. There's no remake shadow-dropping this week and no teaser for Psychonauts 3: The Doom Pit Of Doom. Who knows what might come in the future but for the moment, in terms of this week of celebration, we wanna focus on what was accomplished. Twenty years ago, a little digital daredevil sneaked his way into Whispering Rock and kicked off Double Fine's slow but measured process of taking over the world.
It nevertheless sounds like there’s going to be a bunch of cool art shared at the very least. Already, the studio is circulating photographs of cool Psychonauts themed pastries from parties you were left out of, so be assured there’s nothing Spaff won’t stoop to in the quest to make this a celebration for the ages.
Source: Double Fine
Update! As pointed out by Jason, edition was not part of Scott’s original post. So, never mind. Nothing to see here. Other than what probably will be some sweet sweet Scott C art.
The Original Fake News:
Scott C – you know and love him from Psychonauts, Psychonauts 2, and… for god’s sake, you know him – has pre-announced that a Psychonauts 20th anniversary release is on its way. Unless I’ve missed something, this is actually new news, as I’m not seeing anything on Double Fine’s website or Bluesky.
Anyway, from Scott’s post:
The 20th anniversary of the release of the game that started it all, Psychonauts is coming April the 19th! We got all kinds of fun things planned for that week. I am very excited to celebrate with all of you.
I’m having some issues embedding the post, so go directly to his Instagram to see a video of the man’s penciling.
Razputin.net editor and CEO is already musing about the possibilities of (and I quote) “a remaster of the entire game in the *Psychonauts 2* engine,” which would, indeed, be awesome. (And probably unlikely.)The anniversary edition is coming April 19th. More to come, I’m sure.
You have undoubtedly heard of the catastrophic California wildfires and the toll they have taken on LA in particular. A whole host of disaster relief funds have been set up, and, not surprisingly, Double Fine has joined in on supporting them with a Double Fine Action Auction:
Signed Stacking dolls? Brütal Legend LP test pressing? “Psychonauts 2 Launch Party Assorted Tchotchkes?” Those are just a few of the items you can bid on. So, run over to the auction, support a good cause, and get some cool stuff while you’re at it.
Double Fine is serious about keeping the Xbox Gear Shop fed, so they lovingly ran off some Brütal Legend pins:
It’s a fine way to celebrate the game’s fifteenth anniversary. As is our article on the subject if it (somehow) fell off your priority list.
Source: Xbox Gear Shop
… nauts. Psychonauts 2 to be specific. Or, to be even more specific, Peter McConnell’s “Lady Luctopus” theme from Psychonauts 2, performed during “The Sound of Gaming” concert. November 23rd, 4 pm at MediaCityUK, Salford. Give me a break; it’s been a long day – just read Tim’s Bluesky post about it:
Run over to BBC to get yourself a basically free £6.50 ticket.
Double Fine published their appropriately loving tribute to their sophomore release last week, so why shouldn’t Mojo get in on the action on this most prestigious anniversary?
For us, the fun was revisiting what it was like to follow the game’s development all those years back, and it was quite the odyssey. In fact, we think it all played out a bit spicier than you may have mellowed it down to in your headcanon, though we should probably speak for ourselves given our well-established signs of mental deterioration. Anyway, join us as we travel back to the Age of Metal and relive the ecstasy and pain of Brütal Legend’s storied forging. Embrace your inner Doviculus, and you may recognize there is no distinction.
As they do (mostly) every October, Skunkape has invited fans to submit Sam & Max fan art for the chance to win Big Prizes, which this year includes plushies and soundtrack keys for The Devil’s Playhouse (which I take as a hopeful sign that the soundtrack will in fact exist). You’ve still got a week to enter, so review the details and do us proud. We’ll only feel entitled to the usual 40% of your winnings.
If you think that’s the extent of Sam & Max Halloween news, then you must be one of those poor dears who didn’t even know that Steve Purcell auctioned off some new Sam & Max art as part of the Hero Initiative. Even if you hold the embarrassing position of not being the winning bidder who plunked down $5,500 to own the physical art, you can still enjoy it in cyberspace:
By the way, if you weren’t around for the piece Purcell contributed to the annual benefit last year, it was no slouch itself:
There’s no reason to ostracize Double Fine from the Halloween fun. Their claim on the occasion would be their trick ‘r treat RPG masterwork, Costume Quest, which is celebrating its fourteenth birthday. I think you know what to do.
All things considered, I’d say the only thing holding back October 2024 from perfection is that there sadly seem to have been no new developments on the A Vampyre Story front. But you’ll certainly want to find the time to play the still-unsequeled 2008 graphic adventure, what with its recent re-introduction to Steam in more stable form.
It feels like only yesterday that Brütal Legend released—Rocktober 13th, if you remember.
The face-melting solo, guitar-axe-wielding open world action game (with a surprise RTS mode in the middle) featured Eddie Riggs (played by Jack Black), a roadie whose yearning for authenticity in metal music ("Like, the 70s?" "No, earlier. Like, the early 70s") has him gleefully murdering metal music-inspired demons in a metal music-inspired fantasy world when he's transported to it.
As you do.
It was a game Mojo enjoyed, more or less.
Double Fine has a little write-up on the game's legacy fifteen years on. I look back on the game fondly, personally, so this was a fun read.
Source: Double Fine Action News
That Double Fine’s PsychOdyssey was a goddamn classic goes without saying—a raw 30+ episode journey through Psychonauts 2’s development, free of charge. And now the latter can be rectified, as LRG has launched a Blu-ray SteelBook set for a cool $75.
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The 2,000-copy limited run includes:
Not bad. And what’s this? A new hour-and-a-half-long episode up on the 'tube?
The future marches on, and so does Grim Fandango. Old Lost Soul Alliance webmaster, Bone Man (aka Dean), sent us word of a remaster of the remaster called Grim Fandango Remaster HD. It’s exactly what you'd imagine: An AI-scaled version of Grim Fandango Remaster OG. Think higher resolution and 32-bit color, wisely set in the old 4:3 ratio. Downside: It only works with the Steam version of the game.
The result is undoubtedly impressive, and you should run, not walk, over to the project’s website for more information.
Source: Reddit Announcement
If you’re the type who loves Psychonauts 2 and physics with equal passion, then Double Fine has just the article for you: “Behind the Code: Designing Raz' Jump.”
What’s it all about? Math and science, basically. But, fun math and science! Math and science that made the game fun! And, in that sense, you probably should read it. If nothing else, I’m fairly sure you can use it for your dissertation.
Heads up: Retrofuturist Metroidvania Headlander, developed by Double Fine and released by Adult Swim games in 2016 for PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Mac, is heading off of platforms...well, soon. Certainly before May. This is all part of the C-suite conniving happening behind-the-scenes at Warner Bros. that's seeing movies, shows, and now video games axed off for debt reasons that make sense to the money people.
If you want Headlander before it lands itself at the chopping block, head to GOG or Steam.
Source: The Verge
If you’re anything like me, you glance past most backer emails, because… well, there’s really no “good” reason to do so, but here we are. Long story short—yesterday's Psychonauts 2 email was one I actually did read, and it was worth the thirty-second effort. In it comes word that the Art of Psychonauts 2 has gone digital and is available in your Humble Bundle account right now. And the 402-page monster is pretty damn impressive.
And the motherlode hardback is "in the mail"—the same excuse we use for the Christmas-bonus cheques around these parts.
As part of Grim Fandango's 25th Anniversary, DoubleFine put on a wonderful live concert of Peter McConnell's amazing soundtrack, and now you can watch it in the comfort of your own home. Just turn down the lights, get yourself a cocktail, and pretend you were there:
Source: The Forums
Our fantastic friend, Double Fine (their words!), has thrown together a nice little look-back at Grim Fandango. Specifically, it dives into the fans’ memories of the game (which probably are foggy, seeing we’re basically past expiration at this point). Go read!
Heads up for those of us who missed the first pressing: The Grim Fandango OST is once again available on vinyl from iam8bit.
Source: GFN’s Bluesky
Everyone's* favourite LucasArts adventure, Grim Fandango, turns 25 later this month (yes, you are officially THAT old) and DoubleFine are asking fans to share their "thoughts, art, cosplay, and more..."
Link: Share your Manny memories
Why are they asking for this? Good question! They say "so we can see where Manny's fandom stands in 2023". What does that mean?! An upcoming celebration? Market research on the viability of a sequel? Share your theories below...
Source: DoubleFine's Twitter/"X"
Microsoft is up to its tired schtick again, or so Eurogamer reports. Following this Tweet...
... some concluded that “PSYCHOXXX” clearly means Psychonauts 3 or Psychonauts III. Setting aside that “PSYCHO” could mean any number of things—will we finally see a game adaptation of the famous Robert Bloch novel?!—“XXX” also has many meanings. Adult content, for example. Or a reference to the classic Vin Diesel film? Perhaps they’re talking about the Pussy Riot EP?
What XXX does not mean is “3,” but rather “30.” So, maybe an upcoming game named Psychonauts 30 is on the horizon? Or an entirely unrelated PSYCHO 30?
Stay tuned for more schtick.
Thanks to Lagomorph01 on the forums for the heads up!
Well, here’s something: Broken Age’s Kickstarter campaign launched ten years ago. To either mourn time passing us by or to celebrate the occasion (depending on your point of view), Game Informer has put together a roundtable interview with the development leads behind the game.
Tim Schafer, Greg Rice, Lee Petty, and Anna Kipnis are all there, and there’s even a “special thanks” to one James Spafford. I haven’t had a chance to check it out yet, but the odds of it being good seem good.
And what was Mojo up to ten years ago today? “LEC old timers submit to creepy Youtube interviews”—strangely related-ish. (Update! Other than the fact that the news post was from 2012—look, I can’t be expected to know that it’s 2023. In 2013 we were doing zilch on this day.)