Chris Remo may have hit the double-digits of interviews with Ron Gilbert with this excellent Gamasutra feature discussing all things DeathSpank with its grumpy creator. The interview is lengthy and covers some interesting ground, so don't just stand there.
Source: Gamasutra
Well, with Ron Gilbert's latest game finally Justice Ready and released onto the world, let's see how the world's liking it:
IGN (8.5/10)
GamesRadar (8/10)
MTV Multiplayer (No score - Positive)
GamePro (4/5)
Jeugo Xbox 360 (8.6/10)
Official Xbox Magazine - 85/100
Eurogamer (6/10)
Game Revolution (A-)
Kotaku (No score - Positive)
1up (B)
VideoGamer.com (7/10)
Just fine, by the looks of things. But why not judge for yourself? DeathSpank is currently available for the PSN and XBLA for $14.99.
Because Monkey Island is known for its puzzles as well as its humor, I was expecting more puzzle-centric quests. However a vast majority of the "Unimportant Things" followed the same formula as the main missions -- fetching ingredients and items or happily slaying monsters on behalf of other people. Granted, this is what most RPG's deliver, but I was expecting a bit more given the developer's background
With only a day to go before Monkey Island 2 is re-unleashed on the world and DeathSpank is but a week away, Eurogamer spoke to Ron Gilbert and asked the pressing questions that we would've done if we actually had anything but news up right now (they're coming, they're coming!).
And of course the most important question was asked:
Eurogamer: What's the latest on the PC version of DeathSpank? Will it actually be released?
Ron Gilbert: We're not really talking about the PC version right now. We're focusing on the Xbox and the PSN versions.
So at least there IS a PC version.
Source: Eurogamer
There might be a fair amount of DeathSpank coverage from the last week that we didn't pick up on, like these impressions of the game's co-op mode by the fine people at GamesRadar.
Source: GamesRadar
Ron Gilbert got interviewed by VideoGamer.com about all things DeathSpank, but since I'm writing this news post and you aren't I'm just going to quote the part that pertains to Maniac Mansion.
Q: You mentioned on your blog that you recently had lunch with Gary Winnick, your co-creator on Maniac Mansion. Is that something you'd like to revisit?
RG: I don't have the same desire to revisit that as I would, say, Monkey Island. I'm not really sure why. It'd be fun to do, but it's not a burning thing inside me.
Q: How about the idea of working with Gary again? Is that something you'd like to do?
RG: Yeah, I love collaborating with people a lot. Gary's a great guy, he's a wonderful artist and he's very, very funny. We kinda bounce stuff around every time we meet, but there's nothing firmed up at the moment.
DeathSpank will be clumsily vanquishing evil on the PSN July 13th, and the XBLA on July 14th. That puts the launch a week after LeChuck's Revenge Special Edition, cementing July 2010 as the month Ron Gilbert takes over the friggin' world.
Source: VideoGamer.com
Hothead Games have launched the Deathspank page on Facebook. View it, like it, fill it here. Tell 'em Mojo sent you.
What Hothead didn't launch was this Deathspank-themed Wiki, which I would suggest you help write once the game itself is out for your justice-loving enjoyment.
Source: Twitter
Yet another trailer for Ron Gilbert's/Hothead's upcoming Deathspank has emerged, brandishing hints of the story. There's more trailers coming out out of Hothead than there are dead turtles coming out of the ocean after the BP oil spill. See it again here.
Source: YouTube
Source: Joystiq
The IFC have interviewed someone or another at Hothead Games, developers of the upcoming Deathspank (which will be at E3, by the way). It is an interview worth reading, touching on subjects like Hothead's origins, Deathspank and the interesting-but-not-Mojo-related video game Swarm (which might make a small peep view appearance at E3).
A while back Hothead released a Deathspank gameplay video involving a sword, a spicy taco and a man formerly known as Sally. It'll spoil early parts of the game for you, but if you're cool with that then here you go.
A little more interesting is this Tweet, which hints that Deathspank may arrive in "early summer". This may explain why Hothead launched a teaser site dedicated to unicorn poop.
Finally, if you have a Facebook account, feel free to become a fan of Hothead's page. Give 'em moral support! And all that.
Source: IFC
So our erstwhile staff member Kroms has found a brand new DeathSpank trailer. However, someone else had to post about it, because the other staffers unanimously voted to exile him forever from our Ultra Tippity Top Secret Mojo Newsroom after the incident with the giraffe, three melons, and a snorkel.
UPDATE: Kroms says, "Be sure to check out these four gameplay videos on the same site. Plus this video, and this other one, and this one too, on 1UP."
To which I say, "Man, we never should've exiled you. More work for us."
Ron Gilbert and EA Games have been going around the offices of various game websites that are not Mixnmojo and giving them forty minutes to goof around with Deathspank, which is being released this summer. Here is a preview from Gamepro; here is one from IGN; and finally, here is one from Joystiq.
Update: There's game footage, plus an interview with Ron, on Gamespot. Thanks to tenochtitlan and, indirectly, Death-spank.de, for the link.
Update II: Here are a couple of extra previews, courtesy of GamesRadar and A+E Interactive. As always, thanks to Death-Spank.de for the links. You can also look at this this interview, which shows a bit more of the game, but also has some spoilers. You get to see the main menu though.
It's probably worth mentioning that the game has multiplayer. Probably. Nah, forget it.
For those of you Monkey Island fans who have been freaking out that Dominic Armato, THE voice of Guybrush Threepwood, has not yet been confirmed as reprising his role in Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge, Special Edition, worry no more.
LucasArts' MISE producer Craig Derrick has revealed on his Twitter feed that Dom is indeed on board for MI2:SE, and that his Luke Skywalker impression is top-notch.
(Yes, the tweet is from April 2. Shut up. Mojo is as timely as ever.)
Also of note is the background to Derrick's Twitter page. It would seem to be a MI2:SE character there!
Possibly the image is related to a comment Derrick made in the recent Gamespot interview with him, Ron Gilbert, Tim Schafer and Dave Grossman:
"CD: Be nice guys [i.e., Gilbert, Schafer, and Grossman]. Remember, we did fix Guybrush's hair and put a very flattering caricature of each of you in the game."
Interesting.
And if you get the reference in the title of this post, you are far, far too much of a Star Wars nerd for your own good.
The marketing drive has begun for DeathSpank, Ron Gilbert's most important game since Monkey Island 2: the official site is giving away promotional toys like sweets, including these new shirts.
News thanks to tenochtitlan via this impressive German Death Spank fan-site.
As you probably know, Ron Gilbert joined the Canadian based developer Hothead Games as the company's Creative Director around two years ago. Although the veteran designer publicly began his role serving as a "consultant" on the Penny Arcade episodes, it seemed that his primary reason for joining the company's ranks was to see his latest brainchild, DeathSpank, come to fruition after the studio signed on as its publisher. This is more or less confirmed by today's Grumpy Gamer blog post, where Ron reveals that he has ended his term at Hothead as production on the game is wrapping:
I wanted to let all the Premium Gold Level Grumpy Gamer subscribers know that I left Hothead. When I started working there two years ago, my goal was to make DeathSpank the most awesome game ever made and have it win a Nobel Prize and the early word out of Stockholm is that DeathSpank is neck-in-neck with some string theory dweeb (eleven dimensions my ass).
As DeathSpank ends the creative and production phases and start down that long and winding road of certification and testing of the XBox and PS3 and [REDACTED] versions, it's looking quite amazing and is damn funny. So, to quote my childhood hero George W. Bush: Mission Accomplished.
I will be working closely with EA and Hothead on the PR for DeathSpank as the release date of [REDACTED] draws closer.
I have also vowed to blog more and try and remember my twitter password.
Roll on DeathSpank, and best of luck to Ron in his future endeavors, which hopefully includes making video games at a slightly less relaxed pace.
Source: Grumpy Gamer