It’s hard not to feel a little bad for David Jaffe. One of the minds behind two of Sony’s biggest hits (the God of War and Twisted Metal franchises), at one point it seemed like the man could do no wrong. Unfortunately Jaffe’s efforts to strike out with his own studio, Eat Sleep Play, resulted in the underwhelming Calling All Cars!, a game released to little fanfare and quietly euthanized in 2010 by Sony when they kicked the plug out of the servers. Going back to his bread and butter didn’t really solve the problem, as the recent reboot of Twisted Metal also came and went with a shrug. Still, it looks like Jaffe hasn’t given up on the genre that brought him to the dance.
Autoduel, a to-be Kickstarted title from indie developer Pixelbionic, will now benefit from Jaffe’s car blowin’ up wisdom as he assumes the role of creative advisor. From the developer’s site:
“In a post-apocalyptic future, warriors drive to survive in their tricked-out, heavily armed vehicles scavenged from the blistered landscape, armed with a deadly array of lethal weaponry. Autoduel features team-based combat in a variety of open arenas from abandoned cities to dried-up riverbeds. Players choose from over twenty unique cars which are divided into three warring factions – the Ratters, the Scavengers and the Techies. The cars can all receive a wide variety of upgrades, from mechanical modifications to the drivetrain and suspension, to a broad array of powerful weapons and protective armor which can be bolted onto the vehicles. Additionally, players can extensively customize the paintwork and add decals in order to show their allegiance and express their unique style.”
He’ll be in good company as well, since Pixelbionic also boasts the talents of Scott Kramarich and Zack Norman of Interstate ’76 fame. While the idea of a post-apocalyptic vehicle fighter isn’t exactly unique, that’s a lot of genre-specific talent under one roof. Details are still pretty sparse on the project, but you can stay up-to-date on the project here.
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