| . . . : : : Interview with Eidos Interactive's KEVIN GILL : : : . . . |
 Kevin taking a nap in the ring
Answer: The create a wrestler feature allows you to do a lot of things, but due to time constraints it does not allow you to paint up characters like ABK, Dark Lotus or Blaze. I had hoped to at least have dark lotus masks included, but we were not able to swing it in time. I think all juggalos will dig it anyway, as what other game can you play as Shaggy, J, Monoxide, Madrox, Rudeboy, etc? NONE! Answer: I didn't do programming on Backyard Wrestling. I was the lead designer, and soundtrack supervisor, among other things. The programming was done by the good people at PARADOX ( www.px.com) . As far as advice, just the general stuff. Don't be afraid to work really hard, and don't EVER believe when someone tells you that you can't make your dreams come true. You can accomplish anything if you set your mind to it. Believe that. I think it's a great thing that so many colleges are offering video game related classes, because it will allow more people to get a start in this business. I would say that even if your college doesn't offer specific video game classes, seek out some seminars, or take a few "gaming specific" classes at a college that does. Good Luck ninja!! Answer: Thanks for writing. I am always glad to answer soundtrack questions, because I worked really hard on getting the soundtrack together. Some speculation exists that I worked as hard as Jumpsteady does on the gathering. Other speculation speculates further that I actually look like Jumpsteady. I have no comment on all this rampant speculation. However, I can tell you all the songs we used in the game were not edited by us in anyway. We didn't edit out any curses, or beep or censor any music. There is one song (hint! It's the first song you hear when you put the game in) that we used a Radio version on. But it was a radio version that already was created. I can assure you that every bad word you can imagine is in the game's soundtrack. In fact, I got a report that lists every curse in the game, in case I didn't know that lyrics like "Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha ha ha ha, FUCK YOU" contained swear -words. Allow me to also state, that during the "TALK SHOW" mode of the game, when the guests on the talk show use profanity, or expose themselves (nudity) we beeped out those, or used "tiles" like you see on the Howard Stern show to block the nudity. This was done for creative reasons, because if your watching regular TV, and some dude shows his ass, they block it out. As far as music goes, we respect the artists freedom of expression, and like you said, the M RATING allows for swearing. Answer: The Feaz! What's up man? We are only scheduled to be released on Playstation 2 and Xbox. In fact, not only do we have an official release date, BUT IT IS REALLY REALLY SOON! THE GAME IS IN STORES EVERYHWERE (Errywhere) on OCTOBER 8th. Now keep in mind, some stores get their games faster than others. If you shop for video games at Electronicque's Botique (EB or EBX) or GAMESTOP, THEY WILL HAVE THE GAME ON OCTOBER 8th. Other stores like Toy's R Us and Walmart wont get the game until a few days later. THEY WILL GET IT THE SAME WEEK THOUGH. Answer: Hi Steve! Interesting question. In this instance I contacted Psychopathic Records about this game, because I thought they would be a perfect fit. Once I dropped them a line, I heard back from several members of the Psychopathic Team, and the rest is history so to speak. In very little known trivia, I actually met Jumpsteady and Violent J a few years ago on the set of Big Money Hustlas in NYC. They showed me much love, and I have always had the utmost respect for what Psychopathic represents. Answer: Hey Dawg. That's a good question. I've been traveling around doing stuff for the game a lot, but that's pretty much wrapped up now, as we're about to release it OCTOBER 8th. However, Please send the faygoluvers ninja's your info, and I can see if I can some posters and other flava for your store? How's that? Answer: Hey Gustavo- My opinion on Juggalos and Juggalettes is that they are the shit. If the world is a slice of Pizza, then Juggalos and Juggalettes are the crushed red pepper, basil, oregano and all that other flavor that can take a stale ass slice, and turn it into something special. They give it that FLAVOR. I consider myself a juggalo, and I try to represent the Hatchet to the best of my ability. My experiences at ICP shows around the East Coast and West Coast (and Las Vegas) is that Juggalos and Juggalettes have ALWAYS shown me love, and that has nothing to do with the video game. So I'm always greatful for that. As far as ICP, you can ask anyone who knows me, I am DOWN WITH THE CLOWN. ICP's Music and message has inspired me for years to keep keeping on, and trying to make it all happen. As you all know, being a juggalo or lette isn't always easy.. but I gives no fuck. I'm sitting here right now all day doing interviews. And I got all sorts of ICP music bumping over here, to keep it moving. So Basically, I think that ICP are the shit, they are super cool people, and their music inspires me to do better. Answer: From the indie side of things, we got a lot of the top stars from JCW- Mad Man Pondo, The Rudeboy, Violent J, Shaggy 2 DOPE, SABU… Twiztid too. We also gots a lot of the stars of Backyard Wrestling like Karnage, The commissioner, Masked Horndogg, El Drunko… and of course, THE BACKYARD BABES. We got Kitana baker, Tylene Buck, and many more lovely ladies!!! Answer: The engine is Paradox's own internal creation from a tech standpoint. BYW built upon the foundation featured in Paradox's XMEN: Next Dimension game. We essentially kept all the cool one-on-one fighting elements but added new components/features that allow for environmental interaction, weapons, objects etc... In addition we also incorporated Havoc physics into our game (for realistic physics on objects and the ragdoll effect on our wrestlers) Answer: Eric, being a video game playing, wrestling loving juggalo, I always was offended by the ACCLAIM wrestling games. No offense to the hardworking people over there, but I wasn't feeling ANY OF IT. The fact of the matter is many games use the same foundation a year or two in a row. Grand Theft Auto 3 and Vice City are the same engine. So is Smackdown for Playstation 2. The problem comes when you don't continue to innovate and BUILD UPON what you started with when you make the next version. We hope everyone LOVES Backyard Wrestling, but you can bet that if there's stuff that people don't like, WE WILL TWEAK IT FOR THE SEQUEL, if we're lucky enough to make one. It's only when people recycle the same bad stuff over and over, and fail to make it better that they get the fans angry So basically, a lot of people use their game engines as a starting point, to make it bigger and better next time. So basically, we'll revamp the hell out of the Backyard engine, to the point that you wouldn't even recognize it. For real. But the key to us doing a sequel is making this game really successful, so PLEASE: Do everything you can to spread the word about it. Answer: There are soooo many weapons in the game. In short, there are weapons you can throw, there are weapons you can hit people with, and there are different ways you can hit people with weapons. There is the standard "Hit You Over the head with a chair" type move, but you can also knock someone down, and then put the chair in front of you and flip onto someone with it. This theory holds true for lightbulbs, records, and a ton of other weapons. Some characters and weapons behave differently. You can hit someone with a wrench. Or you can grind it into their face and make them all bloody You can also pick up a gas can, and shake gas onto a mattress or table, and light that item on fire.. You can throw bricks at people, bottles, etc.. you can also, on one level throw a cow head at someone. Pretty cool stuff. Answer: No. We decided to give people a really big enviorment to fight in, and wanted to keep it wide open enough so that you can jump off roof's and stuff, so we left the rings out. BREAK OUT OF THE RING, AND INTO THE FUTURE OF WRESTLING is our motto. Answer: Yes. There are unlockable movies, and a ton of unlockable characters. Keep in mind. Not everyone you want to play with is going to be available from the get-go. Your gonna have to whip their ass in story mode (TALK SHOW) to unlock them. Answer: Because of the real time damage that occurs on each characters clothing and bodies, each character has only one outfit to wear. Create a wrestler gives you a lot of options though!! Answer: There are OVER 30 Hardcore superstars. Answer: There are 7 stages indoors and out, including the final epic showdown at the the tv studio. Who's the boss of the final level? You'll have to wait and see. Answer: hey Raddog. We're not giving out demo's for the game, but we are releasing a ton of trailers for it. You may have seen the "HOMIES" trailer back in MAY.. Or the Bowling For Soup trailer in August.. Or the Andrew WK trailer in September. We thought it would be cooler and we could let more people know about it by seeing it in action, rather than playing a early version of it. Answer: Good question- I've always wanted to do something with ICP (and Twiztid, Psychopathic, etc) , and I just didn't know what it would be. It was just something I would keep in mind, for when that perfect opportunity came along. When we kicked off Backyard Wrestling, I knew that ICP and JCW would be perfect for it. And the coolest part about it is that all the people at Eidos and Psychopathic were SUPER COOL with it. So Basically I was making the character lists for BYW, and I was just thinking about the story mode for the game, and how cool it would be if ICP got drawn into the Backyard Wrestling world via a chance encounter with the wild brawlers of BYW. At the same time I was working on the very early stages of the soundtrack, and I thought some juggalo flavor on the soundtrack would be wicked too. So I thought, why not see if their down to do the whole thing….and they were. Also allow me to say that I think Stranglemania is THE greatest wrestling tape ever made. That thing is PURE genius. Answer: uhhh…. This is too funny. Thanks for the compliment, but I do believe that could derail a fucking train with my forehead. But anyway, it's very flattering of you to ask, but I've been very much in love with a Juggalette named Barbara for many years now… She's always been there for me, and helped me to believe in myself. The first time I saw ICP she was right there by my side.. In fact, here's a never before seen pic!  Kevin and Barbara in the Milenko era! Answer: Hey Raymond! Yes, we do have a story mode, and it's basically a talk show called "Today's Topic". It's a Montel Williams/Jerry Springer type of talk show where they discuss Backyard Wrestling. Guests on the show are people who's lives have been affected by Backyard Wrestling. Each level is introduced via a cut scene that is a segment of the tv show. Let's just say there are a LOT of interesting characters appearing as guests on the talkshow. It introduces each level, and then you get your level goals and opponents. If you beat all your opponents, you unlock them all. If you meet all your level goals, you unlock media. You do not need to beat your level goals to unlock characters and proceed to the next level. Level goals only get you movies, which your gonna want to unlock! Answer: Scott! Thanks for asking. On XBOX, you have 100% soundtrack control. You can switch certain songs on and off. Or you can use your own CUSTOM SOUNDTRACK when you play. So if you want to play BYW with some opera, or some other weird shit. You can. It's TOTALLY UP TO YOU! We think you'll like the soundtrack we got for ya, but by all means homie.. Customize your experience!!!! Answer: Thanks for writing. Wow. That's really nice of you to say. It's hard for me to answer. Some people have always told me that I was gonna do something really cool. But, when your living through those hard time's it's hard to believe that good times are ahead. I'm just another scrub trying to kick it with his homies. All I can say is thanks, Antisocial Juggla for the props. And to anyone who's reading this, I dreamed my whole life of making a wrestling video game, and that game is now coming out. It doesent even seem real to me at the moment. But the message here is BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. If you do, you can do anything. Look at ICP. Look at Twiztid. Look at so many people who made their own path in live. You do anything you believe you can, so BELIEVE THAT! (Whoo Whooo) Answer: Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiit. That's such a TOUGH QUESTION. But let me try to do this in no particular order.:
Answer: It's two characters fighting each other at the same time, but there are characters who are also present on the levels. In the first backyard, there is a guy working on a car, and a dude working on the bar-b-que. So the amount of characters varies by level. You can play the game as one or two player game. There are also unlockable mini games too. Answer: We would love to be the first online wrestling game ever, but at the moment it seems impossible to get online wrestling gameplay as good as it needs to be… I'm sure a lot of people are looking into this issue right now, because it will affect the future of wrestling games in a really big way. Maybe next time ninja! Answer: To everyone who's reading this, thanks for taking the time to hear what a scrub like me has to say. I hope that on OCTOBER 8th, everybody flexes their Juggalo Power, and catapults ICP to the top of the only world they haven't conquered yet… THE WORLD OF VIDEO GAMES. All your email, and support means a lot to me, so thank you. It gives me the strength to carry on! Please tell all your friends about BYW, and please visit bywgame.com Believe in yourself, and you can accomplish ANYTHING you want. Believe that. Whooo Whooo! To all the ninja's I met along the way, to every motherfucking body at Psychopathic, to all the people at Eidos that helped make this happen…To Everyone at BACKYARD WRESTLING, INC. To all of you reading this. THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART, FOR MAKING MY DREAMS COME TRUE. Peace Out, and God Bless. Before I go, I have one question for you: Who's Going Chicken Hunting?!??!!?!??!!??!
©1999-2003 FaYgoLuVeRs Heaven |