Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet

[zomboid]

I think the soundtrack is shit & doesn't fit the look of this at all - but this looks pretty interesting otherwise. Currently planned for PC, but I'm hoping XBLA and/or PSN as well.

<object width="560" height="340"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7MSTpt346o&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7MSTpt346o&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="560" height="340"></embed></object>

edit: fixed video

Edited July 21, 2009 by zomboid

[syntheticgerbil]

Hmm, I was at a industry convention Dallas a month ago and Michel Gagne was there showing a lot of gameplay footage (that apparently wasn't public yet) as well as selling his books and short films DVD. He was kind of a butt and ragging on programmers for not always being able to handle his smooth 24 fps animations and that when the frame rate drops, he gets really angry.

He was also going on some ridiculous rant about artists drawing, painting, and animating on the computer and that his stuff in this game is handdrawn from start to finish besides the scanning part. Which I guess he was trying to say it made him better? I don't know. In my opinion you would get the same results if you used Illustrator and save time to boot, but eh... that's me being presumptuous.

There was a video play through of the complete first level and boss, so it did look good and it looked like a lot of fun, though.

At one point he did say the music was not final and that they were just using his favorite band or whatever. He is apparently trying to get Dimmu Borgir to do the music for real though. Maybe that deal won't go through and we can rejoice?

EDIT: And now the video disappeared due to copyright while I typed all of that.

Edited July 16, 2009 by syntheticgerbil

[lobotomy42]

Kotaku still has it: http://kotaku.com/5315687/shadowy-clip-of-an-insanely-twisted-shadow-planet

Also, whether or not that dude's a butt, this trailer looks pretty sweet.

[syntheticgerbil]

Also, whether or not that dude's a butt, this trailer looks pretty sweet.

Yep!

[thorn]

I dunno. It's pretty but it looks to me that he's intentionally trying to be self-consciously indie and anti-mainstream gaming. It's all style over substance and gives very little away on what gameplay is actually about.

Also, does Michel Gagne have a reputation big enough to justify him bignoting himself at the beginning? I've never heard of him before and my first impression of "FROM THE MIND OF MICHEL GAGNE" was that he was a craven douche.

[syntheticgerbil]

Also, does Michel Gagne have a reputation big enough to justify him bignoting himself at the beginning? I've never heard of him before and my first impression of "FROM THE MIND OF MICHEL GAGNE" was that he was a craven douche.

Well... er... He did the Prelude to Eden short all by himself after quitting Don Bluth studios that got heavy airplay on Sci-Fi channel and a few short film circuits for a while around the end of the nineties and the turn of the century. Other than that and some comics that appeared in Flight, I don't think he's done anything that would be cause his name to be instantly recognized by anyone who's not an animator or doesn't keep up with short animated films.

I dunno. It's pretty but it looks to me that he's intentionally trying to be self-consciously indie and anti-mainstream gaming. It's all style over substance and gives very little away on what gameplay is actually about.

It's funny you say that, because he also said he's perfect for creating amazing video games because he hasn't played one since the early 1980s, so apparently that will help him bring a fresh mind to general stagnation of games. I'm just paraphrasing what he said here, it was definitely something along those lines.

[elmuerte]

that looks insanely twisted

any release date yet?

[Psych]

Well... er... He did the Prelude to Eden short all by himself after quitting Don Bluth studios that got heavy airplay on Sci-Fi channel and a few short film circuits for a while around the end of the nineties and the turn of the century. Other than that and some comics that appeared in Flight, I don't think he's done anything that would be cause his name to be instantly recognized by anyone who's not an animator or doesn't keep up with short animated films.

I believe he's a bigger deal in France than he is here.

[Alex P]

Anything else you remember about the game or Gagne?

Hmm, I was at a industry convention Dallas a month ago and Michel Gagne was there showing a lot of gameplay footage (that apparently wasn't public yet) as well as selling his books and short films DVD. He was kind of a butt and ragging on programmers for not always being able to handle his smooth 24 fps animations and that when the frame rate drops, he gets really angry.

He was also going on some ridiculous rant about artists drawing, painting, and animating on the computer and that his stuff in this game is handdrawn from start to finish besides the scanning part. Which I guess he was trying to say it made him better? I don't know. In my opinion you would get the same results if you used Illustrator and save time to boot, but eh... that's me being presumptuous.

There was a video play through of the complete first level and boss, so it did look good and it looked like a lot of fun, though.

At one point he did say the music was not final and that they were just using his favorite band or whatever. He is apparently trying to get Dimmu Borgir to do the music for real though. Maybe that deal won't go through and we can rejoice?

EDIT: And now the video disappeared due to copyright while I typed all of that.

[syntheticgerbil]

Anything else you remember about the game or Gagne?

Hmmm... well besides the game, Gagne was part of a Q&A where he spoke about how he got his job at Don Bluth studios in the 80s by making his own short film in Canada at a young age and then making the trip to California by lying to his dad for the funds that he already had an interview set up. Once in the studio, he and begged the secretary to take a copy of his short film and show it to Don Bluth. A month later, Don Bluth calls him, giving him a great first job in the animation industry. He did not show the short film though, but it's the one with the music note. He and his wife were selling various comic books and storybooks in the courtyard at the college it was at inbetween speakers. They were also showing Prelude to Eden on loop behind them his TV screen.

While some of this may be wrong, what I remember of Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet was a full first level being played (a recording, since he said he sucked at the game) with the space ship being upgraded with a grabber that allowed it to throw rocks at some of the silhouetted creatures on the walls. There was this really amazing sequence at the end of the level where you fly up to some eyeballs in the walls that seem harmless enough until it turns out to be a giant monster with a big mouth that chases you through corridors and breaks a lot of rocks in the process. He also showed the original trailer (or something similar) that was posted. He then answered some Q&A on the game, but most of what was asked was about the music used, whether people wanted to play it or not, what programs he used, as well as Gagne speaking of showing the game to Microsoft soon to see if they wanted to publish it. This was two months ago though, I'm not sure if that went through. I think he's hoping to get XBLA distribution at some point.

He also showed this short abstract animation he did for this dissonant jazz that was shown at I think a music festival in Canada. He won an award for the music video and that's what led him to animate a similar sequence in Ratatouille in the background when Remy is eating different foods and describing how it feels to taste them. Apparently Brad Bird had seen the short animation and thought it would be great for the film.

There was also a Q&A with all of the speakers at the end with generic questions, but I don't remember much of what he said during that. Someone did ask how to best get along with other people in the industry and Gagne said that he doesn't try and that's why he works alone in a basement. A lot of what he said was with a smile and a laugh though, so he probably wasn't extremely serious about a lot of his remarks.

[Alex P]

Thanks! That's very helpful

Hmmm... well besides the game, Gagne was part of a Q&A where he spoke about how he got his job at Don Bluth studios in the 80s by making his own short film in Canada at a young age and then making the trip to California by lying to his dad for the funds that he already had an interview set up. Once in the studio, he and begged the secretary to take a copy of his short film and show it to Don Bluth. A month later, Don Bluth calls him, giving him a great first job in the animation industry. He did not show the short film though, but it's the one with the music note. He and his wife were selling various comic books and storybooks in the courtyard at the college it was at inbetween speakers. They were also showing Prelude to Eden on loop behind them his TV screen.

While some of this may be wrong, what I remember of Insanely Twisted Shadow Planet was a full first level being played (a recording, since he said he sucked at the game) with the space ship being upgraded with a grabber that allowed it to throw rocks at some of the silhouetted creatures on the walls. There was this really amazing sequence at the end of the level where you fly up to some eyeballs in the walls that seem harmless enough until it turns out to be a giant monster with a big mouth that chases you through corridors and breaks a lot of rocks in the process. He also showed the original trailer (or something similar) that was posted. He then answered some Q&A on the game, but most of what was asked was about the music used, whether people wanted to play it or not, what programs he used, as well as Gagne speaking of showing the game to Microsoft soon to see if they wanted to publish it. This was two months ago though, I'm not sure if that went through. I think he's hoping to get XBLA distribution at some point.

He also showed this short abstract animation he did for this dissonant jazz that was shown at I think a music festival in Canada. He won an award for the music video and that's what led him to animate a similar sequence in Ratatouille in the background when Remy is eating different foods and describing how it feels to taste them. Apparently Brad Bird had seen the short animation and thought it would be great for the film.

There was also a Q&A with all of the speakers at the end with generic questions, but I don't remember much of what he said during that. Someone did ask how to best get along with other people in the industry and Gagne said that he doesn't try and that's why he works alone in a basement. A lot of what he said was with a smile and a laugh though, so he probably wasn't extremely serious about a lot of his remarks.