| Twisted Metal | |
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The logo of the Twisted Metal series |
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| Genres | Vehicular combat |
| Developers | SingleTrac (1995-1997) 989 Studios (1998-2000) Incognito Entertainment (2001-2007) Eat Sleep Play (2008-) |
| Publishers | Sony Computer Entertainment |
| Creators | David Jaffe, Scott Campbell |
| Platforms | PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, PC |
| First release | Twisted Metal November 5, 1995 |
| Latest release | Twisted Metal February 14, 2012 |
| Official website | http://twistedmetal.com/ |
Twisted Metal is a series of vehicular combat video games published by Sony Computer Entertainment, and developed by various companies during its tenure. The series began on the PlayStation in 1995 and currently features seven games, with an eighth installment currently in production. It is the 162nd best-selling video game franchise, selling over 5 million copies in North America alone.[1]
It is the longest-running PlayStation-exclusive franchise with a total of sixteen years running from 1995 to present; the second-longest being the Gran Turismo series, which has spanned fourteen years. Seven games of the series (including Twisted Metal: Black Online) were re-released as part of the Sony Greatest Hits program.
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In concept, Twisted Metal is a demolition derby that permits the usage of ballistic projectiles, machine guns, mines, and other types of weapons (up to and including satellite-based weapons and nuclear weapons). Players choose a vehicle, and an arena—or a series of arenas in the story mode—to engage in battle with opposing drivers. A variety of weapons and upgrades are obtainable by pick-ups scattered throughout the stage. The last driver alive is the winner.
Although each individual game features its own storyline, they all revolve around the same basic theme: a vehicular combat tournament called Twisted Metal is presented with the promise of granting the contest's winner any wish they desire. In almost all of the games, the host is a man called "Calypso"; however, in the series' fourth installment, perennial contestant Sweet Tooth briefly takes over.
The hosts of these games are the persons who are, through arcane means, capable of warping reality itself to grant the wish of the contest winner; however, there is a general "be careful what you wish for" theme in the game series, as nearly all of the winning contestants end up with "not-so-happy" endings, due to the skill and proclivity of the hosts for twisting the words of their wish around—often to deadly effect. The games in the series usually contain a healthy dose of black humor.
By winning the game, players are treated to an ending pertaining to whichever character they chose to play as throughout the main game. Each ending shows the character wishing for "their heart's desire" and getting what they wished for (though Calypso will often change the wish due to taking a more literal tone or for deriving amusement by jumbling the winner's words).
Format: PlayStation, PC
The first two Twisted Metal games were developed by SingleTrac.
An IBM PC version of Twisted Metal 2 exists. It features slightly cut-down graphics compared to the PlayStation version (minor details of some levels disappeared) but it doesn't require a 3D accelerator video card and played well on computers with lower processing capabilities. It also features multiplayer over a modem line or Internet.
Format: PlayStation
After a contractual dispute with SingleTrac, Twisted Metal development duties were handed over to Sony's in-house development team, 989 Studios. The Twisted Metal titles developed by 989 Studios were fundamentally different, due in no small part to the fact that SingleTrac owned the engine used in the first two titles and so an entirely new engine had to be built from scratch for the non-SingleTrac-developed entries. One of the major changes that resulted were the introduction of advanced physics simulation and AI techniques to the series.
David Jaffe, in speaking about these two entries in the series, was reported to have said, "....[in and of themselves] they're good games, they're just not good Twisted Metal games."
Format: PlayStation 2
After developing several non-Twisted Metal vehicular combat games for GT Interactive, a large number of SingleTrac employees left the company to form the gaming studio Incognito Entertainment, and signed with Sony. With much of Twisted Metal's original creative team back with the company who owns the franchise, this reunion led to the creation of the series' first installment on the PlayStation 2, Twisted Metal: Black.
While the game retains the basic premise of the series and features a number of returning characters, it was also a major departure from the previous games due to its more serious tone, darker atmosphere, and more cinematic style, which was slightly more grounded in reality than the over-the-top, comic book look and feel of the previous games. It is the first entry in the series to receive an M rating. In fact, the game's storyline cutscenes (including starting and ending movies) were removed from the European version entirely due to their graphic nature.
Format: PlayStation Portable
Despite what was essentially a complete relaunch and rebranding of the franchise with Twisted Metal: Black, Incognito decided to return to the series' roots and create a game that felt more like a true follow-up to the original Twisted Metal series, bringing back the bright colors and cartoony characters of Twisted Metal 1 and 2. Available on the PSP in time for its North American launch, Twisted Metal: Head-On is considered by many fans - especially those disappointed by the non-Singletrac-developed titles - to be the true sequel to Twisted Metal 2. Utilizing the PSP's built-in online capabilites, it also marked the first time a Twisted Metal game had full online play available from the start.
Format: PlayStation 2
In February 2008, Eat Sleep Play, a new development studio formed by David Jaffe and Scott Campbell, released Twisted Metal: Head-On for the PlayStation 2. While primarily a direct port of the PSP game "Twisted Metal: Head-On", it does feature a number of extra features, most notably four complete and playable levels from the unreleased/incomplete Twisted Metal: Black sequel, called Twisted Metal: Harbor City. Other bonus content includes: a code to download the soundtrack (a timed offer which has since expired); a half hour documentary on the series with some of the original developers called "Dark Past"; a rough playable portion of an unfinished and unreleased third person action game starring Sweet Tooth (controllable for the first time ever on-foot and outside of a vehicle); and the never before seen original live-action ending videos of all the characters from the first Twisted Metal, directed by Jaffe.
Format: PlayStation
Instead of delivering a PS2 follow-up to Twisted Metal: Black, Incognito took an unexpected turn and developed Twisted Metal: Small Brawl for the original PlayStation, a Twisted Metal aimed at a younger audience that featured radio-controlled toy cars instead of full-size vehicles.
Format: PlayStation 2
A game featuring only the multiplayer portion of Twisted Metal: Black, but playable online. A free copy could originally be obtained by mailing in a card that came packaged with the PlayStation 2 online network adapter. After Sony stopped offering the disc, it was later included as a bonus disc in subsequent reissues of the Greatest Hits version of Twisted Metal: Black. The servers to the game have since been shut down.
Format: PlayStation 3
The next installment in the series is currently being developed by Eat Sleep Play, and will be the first entry for the PlayStation 3. While vaguely rumored for years and its existence even outright denied by David Jaffe, it was finally revealed at the end of Sony's E3 2010 presentation. The game looks to be a return to the gritty style of Twisted Metal: Black, and several classic Twisted Metal characters - such as Sweet Tooth and Mr. Grimm - are confirmed to be making a return.
Format: PlayStation 2
A sequel to the PlayStation 2 game Twisted Metal: Black, titled Twisted Metal: Harbor City,[2] was in development but was cancelled before it was announced when the series co-creators left the development team.[3] At time of cancellation four levels had been completed; these levels were included and playable in Twisted Metal Head-On: Extra Twisted Edition as a special mode.
Format: PlayStation 3
A Twisted Metal game set in a post-apocalyptic environment, which was originally in development in 2008 but was scrapped.[4] Artwork of the cancelled game was released by David Jaffe at the San Diego Comic-Con International; it showcased concept arts of locations such as a destroyed Mount Rushmore as well as a giant crater. It was also revealed that the Eat Sleep Play team was originally rather keen on the idea, though it was hinted by Jaffe that the idea was rejected by Sony Computer Entertainment, speculated to be because of the release of MotorStorm: Apocalypse, a racing game which also featured a post-apocalyptic environment.[5]
Format: PlayStation 3
Apart from Twisted Metal: Apocalypse, another Twisted Metal game was in development for the PlayStation 3 which utilized street culture and hip-hop influence. The game Twisted Metal: Revolution until it was cancelled; it would have featured characters with a more realistic look such as a Sweet Tooth that looked more of a smooth criminal rather than a psychopathic clown. Other characters included yakuza, FBI agents and street gang members. David Jaffe compared the game to Rockstar's Midnight Club series when describing the look and feel of the game. In addition, Jaffe said that it was extremely difficult to portray the environments that they had created in their concept art within the game as it resulted in an extremely bland environment.[5]
Twisted Metal features 50 different cars (although some different combinations of car and driver) in its eight incarnations (Twisted Metal, 2, III, 4, Black, Small Brawl, Head-On, and TMPS3). Many characters appear in more than one game of the series, although the same vehicles are not always driven by the same people.
Calypso, playing the leading role in the storyline of the series, is a playable character in TM4, while in other games, he appears only in the opening and ending cutscenes.
Before creating the Twisted Metal contest, Calypso was just a regular man. He was a family man with a daughter and a wife, and he also had a different name. He led a normal life not unlike any other citizen, until one night he was involved in a freak accident which resulted in him crashing his car directly into a brick wall. This car crash left him in devastation, killing his wife (revealed to be Pam Sparks) and daughter (later revealed to be Krista Sparks, the driver of the car Grasshopper; extrapolating from this, his original last name might be Sparks) as well as burning and disfiguring his own face. During this time it has been hinted at that Calypso did a few things: first, made a deal with Mr. Ash (driver of Darkside) to come back to life in exchange for souls. Secondly, obtained by trickery or from the deal itself the use of powers (be it through a demon or not) to offer a wish in exchange for killing and winning his contest. Two years after his disappearance while he was assumed to be dead, he re-emerged, his name changed to Calypso, and possessing a power that allows him to grant wishes. The power is said to be stolen from a demon, most likely the driver Minion, who later competes in the contest in order to regain it. Calypso then established Twisted Metal and, for ten years, has continued to run the competition. This is where the first Twisted Metal game comes in.
When someone wins his contest, the winner gets to have one wish granted. These comprise the game's ending sequences. It should be noted that while Calypso seems to stick to the phrasing of a wish, he will gladly violate its spirit, which usually causes the wisher harm in the end (such as wishing for the ability to fly has him get the wisher's plane tickets, only telling them after they jumped off a building), though in the original game, Black and Head-On he generally granted the character's wish without pulling any harmful tricks on them so long as the wisher's intents were malevolent, while the more noble wishes got turned around. The scope of his powers seem to have extraordinary bounds. Even with this though, there are limits as to just what he can grant.
Similarly, the meaning of the ending for Roadkill in Twisted Metal 2 is ambiguous - Marcus Kane's (the driver) wish is to wake up from the nightmare he is trapped in. After winning the contest, Kane awakes up in a hospital bed, surrounded by his family, relatively unscathed. They are surrounded by some of the other contestants, all of whom are severely injured. It is unclear if the contest was a hallucination in Kane’s mind, or if Calypso truly granted his wish.
Calypso is, to some extent, seemingly a prisoner of the Twisted Metal contest himself: he can't, for example, restore his daughter to 'life' unless she wishes for it. Additionally, endings in Twisted Metal, Twisted Metal 2, and Head-On show that his power seems to extend only to granting wishes; he can't, for example, stop Agent Shepard from arresting him via his powers, as Shepard refused to accept a wish. Similarly, in Twisted Metal 2, he could not prevent Shadow from taking his soul as revenge for all the people who died due to the Twisted Metal competition. Also, in Twisted Metal: Head-On, Sweet Tooth wishes to change places with Calypso and, despite Calypso's final judgment not to, it was granted.
Calypso's character design is inconsistent. It is different in many Twisted Metal games throughout the series. In terms of appearance, the most notable change is his hair which varies from thick and long to completely bald, or long hair on the sides.
Sweet Tooth, real name Needles Kane, is designed around the premise of a killer clown that drives an ice cream truck, and his face has been featured on the cover of every Twisted Metal game to date, making him the series mascot.[6][7] He is the only character, besides Marcus Kane, to drive more than one vehicle in any of the games, being the driver of Head-On's Dark Tooth, Tower Tooth, and as of Twisted Metal Lost, Gold Tooth. He is voiced by J. S. Gilbert in Twisted Metal: Black.
The character has gone through several redesigns differing from game to game, similar to fellow character Calypso, and his personality has grown progressively darker along the way. Sweet Tooth's original look featured him as a green haired, slim simple circus clown who had escaped from a mental institution.[8] The design was expanded upon in the second game in response to changes to the truck's design, notably due to the clown head adorning the truck now featuring a personality of its own.[9] The result gave Sweet Tooth the flaming head design seen on the character since. 989 Studios which handled the next two games put more emphasis on the clown design, redesigning his attire to that of a ringmaster in Twisted Metal 4; neither design was held in high regard by the developers, with David Jaffe stating his dislike of 3's look.[10] As of Black and beyond, the design was modified heavily, giving him increased bulk and other features that would be called his "classic look" by Incog Inc.'s design team.[6] His design became a large, somewhat overweight bare chested clown with a flaming mask locked into a permanent maniacal smile. Head On expanded on this idea, changing the mask to face paint and the smile to his own.[11]
The ice cream truck was actually designed well before the driver himself, and Black's incarnation took six months and many concept sketches to finalize. Labeled early on "DEMONIC ICE CREAM TRUCK", attention to details such as the head adorning the vehicle and the contents of the back of the truck were focused on during development.[12] Boss variants of the truck have also appeared regularly in the game's series, starting with Dark Tooth in the second game. While the designs for the vehicles have progressed steadily, care has been emphasized to keep them rooted to the simple ice cream truck structure yet unique, something that has become harder and harder for the team as the games go on.[13]
Sweet Tooth has the most ties to any group of characters in the whole series: his father Charlie Kane (driver of Yellow Jacket in the first game)[14] and Marcus Kane (split personality,[15] Roadkill's driver). Spectre's ending in the first game strongly hints that Sweet Tooth was the serial killer who killed the driver of Spectre five years before the competition.[16] In Black, he has an unnamed brother that only appeared in Twisted Metal Black, who himself drove that game's Yellow Jacket vehicle.[17] He is also directly responsible for the creation of that game's Axel, whose wife he killed,[18] and Cage, who wishes to be a greater killer than Sweet Tooth.[19] His mask is also seen in Dollface's middle video, being created by her boss.
Sweet Tooth appears as a car in the child-themed spin-off game Twisted Metal: Small Brawl, based on RC cars instead of real ones. In this game, Sweet Tooth is the youngest and most mischievous kid in the contest, and enters looking for some ice cream.[20] His ending shows that Calypso offers him an ice cream from his familiar Ice Cream truck, but Sweet Tooth instead steals the truck to terrorize Calypso. Sweet Tooth is also an unlockable character in War of the Monsters, a game in which Incognito used the TMB engine to make a movie monster fighting game. One of the characters, Agamo, has Sweet Tooth as the fourth skin. Sweet Tooth is represented by a tall mech with the signature flaming clown head, and often breaks out in his usual laughter throughout the game. Sweet Tooth is also an unlockable character in the North American and European versions of Hot Shots Golf 2. His appearance in this game is closer to his character design in Twisted Metal 3. Sweet Tooth is a DLC character in ModNation Racers with his Ice Cream Kart.[21]
The soundtracks for the first two Twisted Metal games were composed and produced by the Pinnacle Group, consisting of Chuck E. Meyers, Tom Hopkins, and Lance Lenhart. Beginning with Twisted Metal III, various music artists and bands have been brought in for each game's soundtrack. One such person was singer Rob Zombie, who contributed songs to both Twisted Metal III and Twisted Metal 4, and is even a playable character in the latter. Music from the game discs can also be played on a CD player or in a computer.
Track listing of Twisted Metal III by use:
Track listing of Twisted Metal 4 by use:
Track listing of Twisted Metal: Black by use:
Track listing of Twisted Metal: Head On by use:
Track listing of Twisted Metal by use:
The following titles are also considered to be vehicular combat games in the style of Twisted Metal:
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