David Jaffe Answers Your Twisted Metal PS3 Questions

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Hi ya’ll! We’re all crunching like mad on the game while also trying to get ready for the holidays! But I did want to stop by, say hey, and answer some of the more frequent questions we’ve been getting about the new Twisted Metal. Watch the video below to get some info on things like multiplayer balance, my all-time favorite Twisted Metal weapon, and the huuuuge bosses you’ll encounter in the game. Thanks again for your great questions, and happy holidays! Oh, and stay tuned to the end of the video for info on how you can win a brand new Sweet Tooth action figure signed by the whole Twisted Metal team! Have a great holiday ya’ll! Be safe, have fun! Later!

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443 Comments

  • Hey David, I’ve been following you’re personal blog and am a God of War fan as well as a fan of the Twisted Metal franchise and am very glad to see that it’s making a comeback.

    Are there any plans to bring Mel Mcmurrin back as the voice of Calypso? The reason why I ask this is because to me, Twisted Metal just isn’t really Twisted Metal without him giving a terrific vocal performance as Calypso.

    The 2nd question is what challenges did you have to overcome to make sure that the games ended up coming out the way that they did? Like any struggles with Sony or anything like that.

    And will there be any levels in the game that weren’t created or used for the sequel to Twisted Metal Black that ended up getting cancelled?

  • I [DELETED] you not, I owe my life as a gamer to Twisted Metal. I didn’t get a Playstation 1 until my uncle got me one for Christmas in 98. He got me TM2 with it. Oh man I played it non-stop. It was all I ever talked about. I made friends come over and challenged them to it. Since then I’ve owned every TM game, even Small Brawl and TM:B online.

    I could go on and on (had to shorten my comment,it was too long, but point being; I love Twisted Metal, always have, always will. I’ve owned every TM game (even Small Brawl and TM:B Online) and Jaffe, if you’re reading this, I’d LOVE to see a Twisted Metal Collectors Edition. Maybe a scale model of Sweet Tooth that transforms? Oh man I’d pay big bucks for something like that.

    Also, having a signed Needles Kane action figure would go great next to my Kratos action figures :)

  • twisted metal rocks love every one you guy ever made my fave car is Warthog he maybe slow but that did not stop me hope your game sells 10,00000 copies im going to buy it to.

    Long Live The Metal

  • Games sounding great which is good. Been playing since i was about 4(im only 16) so i pretty much grew up playing tm on my busted up playstation. Cant wait to get my hands on the new game and lucky me apparently my girlfriend of 1 year grew up on tm 2. just told me when i showed her the teaser for this new one and we havent been able to stop talking about it. hopin to maybe get that sweet tooth figure and who wouldnt want it signed lol

  • Thanks Jaffe! awesome vid – and thank you for answering our questions!

  • awesome

    tbh, i played the psp version! some ps1 too but…for sure this game will hit my game library

  • TM2 was actually my first PlayStation game I have ever played… At the time my parents didn’t make much money so me my older brother and older sister had to save up a couple of months of our allowance money to buy a PlayStation system and a game. A couple of my cousins already had there PlayStation and I remember spending the whole day playing at there house playing this game that I couldn’t get my head around it. That game was Twisted Metal 2 I just couldn’t believe that game could give you so much freedom, the interesting characters TM was the first time I have ever heard of an evil clown existed. Well a couple of months went buy and we got to buy our PlayStation, and guess what was the first game we bought for it…. Later on we bought more controls and played the hell out of split screen multi-player. TM means so much to me because the times I had with my older brother. It was the first game that I played split screen multi-player with family. The complex characters, things that I didn’t know about I knew playing your game.. Yea Twisted Metal was the first game that had grit, and wasn’t scared to get its self dirty I loved that… Thank you David and thank you to the team that made the Twisted Metal series.

  • Hey David!

    Great blog post. It has to be one of the most informative Dev interviews I have seen this year. Maybe they’ll send you a Spike VGA for that, they seem to give those things to anybody. ;)

    Anyways, my stellar question…

    I remember just after the Twisted Metal PS3 announcement here on the Blog, you mentioned that you really wanted to make a Live-Action movie featuring Twisted Metal characters, but more importantly, Sweet-Tooth! Is that project still in the works? And if it is, will it be incorporated into the game like cutscenes for the campaign? Or will we see it released on the PSN similar to Assassins Creed: Lineage? I know ALOT of Twisted fans are asking this question in their heads right now, because anything added to the Twisted Metal Universe is definitely welcome!

    Keep up the awesome work over at Eat, Sleep, Play and hope to hear more about Twisted Metal PS3 in the near future.

    -joostin

  • I’m really interested in seeing the story that you’re doing for Sweet Tooth in the campaign and I really hope you get to make that B movie about him. I would mind having some of my Playstation Plus subscription money go into making it. Some advice on Multiplayer; Kill-cams are great, don’t give such a huge advantage to higher level players (perks, etc.), don’t wait too long to put out dlc if you can (it really does help keep things fresh), and a beta would be a nice gesture (they let people know you want to ship the best product possible, but I understand if you don’t have the time or resources to do one).

  • I am a fan of the twisted metal series but it always put the impression of a drive and shoot experience for me. My question to you and your team, For those people like myself and others is how will make the difference to show the public that there is more to drive and shoot to it. And what will be the deal breaker to become a fan of the series or continue to invest in the series from other games that are contenders?

    Best wishes and Merry Christmas to all,

    RIPKILLER1

  • If multiple people can be logged in for stat tracking on split-screen does that mean they can get trophies also, as opposed to how it currently only allows one profile to be logged in to obtain trophies?

    Will all or just some of the classic characters/cars be returning?

    Also will any of the classic levels return in any way, such as dlc?

  • wouldn’t, I mean wouldn’t. Seriously :)

  • i have no insight on Twisted Metal because “frankly” :D i never played it but i will be looking forward to it consider myself a new potential customer haha. O and merry christmas!

  • Hey Dave, I already bought the Sweet Tooth figure. If I mail it to you, will you and the rest of ESP sign it?

  • wow, this is gunna be great. i still remember playing all the twisted metals when i was what? 7 or 8 years old when the ps1 came out? i never ended up actually buying any twisted metal except for twisted metal black but oh how many times i rented tm’s for the ps1 only for my parents to yell at me for playing mature games :D (i thank my brothers for that ;) ). i think THE greatest part about twisted metal were its maps and me being a kid and driving around in a child’s bedroom was just awesome. i cannot wait for this game to come out.

    Criticism: for some reason i dont know why i always find that games that have giant maps which are then divided into smaller ones don’t seem to “fit” but i think thats just me. For example, resistance 2 follows this same pattern, for its 120 players it has giant maps, but for its smaller 10 player spots its just that giant area made smaller and just a little more unique. however i understand how hard it would be to make so many different maps when you can just individualize a bigger map. But hey, wouldn’t it be awesome to play in someones house in the new twisted metal and not just off smaller giant tracks.

  • What are you going to name the dog?

  • Lol I remember a while back I got Twisted Metal: Black for the PS2 on Christmas and as soon as I started playing, I turned it off because I was so scared of it. It freaked me out so much because of it’s horrific atmosphere but as I grew older, I finally gave it another chance and it was fun and still scary at the same time. Definitely going to get the new Twisted Metal, I love the look of the main menu from the demo that’s been shown to the public. And I was wondering, how did you guys get to the decision on taking live action footage for the cutscenes?

  • To be honest, I’m not going to stress myself coming up with a remarkable question to present you. I’m sure that people on this blog are going to come up with far greater things to say, even though I’d love to add that Sweet tooth collectable to my gaming area… especially if it was signed by someone as yourself.

    On that note, I do have to ask how you guys have tweaked the targeting for a broader audience. If you go back and play older twisted metal games, it seems to me that there are times where you just feel like you’re chasing your tail to get a single shot on an enemy. This can indefinitely get redundant and annoying online. Is there a minor auto target system, or can you move targeting while driving? I see the helicopter as being very powerful do to the balance in targeting nature if you haven’t adjusted the cars as so.

    Either way, happy hannucha. OH, and what do you guys look for in a C++, C, Java, and Network programmer when you consider hiring them? That’s just a personal question. I’ll soon be graduating with my bachelors and I’m highly motivated to get myself in the field :)

  • I remember asking for a Sega Genesis for Christmas when I was six and was surprised to find a (much newer, and more expensive) Playstation under the tree. My brother got me TMII as my first game, and I remember thinking the Eifel Tower trick was the absolute coolest thing. Or how I would roam the women’s locker room, or bathroom, whatever it was, in the New York level lurking around hoping to find a naked pixelated lady–the little pervert that I was. So yeah, I’m pretty stoked for Twisted Metal.

  • Big Supporter of all the old games! Merry Christmas!

  • I’m in the minority, but Twisted Metal 3 was my favorite of the series. Since I have only heard about new maps – and that it seems to be all the rage in PVP games, is there any chance you’d be adding prettied up versions of old maps? The Washington map was one of my favorites, with an incredibly small area to play in made it impossible to hide from others. Also, Rob Zombie soundtrack? So corny, so good.

  • This game is going to be the reason I finally buy myself a PS3. Twisted Metal is the very first PlayStation game that I played. All I knew at the time was that there wasnt a game like TM on any other video game console. Nope. Not Nintendo, Not even Sega. Twisted Metal is the sole reason why I am a PlayStation fan. TM2: World Tour is my favorite TM. TM:Black took this game to a really dark place and I love every part of it. TM3, and TM4 were hollow shells of what Twisted Metal really was about and tried too hard to bring the carnage and mayhem to the same level as the previous games, only falling short of even attempting to fill the massive crater that TM2 left behind like skid marks burned on a cracked highway road of my mind. I have all the faith in the world for this New Twisted Metal for the PS3. I do not care if game reviews say that this game is lower than magnificent. I also don’t care if they have high praise for it. I must experience this game for myself, with my own heart and soul. The way David Jaffe would want it. Just how he put his heart and soul into this amazing series. This will be my reason for becoming a PlaySation 3 owner. Long live Twisted Metal.

  • Twisted Metal is the 1st game with Cars to have a Real and engaging story, that had alot of characters that you loved and wanted to survive the Tourney, like Axel and Spectre and then others you hated like Mr. Grimm, Grasshopper, and Sweet Tooth but he’s the man you love 2 hate and hate to love , TM2 was my VERY 1st PS1 Game, I got it when the Dualshock dropped, n I went back n played one and then all the rest, DJ is one of the BEST Gam Devs out there, he can make any game and even if it doesn’t warrant a story he makes warrant a story, So Twisted and GOD OF WAR I’ll never 4 get that
    n What other game lets you play in Calypso’s tourney and blow of lady liberty close or find the da Vinci code behind the Mona lisa lol Since I played those games I havent look at a Ice Cream the Same, in the same way I dont look at old ladies that look like somebody else Granny from legion
    DAY 1 PURCHASE for me, and that Sweet Tooth Statue would look good in my Appartment, I’ve gotten Bigger myself lol
    #HMU
    AJ
    http://realotakugamer.com/

  • “Kinda…kinda hostile & rough” lol. That still won’t be enough.

    Glad to see the enthusiasm being shown towards “Grimm’s” Special weapon.

    Hype persuaded me to revisit TW3 & TWBlack just recently. Mastering the timing of Grimm’s special definitely takes skill. I couldn’t land a special to save my life. Then came the point where it, bizarrely, started hurting my morale, given that shortly after each game’s launch, I would almost never miss a shot.

    That being said, I know what I’ll be working on whenever I get my hands on Twisted Metal PS3.

    Enjoy your holiday ESP and stay safe.

  • Hello David,

    I’ve never played a Twisted Metal game before, ever since the PS1 days, they’ve always slipped through the cracks for me. However when the rumors were flying that you were making a new one, I knew I had to get it. The E3 presentation was bad-ass and quite the show stealer.

    Thank you for the video interview, whenever you decide to ship the game, this one will be mine. I look forward to experiencing the Twisted Metal universe.

    Happy Holidays!

  • I work at a steel mill and I’ve been twisting metal for 13 years this January. I would just like you and your development staff to know that I am glad and feel very fortunate to be able to go out to the store and buy your game in 2011 to play Twisted Metal when I have grown accustomed to being paid to twist metal for 13 years! Great game, I hope you and all of your staff members have a great holiday and I look forward to seeing you guys in the new year!

  • First of all I love the twisted metal games :)

    Here’s some ideas
    Custom ingame music option for online gameplay.
    Unlockable: Clasic music from the old twisted metals.
    Unlockable: Art work from from the old twisted metals.
    Unlockable: The movie cut scenes from the old twisted metals.

    And maybe twisted metal 2 as unlockable if you get 100% complete ingame.

    Keep up the good work and happy xmas ^^

  • Adding a soccer gametype into TM would be CRAZY. Have a pretty good sized, flat arena with a goal on each end. Then have a giant soccer ball in the middle. Having sixteen people fight over it would be pretty crazy. The number of players would probably have to be less for it to work though otherwise things would get way out of hand. All of the car combat would still be in this gametype though, except players can only use select weapons in it, onces that are harder to get a kill with, so that it is actually possible to move the soccer ball to the goal.

    I think that would be a pretty fun game to play. It wouldn’t be ranked or anything, but it would be something really fun to play. I think there should be other gametypes similar to this soccer gametype that blend popular things right now with TM’s car combat. That could help get more people interested in TM.

  • I got a PlayStation One when I was around nine years old. A few months later I saw Twisted Metal 4 on the shelf at a store and wanted to get it. When I took it home I played it and thought it was fun but wasn’t really sold on it. It wasn’t until my brother began playing split-screen with me that I really started to love that game. And my brother is not a gamer, but he and I would play hours upon hours of Twisted Metal. So thank you, David Jaffe and the team who made the original Twisted Metals, for creating a franchise that made my brother a gamer for a few hours a day. (P.S. He still plays a few sports games on my old PS2, and even bought Twisted Metal Black because he loved 4 so much.)

  • David, what is you’re favorite twisted metal game of all time and why?

  • Even though I am probably ridiculously late, at least I get to point something out about TM!

    I have always liked how each character has a unique car for them. Sweet Tooth in his always loved ice cream truck, Two Hillbilly’s in a monster truck, all the way to the hot babe flower power =D

    And the ending stories for each character,even though some could be a little cheesy. I always wanted to know how Calypso would grant their wish but screw them over at the same time.

    Can’t forget the ending :Thank you for playing Twisted Metal! (insert evil Calypso laugh here)

  • Hi David, I just had a quick question, yeah where did you get the name Sweet Tooth for one of your most iconic characters? It’s a pretty cool name, does it have any meaning?. And also have you and your team ever thought about adding a theater mode to twisted metal, one similar to that in Halo and Uncharted 2. It would be an awesome feature to catch those “OMG WTF moments” in the multiplayer, that you could share with your friends and stuff. Well thanks for your time, oh and also I wouldn’t mind one of those Sweet Tooth action figures :D

  • Looking foward for that co-op!

    I always like this saga ,we need more creative games like this one.

    Merry Christmas!

  • Twisted Metal 2 was the first playstation game I ever bought. Loved the games since. Heres hoping Axel is in.

  • This is my first comment EVER on the PlayStation blog, and all i wanna say is that i want a collectors edition of Twisted Metal, i have not played any Twisted Metal game yet but i did like what i saw at E3, it will be a day one purchase for me, but yeah collectors edition please :)

  • Well, I have not had a ton of experience with twisted metal besides play on the psp. I really look forward to the game since I have been a big fan of films like the mad max.

    Question: Since soccer is not a logical addition to the game, what about polo?

    There is already tech with the motorcycle and chainsaw so it could be possible to use a wind up power mechanic to swing a club or something. As for a ball perhaps a severed head wearing one a German style helmet without the spike. Another option could be a ball shaped time bomb. This is much like the old cyberball arcade game. Such a game could easily be considered within flavor of the series. An extra prestige or rank system could be utilized to insure play. This may also be something that could be used as a side PSN title I suppose.

    The other more obvious hook for players in the rest of the world might be using a few iconic cities from the rest of the world as level backdrops.

  • i have a question

    how will you change the gameplay? For uears i have been playing this amazing franchise and im starting to notice that it is extremely repetitve. I love blowing cars up and helicopters soon but how will you change it up?

    I have an idea how. Maybe you can do something like tron light cycles. I dont know you guys are smart intellegent people and even if you guys dont want to change it up fine i will still have a fun time blowing stuff up!

  • I have grown up with Twisted Metal. I claim Twisted Metal as a brother to me. My brother got the first Twisted Metal not long after it came out. I can’t remember how young I was but I was young. After that I continued to pick up every Twisted Metal to date and of course I’m picking up Twisted Metal PS3. I am pleased with all the work you all have done with Twisted Metal and can not wait to jump back into the series in 2011. I just wanted to say thanks for everything you guys have delivered over the years and I’m going to continue buying your games in the future Twisted or not. Now I better go before I pass out because I’m diabetic and my blood sugar is getting low but I chose to put that on hold so I could send you this message:)

    Thanks Again & Merry Christmas
    to you all at Eat, Sleep, Play
    Randy A. Verser

  • Being a Twisted Metal fan for almost half my life (im 23 now), the franchise has been a huge part of my gaming career. It’s the series that made me buy my PS1, PS2, PSP, and PS3. I have been an active member of Twisted Metal Alliance since 2002.

    Most importantly, I am a Twisted Metal Black Online veteran, and have been playing TM2PC for over 7 years, so needless to say, multiplayer and online TM are my forte and lifeblood. But what really makes me come back for more? It’s the depth of the combat that has always set this game above and beyond any others.

    “Make a good post”. Ok, how about a short essay providing a few examples of why TM combat has some serious depth and why it kicks so much ass?

    It isn’t just a health meter that goes down, Twisted Metal has all sorts of ways to damage and destroy enemies; straight up damage, status effects (fire/damage over time), knock back effect, ramming, and freezing are all inter-linked with one another to help set up combos and create maximum damage with minimal damage to one’s self.

    Ramming can not only inflict massive damage, but can allow you to land even more weapons simultaneously to create combos.

    Continued on next post……

  • Cars get rammed and knocked back into walls or rolled over which allows time to lay down the hurt without missing your shots. Smaller cars suffer more-so than larger cars from ramming, as they have less armor – a drawback from being a faster car.

    Fire damage as a result of napalm attacks can be devastating. Although the initial hit of napalm doesn’t hurt much, it’s the damage over time that can cause the health to drain. The only way to douse the flames is to use turbo… but if you do, you are killing your lifeline to dodging attacks. Without turbo, it is much harder to dodge freezes, or recover from knockbacks. Fire damage has the side effect of hampering your opponent’s ability to dodge, making it easier to land combos on them. Nifty trick to nullify the speed advantage of small cars.

    Certain weapons also have bonus attributes besides just doing damage; Homing missiles, Power missiles, Ricochets all have a knock back effect upon hitting the enemy. The enemy will sometimes spin out or be unable to move for a full second after being hit from one of these weapons, so a well timed freeze missile following up from one of these weapons is a logical set-up to a combo.

    Continued on next post….

  • Using these weapons immediately after a ram also hinders an enemy from escaping, as the the knock back effect keeps them in place. Knock back can also help you catch the smaller and faster cars who run circles around you. Landing a homing missile for example can bounce the enemy car around or make them spin out, allowing for a freeze missile to hit and stop them dead in their tracks; good setup for a combo and further damage.

    They are all interconnected and allow for interesting strategies/combos to unfold. Certain weapons lead to strategies and ways of countering car’s advantages. One form (fire damage over time) can help you make headway in another (landing freezes, as target has no turbo left to dodge it), which in turn sets up another (ramming a frozen target), which then leads to the ultimate goal: the kill.

    This is a prime example of what makes TM combat deep, fun, challenging, and why its kept me playing for years. I hope that the new TM can accomplish the same, if not more of what previous game’s in the franchise have done.

    Thanks for the read. I could have gone on for 100 more pages… See-ya online guys ;)

    – Roadie “Tm2PC’s Greatest Gaymer”

  • @David

    Will there be Co-op on the SAME CAR?

  • If the game releases around summertime instead of the usual 7-11 promotions with Slurpies and such, you guys should consider teaming up with Baskin Robbins or get some codes, maybe a special flavor, on ice cream in the grocery store to help promote the game to a wider audience.

  • I like gtamike’s unlockables idea. The game is on a blu-ray might as well fill the space if there is some left over. I am a big fan of watching special features and films about development.

  • Nice video, David. I love that you’re so in touch with your fans, most notable developers don’t offer that type of communication, nor take as much feedback as you do from your supporters.

    Just wanted to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Enjoy playing with your new dog. If you’re anything like me, you won’t leave him/her alone.

    As for Twisted Metal, I’m sure it’ll be so great. It’s really been the only ‘car destruction’ franchise that I’ve enjoyed… ever. I tried Activision’s Blood Drive, but it honestly sucked hard.

    Once again, enjoy your holidays. I wish you and your family the best. Keep pumping out those hits!

  • This will not be my first Twisted Metal game (I have Twisted Metal 3 on the PS1), but it’s probably the first time I’ve really been excited for one. Looks great, can’t wait to play another great game from Jaffe.

  • Agreed. 7-11 FTW…. either to facilitate home rewards like God of War or unlockable extras. I don’t want to just rely on Gamestop if it can be helped.

  • Isn’t that supposed to be a Needles Kane action figure? Sweet Tooth is the car, right? LOL!

    Anyway, I’ve played every Twisted Metal, and I CANNOT wait for this one! Every footage I’ve seen looks pure fun! Love it, love it!

  • Hoping this one gets thru. Part 3…

    Using these weapons immediately after a ram also hinders an enemy from escaping, as the the knock back effect keeps them in place. Knock back can also help you catch the smaller and faster cars who run circles around you. Landing a homing missile for example can bounce the enemy car around or make them spin out, allowing for a freeze missile to hit and stop them dead in their tracks; good setup for a combo and further damage.

    They are all interconnected and allow for interesting strategies/combos to unfold. Certain weapons lead to strategies and ways of countering car’s advantages. One form (fire damage over time) can help you make headway in another (landing freezes, as target has no turbo left to dodge it), which in turn sets up another (ramming a frozen target), which then leads to the ultimate goal: the kill.

    This is a prime example of what makes TM combat deep, fun, challenging, and why its kept me playing for years. I hope that the new TM can accomplish the same, if not more of what previous game’s in the franchise have done.

    Thanks for the read. I could have gone on for 100 more pages… See-ya online guys ;)

    – Roadie “Tm2PC’s Greatest Gaymer”

  • David if your reading this, thanks so much for making the announcement a surprise at e3. It was so great to see sweet tooth’s familiar face in such a fashion! No one does it like you did.

    As for the actual game, I can’t wait to play it, hopefully relive past memories with my brother and buddy playin split screen, a feature that is sorely missed in most games nowadays.

    I’m so glad that you and your team are focusing on single player, because that’s where I think the twisted culture and heart resides. Also thanks for connecting with us fans, have a great holiday and deliver on this epic game!!!!!!!!!!

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