Mention Back to the Future in my presence, and you’ll see a grown adult turn into a huge pre-pubescent geek. In fact, Back to the Future is probably my favorite movie series of all time. So it was bittersweet when I heard about the development of a new Back to the Future game. Sweet because it’s a new Back to the Future game, and bitter because the developer is Telltale Games.
How could this be a bad thing? Simple…
I don’t have much faith in TellTale Games. I’ll admit I haven’t played each and every game they’ve developed. So some of my information comes from second hand sources (i.e. t3h internets) or friends. I’ve run down the list of games they’ve developed, and it’s not pretty.
• Telltale Texas Hold’em
• Bone: Out from Boneville
• CSI: 3 Dimensions of Murder
• Bone: The Great Cow Race
• Sam & Max Save the World
• CSI: Hard Evidence
• Sam & Max Beyond Time and Space
• Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People
• Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures
• Tales of Monkey Island
• CSI: Deadly Intent
• Sam & Max: The Devil’s Playhouse
• Nelson Tethers: Puzzle Agent
• Poker Night at the Inventory
• Untitled Jurassic Park episodic game
• Back to the Future: The Adventure Series
• CSI Fatal Conspiracy (2010)
Besides Sam & Max, Bones, and Tales of Monkey Island, I’m not too impressed. Even those games aren’t the cream of the crop. Games like CSI, Poker Night, and the rest reek of inconsistency. Knowing of the poor job they did with a popular franchise like CSI, it worries me to know they are at the helm of a franchise like Back to the Future. You want an example of a developer who knows how to handle a licensed franchise? I’m glad you asked.
One word: Treasure. I know I’m a bit of a Treasure fanboy. Alright, I’m obsessed with the company, but take a look at their list of licensed games and you’ll understand where I’m coming from.
• McDonald’s Treasure Land Adventure
• YuYu Hakusho Makyoutoissen
• Tiny Toon Adventures: Buster’s Bad Dream
• Hajime no Ippo: The Fighting!
• Wario World
• Astro Boy: Omega Factor
• Gradius V
• Bleach: The Blade of Fate
And I’m not even listing their other amazing non-licensed games. This is the kind of developer you want working on a game like Back to the Future. Not only do they know how to stay true to the source material in art style and theme, they know how to make it a blast to play.
Now don’t hear what I’m not saying. This game could very well be amazing, fun, and full of the charm we’ve all come to love from the series. After hearing an interview with one of the development team, my faith was bolstered a bit. Christopher Loyd has been brought on to reprise his role as Doc Brown, they’ve gotten the rights to use Michael Fox’s likeness for Marty, and the preliminary art looks awesome. They truly seem to be dedicated fans of the series who want to make a proper homage to the franchise. It’s my sincere hope they do just that.
Developers are a big deal in my books. When a new game comes out, my first question is always, “Who’s developing it?”. Don’t let your excitement for the franchise overshadow the creative team behind it. This is the same reason I’m not pumped for the new Goldeneye as it’s not developed by Rare.
I’ll give my full review of the game when the first episode in the five episode series is released this Winter. Here’s hoping for the best.
