We’re a huge fan of games being ‘demade’ in a retro style here at Retro Dodo, and while we cover lots to titles like Halo getting the Game Boy Color treatment or Palworld turning into a DS classic, we don’t often cover musicals transforming into 8-bit masterpieces. That’s exactly what’s happening with Richard O’Brien’s classic musical extravaganza as it literally does the Time Warp and takes on an 8-Bit theme with chip-tune tracks and side-scrolling gameplay!
Metal X Entertainment/Bit Bot Media & FreakZone Games have teamed up to celebrate 50 years of the stage play that first came to theatres back in 1973. Fans can now explore famous scenes from the musical on both Nintendo Switch for £7.09 and Steam for £7.65 (at the time of writing) as a digital release, with more platforms including a mobile release heading to the table soon. It’s very much a platformer in terms of gameplay and looks like Castlevania set inside places like Dr. Frank N Furters lab.
FreakZone Games’ Sam Beddoes is the brains behind developing and designing the game, with music coming from Bit Bot Media’s Klayton, who you might know from projects such as Celldweller and Scandroid and also a driving force behind the music for other video games such as Killer Instinct and Transformers.
As explained over on Impulse Games, Sam Beddoes tells us that ‘it was an honor to adapt the legendary musical into a video game. Now both new fans and veterans can enjoy a whole new take on the story and music in crunchy 8-bit goodness.’
Producer & award-winning horror writer Joshua Viola who also joins the Bit Bot Media team says ‘For those familiar with Rocky Horror, they’ll get to relive it in a fresh, exciting way. For newcomers, it’s an unforgettable introduction to a cult classic, delivered with a twist only a video game can provide. But beyond all that, it’s simply a blast to play’.
While this is Bit Bot Media’s first game release, you may well have heard Viola’s name before linked with the Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver – The Dead Shall Rise graphic novel Kickstarter campaign as the co-author of the works. The project raised $1,411,559 of a $25,000 goal with 8,294 backers which is phenomenal. With 50 years of the Rocky Horror Show and the huge following behind the musical, I’m sure the video game is going to prove just as big a success and another positive accolade for Viola and Bit-Bot Media’s catalogue.
