Added: 20.04.2015 12:05 | 1 views | 0 comments

, went on to found Heavy Spectrum with his wife. Though the project would likely be far further along in production had he hired more staff, Birch would be the one paying the salaries, and as such decided to keep the team small.

"I really appreciate how Sony respected my wishes for the studio to stay creative and small," he says. "Sony is one of the companies that are still trying to make games better."

For Birch, better doesn't necessarily mean original. In terms of its core combat design, Shadow of the Beast has common with games from the eighties (Kung Fu Master, Double Dragon, et al) than those of the modern era. Granted, there is a God of War rhythm to the light and heavy attacks, and moments of strategy and counter-hits, but overall it's a cathartic massacre played out by pressing the same sequence of buttons a few hundred times.

Which is to say, it's just like the original Shadow of the Beast; a game released 25 years ago and generally forgotten by the masses, but arguably the reason why Birch took a career in games and wanted to retell its story to new people.

"Shadow of the Beast was a defining moment of my childhood. I remember going around a friend's house; he just got an Amiga and showed me the game. I remember being just... awestruck by it, and every time I took the bus home from his house it was all I could think of.

"Those bus journeys were probably the moment I realised games were not just about challenge. They have worlds and stories that you can take with you."

Shadow of the Beast will ship exclusively on PlayStation 4. Heavy Spectrum has yet to confirm its release date plans.

Added: 20.04.2015 10:17 | 3 views | 0 comments


Matt Doria of BGU writes "Call of Duty: Black Ops III was (sadly) unveiled, Star Wars: Battlefront got its official reveal, Guitar Hero is back with 'Live', we got our first sneak peek at Tony Hawk 5, Destiny is getting some new DLC, and Shadow of the Beast still looks amazing."

Added: 19.04.2015 23:17 | 9 views | 0 comments


TSA: Twice now, Ive seen Heavy Spectrums Matt Birch stand up and talk about Shadow of the Beast first as the game was announced at Gamescom 2013 and now at a PSN showcase and both times his struggle to contain his emotions, his excitement and his passion for this game have been endlessly endearing. This is quite literally his dream project, which he has wanted to create ever since he played the original game in 1989. Its a passion which is quite clear to see in the game itself, and was surely a major part in Heavy Spectrum being able to inherit the games legacy as they work alongside what remains of Psygnosis and Studio Liverpool who created the original game at Sonys XDev team.

Added: 19.04.2015 14:50 | 5 views | 0 comments

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Added: 19.04.2015 14:50 | 3 views | 0 comments

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