Ever once in a while you come across a video game that makes you remember why you play games in the first place. When I first saw the Kickstarter campaign for Deadwood: The Forgotten Curse; I had those feelings of nostalgia. The game looks adorable and the soundtrack evokes the feelings of being stuck inside a Tim Burton film. I knew I had to contact the makers, Steamroller Studios; and I was lucky enough to talk to the Creative Director, Adam Meyer, about their upcoming game.
Casey: First of all, I love the artwork and the detail from the game. I know that you said some of your inspirations were the films of Tim Burton. Can you tell us what about those films drew you to create Deadwood in a Burton-esque quality.
Adam: Burtons work is definitely an influence, but so is Hayao Miyazaki work, and Zelda, and Don’t Starve, and Zombie movies, and the list goes on an on. As artist’s we are inspired by everything we love. And we love a lot. But I think what Burton brings specifically is the quirkiness that we try to inject into our world.
Casey: I think you can see that quirkiness come across from the footage and description on the Kickstarter page. Along the same lines of the artwork, I feel the music is very close 
to Danny Elfman. I love the use of xylovphones and am a huge Elfman fan. How did you decide to take a cue from Elfman for Deadwood?
Adam: Well that was all our very talented composer Luke Thomas. The only cues I gave him was “What if Danny Elfman scored a Final Fantasy Game.” And I think he hit the nail on the head. Our gameplay combines fun adventuring with darker quirkiness. So I’m thrilled that we found a composer that has blended those elements together so masterfully.
Casey: I looked up his stuff, it’s pretty great. It’s amazing that you found him. Being that the game looks like half adventure/half RPG; what is the average length of the game in terms of hours to play it?
Adam: Well we’re still early in development. But based off the size of the world and the length of the main quest storyline we’ve written, plus the sidequests, I’d say it will be at least 15 hours. But because it’s open world I imagine people will be spending even more time in Knottington than that.
Casey: I’m sure us gamers will have a lot of fun exploring the beautiful landscapes and environments. Given that most of the Steamroller team has spent time making movies, what was it about those experiences that helped shape Deadwood?
Adam: I think our focus on story and attention to detail. We don’t stop working on something until we think it’s perfect. We are definitely trying to make the best possible version of this game that we can. We are an indie studio, but we’re trying to make a AAA game.
Casey: You can tell that you’re all passionate for gaming and wanting to give fans what they want for an overall fantastic experience. The game is about the power of friendship to get the characters through the world of Knottington. What famous duos or friends did you use as inspiration for Lathe and Roguard?
Adam: For me, and I think this is obvious once I point it out. But Iron Giant was a big influence. But the gameplay system itself is really what got it going. We wanted the player to have to protect a character at night, not just a static fort or even yourself. Combining storytelling with gameplay is something we’re very excited about. And the relationship between Lathe and Roguard is at the center of everything.
Casey: I never would have thought of Iron Giant, but now that you say that, I can totally see it. What can players expect the most out of when they play Deadwood?
Adam: Fun and unique gameplay with a charming story.
Thanks again to Adam for being amazing and telling us about Deadwood. Make sure you support this fantastic project by going over to the Kickstarter page and donating! If you’d like to learn about more crowdfunding projects, head over to our Crowd$ourcery page HERE.
