ClayFighter Remaster Announced
(Image by Sam the Samurai/GameFAQs)
A retro fighter is set to make an unexpected return next year.
Interplay Entertainment announced Feb. 28 that its remastering the ’90s fighting franchise ClayFighter, which will release for the PC in 2016. The remaster is in development between Interplay and Drip Drop Games, a relatively unknown studio.
The ClayFighter remaster will combine elements from all the franchise’s games according to Interplay Entertainment, the game’s original publisher (then called Interplay Productions). It will feature both high-definition visuals and audio remastering.
The ClayFighter franchise became known for its clay-animation style and wacky characters like an evil snowman or Elvis impersonator. ClayFighter released for the Super Nintendo in November 1993 and later for the Sega Genesis in 1994. The original developer was Visual Concepts, who is now owned by Take-Two Interactive making the NBA 2K games. Clayfighter is also available on the Wii Virtual Console.
The remaster will include more than 20 characters from all the franchise’s games like the snowman Bad Mr. Frosty, Earthworm Jim and Blue Suede Goo. Stages from the original games will return in the remaster. New mechanics will be added to the series like double jumping, reversals, air dashing and counter moves. There will also be “Claytalities” for each character, a play on Mortal Kombat’s “Fatality” finishing moves.
The ClayFighter franchise released five games through the ’90s. An updated ClayFighter: Tournament Edition released exclusively as a Blockbuster rental for the Super Nintendo in May 1994. ClayFighter 2: Judgement Day is the sequel that released on the Super Nintendo in January 1995. ClayFighter 63 1/3 (its name a parody of other Nintendo 64 games) released on the N64 in October 1997 and another Blockbuster-exclusive, rental-only ClayFighter: Sculptor’s Cut released on the console in May 1998, an update to the previous game that included new characters and storylines.
Interplay Entertainment went through many changes since the first ClayFighter released. Founded in 1983, the company saw lots of success developing role-playing games and publishing a variety of titles. In the ’90s the company developed the original Fallout (1997) and published BioWare’s Baldur’s Gate (1998). Interplay went bankrupt in 2006, selling off some of its studios like Earthworm Jim creator Shiny Entertainment and properties of franchises like Fallout. It was recently in a lost legal battle with Bethesda Softworks over the rights to the Fallout Online game.
Watch gameplay of the original ClayFighter on Super Nintendo:
Quarter Disorder 
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