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Fist of the North Star manga author Tetsuo Hara drew a special illustration of Imperator Furiosa from the Mad Max series of movies ahead of the release of the Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga movie. In addition, Warner Bros announced that the illustration will also be featured on the cover of the next issues of the Japanese film magazine Eiga HiHo.

The issue of Eiga HiHo will release in Japan on May 21, 2024. The artwork depicts the character of Furiosa with her iconic buzz cut and prosthetic left arm, while wielding a revolver on her right hand. You can take a better look at the illustration here:

Furthermore, Hara himself offered some words about the film after having watched it in a premiere ahead of its general release. You can read a translation of what Tetsuo Hara had to say about the Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga movie here:

“It is great! It was interesting from beginning to end. I have been greatly influenced by director George Miller myself. I thought it wasn’t possible, but I didn't know there was such a way of creating (art.) And I am truly astonished by the fact that (Miller) keeps showing us new cinematic worlds. I seriously wanna be his apprentice!”

Tetsuo Hara

In 1983, back during the creation of the Fist of the North Star manga, the Mad Max film series was particularly influential to Hara alongside series writer Yoshiyuki "Buronson" Okamura. As a reminder, fans of the apocalyptic martial arts series are in luck, as a new Fist of the North Star anime series was announced on September 2023, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the manga.

Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga is set to release on May 24, 2024 in North America and May 31 in Japan, where it is known as Furiosa: Mad Max.

The post Fist of the North Star Author Tetsuo Hara Drew Furiosa: Mad Max Art appeared first on Siliconera.

If you’ve played any of WB Games’ recent releases, then you know what to expect from the studio’s most recent project: Mad Max. At last year’s E3, I had a chance to speak with Michael De Plater, Director of Design for 2014’s Shadow of Mordor. When I asked why the game was so similar to WB’s Batman titles, he responded frankly: “We’ve found a great deal of success with the engine, and you know, if it’s not broke, why fix it?”

Mad Max follows that same philosophy. It feels and plays similarly to Batman, especially when it comes to hand-to-hand combat. However, much like how Shadow of Mordor relied on its Nemesis System gimmick to differentiate it from other WB games, Mad Max relies on creating the titular character’s Magnum Opus. Before I talk about all that, let me cover some of the basics.

Mad Max is all about looting. Enemies have camps scattered throughout the game’s expansive world, and in those camps rest several essentials: scrap, water, and cars. Scrap is the currency of this world and allows Max to upgrade the Magnum Opus. Water can be captured in a flask and drank to restore health. New bodies for the Magnum Opus can be unlocked by having your goons retrieve any you find at camps. Max will fire a flare gun into the air, and then the body becomes purchasable on the main menu screen.

Speaking of the menu screen, boy oh boy does Mad Max go crazy with upgrades. Nearly every part of the Magnum Opus can be upgraded using scrap. To be specific, its upgradable parts are: Engine Grill, Armor, Engine, Exhaust, Tires, Suspension, Boost, Rim, Boarder Spikes, Hood Ornament, Decals, Body Colors, Car Body, Repair Speed, Sideburners, Thunderpoon, Harpoon, and Sniper Rifle. Purchasing and equipping different parts here will increase or decrease the Magnum Opus’ stats. In that sense, I suppose, Mad Max could be considered part RPG.

Mad Max gives the player plenty to explore, and it also gives the player the freedom to choose how. Much like Batman, areas of interest are represented by a variety of icons on the world map. Destroying Scarecrows gives Max a place to rest and reduces his threat in the area. There are enemy camps where piles of scrap wait to be taken, and feature lots of hand-to-hand combat. Lastly, there are Convoy missions—this game’s bread and butter—where Max must give chase to a pack of armored cars, landing him new Hood Ornaments for the Magnum Opus and considerable amounts of scrap to boot.

Defeating a convoy isn’t always as simple as “blowing it up”. Most of the time it is, but not all the time. In the chase I was involved in, for example, I had to pull metal plates off of the leader’s car to expose explosive barrels in its trunk. Before that, though, I was ripping the tires off of pursuing cars using the harpoon, or sticking my double-barrel shotgun into an opposing car’s gasket while I drove past it. A limitless slow-motion mechanic gives you the time you need to make every shoot feel truly badass.

You know, that’s what Mad Max does best: it does anything and everything in its power to make you a complete and utter badass. The hand-to-hand bits may be a tad too familiar, but traveling the world in the Magnum Opus, giving chase to enemy convoys—that’s where the game hits it home.

The post Mad Max Takes Cues From Batman, Shadow of Mordor appeared first on Siliconera.

These days, no one ever says cotton swabs, they just use the name Q-Tips. And instead of telling someone to use an Internet search engine, you simply say to “Google it”. In a similar fashion, the name “Mad Max” has also become a generic term to describe anything post-apocalyptic, including video games.

Which is why the recently announced Mad Max game from Just Cause developer Avalanche Studios has a lot to live up to.

Siliconera caught up with Peter Johansson, the game's senior game designer, to ask about the challenges that lie ahead, as it pertains to making a game whose very name is synonymous with an entire genre.

Perhaps it goes without saying that it's a pretty big deal for you guys to be able to make a Mad Max game, correct?

Peter Johansson, Senior Designer: It's like a dream come true, because we get to do what we love the most... crafting these really huge worlds, filling it with lots of action-packed content, and of course, giving the player lots of freedom to explore that content.

What's been the reaction thus far to the game, among attendees at the show?

People are really happy about it! I think people are getting the chance to see what we are really good at... everyone one is really excited about playing it.

Has it been at all surprising? In the sense that... you and I, we're in our mid-thirties, so we grew up watching the original movies in our childhood, whereas many younger folk, a price percentage of the game-playing audience, might not be at all familiar with the character.

It does seem that the response has been especially strong amount older folks; that image of the legendary Mad Max that they from watching the movies, as kids like you say. But I think he has always represented this huge open world, a post-apocalyptic reality... that theme and style has become known with the younger audience, hence why they know the name and hence why it still causes a reaction.

And not just the man himself, but also his vehicles, the wasteland... it's all part of our vernacular. It resonates quite well with younger players, so I think they're going to be equally excited. Especially to take play as the real thing.

It's funny you say that, the "real thing" since Mad Max started out as a series of films that has inspired all sorts of fiction, including video games, and now there's a video game called Mad Max. How challenging is that? To make a Mad Max game truly stand out, from what it has inspired, which is a lot.

I think, traditionally, these types of Max Max-like games have been shooters. There have also been vehicular elements, but they've either been separate or not as pronounced. But to us, this mix of vehicle combat, and on foot combat, each presented equally, plus a seamless transition between the two... I think that is going to be very, very unique.

In one moment you can be engaged in this car situations, you have people jumping onto of your vehicle, trying to pull you out, or maybe they manage to damage it, which pretty much forces you out... this combat is going to continue seamlessly. Them getting out of their cars and engaging in combat with you, with melee weapons, with their fists… to me that is really exciting.

Percentage-wise, how much is on foot and in vehicle? Is it 50/50, even down the middle, as it was implied in the demo?

Actually, it's hard to say. I can't say for sure, since we're still building the game. It's still in a pre-alpha stage. But, of course, your primary method of survival is your car, your Magnum Opus [the name of your primary ride in the game]. It's basically your comfort zone, though there will be times in which you need to step out of it.

And of course you have to face all these dangers that are everywhere, in this wasteland. All of sudden, you have to be extremely careful, because of traps and ambushes, even the environment itself can be very hazardous. But it's necessary, to keep your car running, like to scavenge for fuel.

You only have one vehicle?

Yes, it's yours to customize. But there are over 50 different vehicles in the game, and you can drive them all.

Can you talk about this "bond" between man and machine that was touched upon in the demo and which the game as a whole aims to deliver?

Well, you can personalize it, purely on a cosmetic level, to make it look more like your own, something unique. Though I believe the simple act of constantly collecting parts or scrap, to enhance your vehicle, which you drive around in a lot, creates a special bond. "This is MY car, I've made it myself. I did this, to achieve that, so I can ram this gate..." and so forth.

Can the Magnum Opus be destroyed?

It can take heavy damage, but thankfully your mechanic, Chumbucket, is always around to help fix it up for you. Of course, when it does break down, you're exposed to the dangers of the wasteland, so that's something you're going to want to avoid. But that's the reason why Chumbucket is there, and it's just not a matter of convenience.

We needed him to be persistent, otherwise it would be very difficult to get that bond. That is something that we did find in Just Cause 2, that you really didn't get that bond between man and machine... though it really wasn't that type of game as well. It was more like, you just use a vehicle for a while and got rid of it. This time, we really did want to establish a real bond with the Magnum Opus. Again, your car is your tool, your friend, also your salvation.

Was anyone attached to the movies looked at the game and had any opinions on it? And what has been the reaction down under as a whole as well?

No one from the movies has checked it out yet, but that would be exciting of course! As for people in Australia, the reaction has been super positive. They've all gone "FINALLY!!!" They've been waiting forever for a Mad Max game. And it's almost here.

Mad Max will be available in 2014 for PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Xbox One and PlayStation 4. You can read our hands-on impressions of it here.

The post Mad Max Senior Designer On Appealing To The Modern Audience appeared first on Siliconera.

One of the few genuine surprises of this year's E3 was the announcement of Mad Max. And the funny thing is this: there have been so many games that take place in a Mad Max-esque setting, than an actual Mad Max game seems a bit late to the party. Almost unnecessary.

The game is fairly simple: you play the role of Mad Max, obviously. And the goal is to survive, again obviously. Gameplay is divided into two distinct parts. On foot you'll go heard to head with other denizens of the desert wasteland that used to be the Australian Outback (though for whatever reason, Max himself does not sport an Aussie; peculiar to say the least), in a desperate struggle over precious resources, such as food, ammo, and fuel.

That last necessity ties directly into the other major half of the game; behind the wheels of the car As Mad Max drives around, he'll run into various oddballs and flat out scums who terrorize the Outback. Good thing he's well equipped.

Max's ride is not the Interceptor, his trademark vehicle from the movies, which has been stolen, and which Max aims to get back (thus setting up the overall plot of the game). Instead, he drives around in the next best thing—a little something called the Magnum Opus, a highly customizable rig that was designed by his "idiot savant sidekick" and mechanic, Chumbucket.

The majority of the demo simply shows Max riding around in the game's open world, engaging with various hostiles, either by ramming their vehicles or shooting at them point blank. Sometimes Max pulls the trigger, but sometimes it’s Chumbucket, who either rides shotgun or is in the back.

Car combat is vaguely reminiscent of Twisted Metal, but dialed back a couple degrees, to be made less frantic and a tad bit more realistic. It also needs to be noted how flat-out gorgeous this part of the game looked. The game as a whole looks great, but the driving segments is when one could really ire the deep, azure skies, plus inviting yellow sand all around as well. Rarely has a wasteland looked so beautiful.

Once a foe has been subdued, Max and Chumbucket can hit the breaks, exit the Magnum Opus, and forage for scraps. Again, Max's vehicle is designed to be customizable and it’s the designer's intention to form "a bond" of sorts between man and vehicle. You'll apparently be able to get behind the wheel of over 50 authentic Mad Max vehicles, but his best friend will most definitely be the Magnum Opus (until the Interceptor becomes an option, that is).

The wasteland is huge; massive, really. There's plenty of ground to cover and the Magnum Opus is up to the task, provided that it's properly equipped to navigate certain terrain. Driving in general looks lots of fun, which is great, since it features so prominently. Though the objective of the demo was for Max to go through a barrier, called The Jaw, which blocked a particular section of the Outback that he wanted age through.

It's here that Mad Max decides to get out of his vehicle and deal with foes on the ground. In this particular case, some sniper rifleman that even his ride would not be able to stand up against. Max's offense includes his fist, knives, his trademark sawed off shotgun, plus something called the thunder stick, which is an explosive rod that Max can ram into any opponent's chest.

Hand-to-hand combat is brutal. Exceptionally brutal. With blood flying all over the place. It makes sense for sure, given the dog-eat-dog world of the Mad Max universe, but given that most of its ultra violence has been depicted behind a steering wheel, I found myself unusually taken aback by such brutality for whatever reason.

Out-of-vehicle skirmishes look like they could be fun; although, at this point I’d made up my mind that I'd probably much prefer engaging in vehicular manslaughter. I suppose it didn't help that Mad Max looked exceptionally generic. He's not a bad model—far from it, just lacking in personality. Though I suppose having him look like Mel Gibson would been difficult, as well as weird.

Yet, there was one part that looked fun; to get from a high elevation to a lower one, Max slides down a rope using his shotgun as a bar. It was here that I was reminded of Avalanche's previous work, and how much fun screwing around was in Just Cause 2. That game's lead character was quite versatile, and while Max lacks the combination of hook shot and parachute that made the aforementioned such a blast, I all of a sudden became more interested in the non-vehicle stuff.

Ultimately, Mad Max plays like a RPG of sorts; as you engage in combat, various stats are improved. This applies to both Mad Max and his car. Back to The Jaw; because the Magnum Opus did not have the proper horsepower (or necessary stats) to take it down, the door glowed red, to indicate: "don't even think about it."

However, instead of going through the 10 or so hours grinding that would be necessary to upgrade the Magnum Opus's grill, the demo person simply activated the developer's debug menu to strengthen the ramming grill. And once that door was taken down, it was a hail of bullets and exploding barrels to end the demo.

In the end, Mad Max doesn't exactly re-invent the wheel when it comes to sandbox games that take place after the bomb, but at least it appears to be a competent edition to the family, and pretty one at that. Hopefully the final game will be chock full of all manner of references from the movies (and even Babe: Pig In The City, which is loosely connected).

Mad Max will be released in 2014 for PC, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

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