Upcoming Updates

Greetings Again, Fellow Hazardites…

It’s been awful quiet lately… I haven’t heard a peep about this new game from D3 Publisher.  Nothing on the video game web sites or in the magazines… and certainly no replies to my daily email inquiries about the game.

Some genius over there in the marketing department probably figured they could just announce the game and then do nothing until it ships.  Kids are lazy.

Anyway — I won’t let you down — here’s what’s upcoming this week and next on The Real Matt Hazard:

• Reader Q n’ A: I’ll answer some of the top questions that I have received in my inbox since I posted my email in a previous post.
• Character Profile: I’m going to take a look at one of Matt Hazard’s most fearsome foes.  You can get to know him BEFORE D3 spills the beans.
• Special Treat: I found another box in my basement — I think it has some long lost artwork.  I haven’t gotten to opening it yet because there is a mouse nest on top and I’m scared of all kinds of rodents.  Mrs. Tokey will be taking care of it this week

Bottom line — stay tuned.  There’s a lot more coming.  And those guys at the big sites have NO info on this game.

- R. Tokey

More Classic Matt Hazard Screens

“NEW” CLASSIC MATT HAZARD SCREEN SHOTS UNEARTHED

As promised, I’ve gone digging through the archives that I keep stored here in my basement.  Now that those people at D3 have announced “Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard,” it’s pretty exciting for me that RIGHT HERE is the ONLY place to get RARE AND EXCLUSIVE screen shots and STORIES behind the Real Matt Hazard!!!

Last night, I finally found my old floppies (floppies are what were used before compact discs, kids).  Unfortunately, most of my floppies were destroyed in 1999 when a bulk-sized container of laundry detergent fell off the washer and into my old work boxes.  Mrs. Tokey is to blame for that.  I’ve told her.

IGN Blog Carries the Announcement

I keep an eye whoever is running the Matt Hazard blog over on IGN.

They’ve got a story up about the announcement, and they also have a link to a teaser video.

Check it out if you get a chance.

- R. Tokey

New Matt Hazard Game Announced

D3 ANNOUNCES NEW MATT HAZARD GAME – EAT LEAD: THE RETURN OF MATT HAZARD

My Predictions Come True As New Game Revealed;Well, It’s Not an MMO, But It Was Really Soon!

Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard

While I may have been wrong about the content of the announcement, I was right about the timing — it came REALLY soon after the merger was announced.

Check it out:  http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3170325 This cleverly named video game web site has the “exclusive” announcement about their new game.

Marathon and Megasoft MERGER!!

MARATHON-MEGASOFT MERGER!!

NEW GAME LIKELY COMING SOON!!!

Is A Matt Hazard MMO — “World of Hazard” — To Be Announced Next?!?!

I’m sure you’ve all seen the huge news of the big merger that just went down (http://blogs.ign.com/MattHazard/), bringing together the awesome powers of Marathon Software and Megasoft.  And the trend of industry consolidation continues unabated, right?

While some of you may be concerned with what might happen, let me reassure you beyond any doubt that in the video game industry, big-time mergers are GREAT thing!

I’ll tell you why:

D3 PR Turns ME Down?

I contacted D3 again to get more information on this alleged new Matt Hazard game.  They were less than accommodating, so I recreate the exchange for you below:

TO: D3 Publisher PR Department

FROM: Ralph Tokey

To whom it may concern:

My name is Ralph Tokey, the former Vice President of Marketing and Public Relations from Marathon Software.

HAZARD HISTORY: “Fistful” Ends the Cold War

Fistful's EUR Poster

Talk about a marketing event gone wrong. In the Fall of 1989, we planned to hit Germany hard for the Holidays with the release of Fistful of Hazard. The game had already debuted in the United States way back in 1987, but due to issues at Marathon, it took us more than two  years to localize and ship throughout European countries.

We knew we needed something BIG to push a 2-year old game, so we worked closely with the German government to create a massive, first-of-its-kind advertising campaign.

For a sizable amount of money, we were able to secure the exclusive rights to place posters on the Berlin Wall.  Yes, THE Berlin Wall.

New Screenshots Emerge – 9/19

Looks like someone is distributing more screen shots from the classic Matt Hazard games…

These came out of nowhere today:

Conflict of the Deities

Adventures of Matt in Hazard Land

Matt Hazard 3D

Not bad. People are really getting a taste of Hazard now.

-R. Tokey

1UP Digs Up Some Old Screenshots

One of the screens 1UP Nabbed

Saw this late last night — 1UP.com ran a couple of screenshots from some of our old games.

I’m not sure where they got those, but it looks like D3 must have acquired a file or two from Marathon and sent them over themselves.

BTW — the game names they have assigned to each of those shots is completely WRONG.

Once again, D3 should have asked me first, as I probably have even better ones around here.  At the very least, I could have told them which game names go with with screen shot!!!

Couple things I’m working on here, just so you know:

• Trying to find some of my old screenshots so I can post them here; i should have some in storage somewhere, but it requires accessing floppy discs — many of you probably haven’t even seen a floppy before
• Trying to reconnect with some of my old Marathon colleagues to do some interviews about Matt Hazard
• I’ve reached out to D3 PR representatives to try and acquire information or assets from the new game; haven’t heard back but if you all pressure them too…
• Pulling up some of my old marketing materials to share with you, so you can understand more about who Matt Hazard is and what he represents.

Meanwhile — check out 1UP’s story.

And for the record — Matt Hazard DID invent Steamy Cofffee.  1UP has that dead wrong.

Hey 1UP – if you want to really talk about this — or get the PROPER names for those games – let’s do an interview.

- R. Tokey

So you don’t remember Matt Hazard, huh?

You were probably too young to have played Matt Hazard’s games in the arcades (“ARCADES” are places where we used to have to go to play video games, where “stand-up” machines provided playtime for a coin or two).

Maybe you’re even too young to have played MH stuff on the 8-bit or 16-bit systems, but you better believe that you’re playing the results of Matt Hazard’s innovative games today.

Matt Hazard broke new ground in almost every game he was in, almost single-handedly defining and creating the modern-day video game feature set.

Here are some of Matt Hazard’s “firsts” that you probably thought were associated with other games

Matt Hazard Invented “Steamy Coffee” Controversy: