It’s genuinely surprising that there haven’t been more attempts at translating the world of Hellboy into the medium of video games given the importance and reverence of the title and its titular hero in comics. Other than a single licensed video game tie-in that accompanied the release of the second film adaptation,Hellboy Web of Wyrdis the first attempt from a studio at crafting an original game that translates the evocative and moody world of the comics into an interactive experience. All it takes is one quick look at the visuals and aesthetic ofHellboy Web of Wyrdto see that the developer, Upstream Arcade, clearly understands the elements that make the comics so special.
After finding some success and a dedicated cult audience with its 2020 titleWest of Dead, a hybrid of tactics and twin-stick shooting, developer Upstream Arcade was approached about having the opportunity to work on a game thattranslates the Hellboy universe(typically dubbed the “Mignolaverse” after series creator Mike Mignola) into a compelling game. The studio’s idea was to take the source material and craft a hybrid between roguelites and beat ‘em ups that successfully embodies the strengths of the character while also paying homage to the art style and folklore-influenced narrative of the comics.The following transcript has been edited for clarity and brevity.
Q: Other than the series being one of the most critically acclaimed comics of all-time, what were the team’s motivations to make a game based around the Mignolaverse?
A:We were really lucky to get a chance at Hellboy. We were already huge fans, and couldn’t help but let his influence be visible on our previous game - West of Dead. Luckily for us, Good Shepherd spotted the heart we were wearing on our sleeves and asked “Would you like to work on aHellboy game?"
Q: Mignola’s artwork is known to use shadows extensively. Were there any challenges in balancing rendering the style properly and maintaining adequate lighting?
A: Very much so. We were very excited to slap a load of black all through our levels before stepping back from the game editor and saying “Ladies and Gentlemen, we give youMike Mignola’s Hellboy…!” We then sat and played through those levels and no one could see the walls on the other side of the room. We calmed ourselves down, took more of a game player’s focus to our lighting, and made sure spaces were readable and understandable while still using shadows as extensively as we could.
Q: What are some of the team’s biggest roguelite inspirations for Web of Wyrd?
A:We’re big fans ofdifferent roguelites, which is a very broad area these days. All the way from Hades to Dead Cells and Vampire Survivors, there’s so much to admire in so many different titles in the genre. For this one, we wanted to try something different in the structure which I’ll go into a bit later.
Q: Following that, Web of Wyrd is a third-person beat-em-up as well. What are some of the team’s favorite beat ‘em ups? Were any of them used as inspiration for Web of Wyrd’s combat?
A:Similarly, we’re fans of all types of beat-em-ups, whether it’s Street Fighter, Tekken, Sifu, or even Power Stone (remember that?). No single other fighting game inspired thecombat for Hellboy: Web of Wyrd. We approached combat similarly to other areas, trying to look at what seemed “Hellboy.” For this, we focused on the feeling of being big, powerful, and heavy, but facing even bigger and more powerful enemies. The rest flowed from there, from the camera angle to emphasize the height difference, all the way to the over-the-shoulder view (which is set at human height to lend scale). Once we headed in that direction, we had to solve each question as it came.
Q: Hellboy is a character that handles conflict in a variety of ways. Can you talk about balancing combat that features both melee and ranged options?
A:This was quite a challenge. In the comics, Hellboy isn’t the best shot, but is resourceful and knows lots of arcane lore. We decided that we’d want Hellboy’s other tools (ranged firearms and magical charms) to have a dual purpose; to be useful on their own, but also seamlessly fit into existing melee combos. The idea is that Hellboy would be more than happy to use a gun up close for example.
Q: What were the challenges of designing a roguelite with a very specific art style but that is also replayable?
A:We found it quite challenging to make the balance between variety and fidelity, especially with a small team of four artists. The lower camera brings with it an expectation of how detailed everything should be, and it was very important to us to do the comics justice in our visual style, so we spent a lot of thought trying to get the most use out of everything that was made.
Q: What type of biomes can players expect in each of the game’s areas? Will each biome feature unique enemy types or do enemies carry throughout each area?
A:We don’t want to give too much away obviously, but we wanted to have a healthy mix of familiar-looking biomes for fans of the comics but also take the opportunity to give them something new to experience. Our story setting allowed us to twist some of those familiar places into something a little more unsettling and strange and enabled us to create unique enemies per biome that you haven’t quite seen before but feel likethey are straight out of the mind of Mike Mignola.
Q: Is Web of Wyrd a mostly linear roguelite experience or are there multiple possible progression paths through each run?
A:We’ve made an effort to make this anaccessible rogueliteby adapting the traditional structure. Instead of throwing the player in and asking them to see how far they can get, we gradually introduce them to different areas, and then ask them later on to demonstrate their mastery in a more classical roguelite fashion.
Q: Information available on Web of Wyrd acknowledges that it features an original story within the Hellboy universe. Can the team provide any insight regarding when in the timeline the story takes place?
A:We were very conscious that there may be players coming to our Hellboy game who know nothing about Mike Mignola’s character and his world, so we wanted to be respectful and not spoil any of the stories that already exist. There are a couple of Mike Mignola’s short stories set in the early 1980s where less is known about Hellboy and his relationships with members of the BPRD, so we thought it would be a great fit for our game to be set in that timeline too.
Q: Did Mignola’s involvement in the story take a more in-depth approach or was it mostly conceptualization that was then fleshed out by the team?
A:Mike Mignola is very happy to state that he is a comic guy and that there are people who make films that are film people and people who make games who are games people. He understands that there are requirements within video games, such as failing often before a success, where the traditional linear comic storyline doesn’t quite chime with the requirements of a video game. With his blessing, he was happy for us to create aHellboy storythat fit around the game structure we designed and that leaned into the moments we wanted to create for the player.
Q: Web of Wyrd happens to feature one of the last performances from acting legend Lance Reddick. What was it like to get to work with Lance?
A:Lance was an absolute pleasure to work with - sitting in on his recording sessions was a privilege to be part of. To see the enthusiasm and energy he applied to the role gave us all a real buzz, and we are very proud to have Lance be the voice of our Hellboy.
Hellboy Web of Wyrdis available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
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