In 1999, the iconic New York rap group Wu-Tang Clan released their very first video game, Wu-Tang: Shaolin Style. Now, 25 years later, the Wu have returned with a new game project called Wu-Tang: Rise of the Deceiver. Announced simultaneously at Summer Game Fest and at the opening performance of the group’s farewell tour, Rise of the Deceiver is part of the apotheosis of one of the greatest rap groups of all time.
The Verge had the opportunity to speak to the game’s developers at Brass Lion Entertainment about working with some of rap’s living legends on a project that is both the end of an era in rap history and the beginning of something new.
Rise of the Deceiver is an action co-op game in which players, imbued with powers bestowed upon them by the legendary members of the Wu-Tang Clan, fight against invaders that wish to corrupt their home. It’s been in development for three years, and started as a companion piece to Angel of Dust, a movie produced by Ghostface Killah and directed by The RZA.
“What we did is we leaned into elements of that script that worked really, really well from an interactive perspective, and made a companion piece to it,” said Bryna Dabby Smith co-founder and CEO of Brass Lion Entertainment.
According to Dabby Smith, the driving ethos behind Rise of the Deceiver is essentially, “do it for the culture.” While there have been numerous hip-hop-centric video games over the years, very few of them tackle the artistry, history, and culture of the genre beyond using it as set dressing. “We wanted to create something where it was built from the ground up,” Dabby Smith said. “It was by the culture, for the culture, and actually representing what [Wu-Tang Clan] put out there through the years.”
And for the game’s soundtrack, which incorporates music from throughout the group’s 30-plus year history, it really was built from the ground up.
“For us, the treatment of the music was a really big deal,” said Dabby Smith. It’s not just snippets of “C.R.E.A.M” or “Protect Ya Neck” playing during cutscenes. She talked about how their sound team created a dynamic music system.
“So while you are playing the game, the music is reacting to what you’re doing and it’s completely unique to your playing experience.” Additionally, players will experience Wu-Tang’s discography in ways they’ve never heard before.
“It’s not just the traditional songs that you’ve heard. It’s remix versions. It’s orchestral versions,” Dabby Smith said. There are even totally new tracks in the game that incorporate Wu-Tang samples to make something unique but still familiar to fans’ ears.
“Hip-hop is a syncretic art form. It takes pieces of things that have existed elsewhere and mashes them together in unique ways,” said Evan Narcisse, a former video game journalist who worked as a writer on the project. “We’re doing the same thing.”
Rise of the Deceiver is meant to appeal to all kinds of video game fans, not just 30-something hip-hop heads. There’s something for everyone. And if you are a 30-something hip-hop head, this game will be a love letter to one of the greatest musical acts in a generation.
“The Wu Tang Clan are larger than life,” said Narcisse. ”They’re superheroes, and they deserve a world that speaks that legacy.”