Strider: Double Helix reboot and Grin’s canned game are not linked, Capcom shares details

By Dave Cook

Strider developer Double Helix Games has rebooted Capcom’s classic from scratch, and has not transferred any content or ideas over from Grin’s cancelled project, VG247 has learned.

You may remember Grin as the team behind Capcom’s Bionic Commando reboot. It was working on a gritty Strider reboot before it closed in 2009. We reported on the studio’s lost reveal trailer here. It gives an interesting glimpse of what might have been.

In a new interview with Capcom producer James Vance – which you can read in full on VG247 next week – I asked if Grin’s cancelled Strider project lived on in the Double Helix version in any way. As it happens, the two are not linked.

The concepts are not related,” Vance explained. “To be honest, the first time I, and certainly the staff at Double Helix, learned about the Grin game was when the concept CG trailer appeared on the internet. The Grin ‘real-world’ rendition is an interesting take on the series, and is perhaps an avenue to be explored down the line.

“For our game, however, we felt that the surreal, analog-future design of the Strider universe is a key component of the series’ lasting appeal, and chose to focus on delivering this as one of our key game pillars rather than explore a more realistic approach.”

I asked Vance if he could share with us the extent of Capcom’s plans to reboot Strider. For example; had the company tried this before in secret? He continued, “Unfortunately I do not have insight into the details of any previous attempts at creating a new Strider game, but have heard that several preliminary attempts have been made over the fourteen years since Strider 2 was released.

“There is a lot of love for Strider within Capcom, so I suspect that there have always been a quite a few critical eyes that perhaps cut previous projects short. In the same turn, it has been a great vote of confidence that so many of these same creators and even some Capcom old-guard are supporting this new Strider game.”

There’s much more to be said about Capcom’s Strider history and the new Double Helix reboot, but you’ll have to wait until next week or I’d have nothing left. Sorry.

Are you keen on the reboot though? Let us know below.

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