ToeJam & Earl’s Funky Fresh Foods of Funkotron Cookbook Launches On KickStarter

From the makers of “The Legend’s Cookbook” and “Mother’s Cookbook” alumni, with guidance from TJ&E co-creator Greg Johnson, comes ToeJam & Earl’s Funky Fresh Foods of Funkotron Cookbook which has officially launched on Kickstarter.

Owners of this cook book will be able to make 35 unique recipes, and the book features fresh photos and original illustrations with an authentic ’90s vibe taking inspiration from the Toe Jam and Earl franchise. This cook book is great for beginners and hardcore fans alike if you want to try out food from Toe Jam and Earl’s home planet, Funkotron.

You can pre-order the cook book on the official Kickstarter page until October 30th with additional backer rewards available such as stickers, enamel pins and your very own TJ&E apron. There will also be community events and challenges for a chance to win free copies of the “ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove” game on Steam with more details coming soon on the official Kickstarter and Twitter pages. Hit the jump to see sample pages of the recipes to try out for yourself!

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SEGA Games That Are Celebrating Big Anniversaries in 2016

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SEGA has created some highly popular and cult classic series of games that have stuck with people over the years. While most of you guys already know that Sonic the Hedgehog is celebrating his big 25th Anniversary this year, many other games get ignored because they aren’t as relevant as they used to be. Today we will list those mostly ignored video game franchises we all love. Did your favorite game make our list?

Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove Kickstarter fully funded and some funky stretch goals met

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Moments ago, the Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove Kickstarter ended and much to the delight of fans the campaign was a success and then some. With 8,873 backers pledging $508,637, $108,637 more than the $400,000 goal, fans can expect the full game as well as some stretch goal bonuses! Additional features include old school skins for Toejam and Earl, featuring their original designs seen on the SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive games. Also returning from the 90s is the Hyperfunk Zone as seen in ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron. Minutes before the campaign ended, a third stretch goal was met, adding the female lead from the third game, Latisha, as well as Toejam’s cousin and Earl’s mom.

While the base game sounded great, these bonuses only sweeten the upcoming release by bringing in characters and concepts from the first three games for a true love letter to fans of the series. Congrats to Greg Johnson and his team, and good luck on the development of the game.

In case you missed it, we interviewed Greg earlier this month on our Swingin’ Report Show podcast – give it a listen if you haven’t already!

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Swingin’ Report Show #77: Interview with Greg Johnson, co-creator of Toejam and Earl

Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove is a Kickstarter campaign from Greg Johnson, video game designer and co-founder of ToeJam & Earl Productions. On this week’s Swingin’ Report Show podcast, Greg joins us to talk about how he plans to bring the funky aliens back in a new game, and how he and Mark Voorsanger pitched and developed the original three games of the series for SEGA.

Learn how Toejam and Earl made the transition from Greg’s subconscious to video games, what it was like working with SEGA throughout the 90s, his thoughts on the sequels Panic on Funkotron and Mission to Earth, and how Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove is set to reimagine and build upon the famous first game. If you’re a game developer, or simply want to know more about how games are made, this episode is a must listen!

Show your support for Greg and his team, check out the Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove Kickstarter today!

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Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove Kickstarter looks to bring the funky aliens back to Earth

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While the official Toejam & Earl Facebook page has been teasing it for a good month, the official unveiling is finally here! Toejam and Earl are set for a return to video games with the announcement of a Kickstarter set to fund the fourth game in the series Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove. This game has no connection to SEGA, as noted in the Kickstarter description, and will be developed by a small team headed by Greg Johnson, one of the two original creators and owner of the Toejam and Earl games. The game is set to be much like the original, with a fixed isometric camera, 2D sprites, simple controls, and an emphasis on co-op play. Despite resembling the first game, there are plans to bring in elements of the sequel, though no mention is being made of the third game.

head on over to the official Kickstarter page for a pitch video, several pieces of concept art, and a long list of various reward tiers including some really nice looking vinyl toys. With 29 days to go, the game has already hit $5,818 of their $400,000 goal. Stay tuned to SEGAbits for updates on the campaign and additional Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove news!

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New Toejam and Earl game in the works

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So your asking yourself when SEGA announced a new Toejam and Earl, considering they published all three previous titles. The answer, they aren’t. SEGA actually doesn’t own the IP to Toejam and Earl. While we know very little on the new title, including who is publishing it, we do know its happening. Posted a few days ago on the official Toejam & Earl Facebook page:

Greetings from Funkotron! We haven’t been posting as often lately because we’ve gotten really busy with the new TJ&E game. We will be making some announcements in a probably 3 or 4 weeks, when we have something we can show, and will be able to share lots of information with you.

Personally I wouldn’t be surprised if we see some sort of crowd funding happening. Greg Johnson (designer and IP holder for the series) also posted the following concept art sketches. When the game is announced, the developer will most likely be HumaNature Studios (HNS), a indie studio being headed by Greg Johnson himself.

Toejam and Earl and its sequel on their way to XBLA and PSN

Let’s categorize this one under “it’s about frigging time.” It’s being reported that our favorite alien duo from the Genesis era, Toejam and Earl, are on their way to Xbox Live Arcade and PSN sometime in the near future.

Toejam and Earl and its sequel, Toejam and Earl in Panic on Funkatron, have both been available digitally on the WiiWare service for years, though this release will mark their first stint on HD consoles.

Though SEGA has yet to confirm the news (letalone offer a release date or price point) series creators Greg Johnson and Mark Voorsanger have reportedly verified its legitimacy.

As far as this potentially leading to new adventures starring Toejam and Earl down the road, Johnson seems hopeful.

“I particularly want to create a new cross platform multi-player version of TJ & E and set the characters in some new environments – but with the original rogue-like game-one game play,” Johnson said. “I get so many requests from fans.”

He also makes it clear though that nothing is currently planned.

We’ll update you with more details as soon as SEGA makes them available.

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SEGA Sequels: Toejam and Earl

Hey guys, welcome to Episode 16 of SEGA Sequel Saturdays. Before I get into it this week, there’s some business to take care of. I’d like to start by thanking George and Nuckles87 for contributing episodes to this feature, either when I haven’t been able to, or, in some cases, when I’ve been totally out of ideas. I’d also like to thank all of you who read these and create discussions each week by commenting. It makes writing them fun and rewarding, and I’d love to see this continue as a weekly feature. I feel that the best way to do that is, well, to open the floor to you guys. If you want to write an episode of Sequel Saturdays, drop a me a private message or say so in the comments section. You’d send me your write-up and I’d format, edit, and post it. I’d love to keep this feature going and if you would too, and if you want to write an episode, definitely let me know.

Alright, that out of the way, let’s jump into this week’s episode, this one about a good old childhood franchise of mine.

Rumor: Classic SEGA Games Releasing Under XBLA “Classics Live” Banner This Summer?

File this one under rumor: The rumor began when fans of XBLA’s Game Room were speculating the future of the service. For those who don’t know what Game Room is, Game Room is a free application on XBLA that allows retro video game fans to buy 70’s and 80’s Atari, Konami, Activision and Intellivion games and set up the games in their own virtual arcade. I found the service to be a lot of fun, and full of promise, however SEGA had yet to get on board (despite a Genesis controller appearing in a menu icon) and Microsoft has yet to release new games since the last update in December. Game Room fans speculated that the service was dead, however recent discussion at the official XBOX 360 Game Room forums says otherwise. So where does SEGA come into this? What is the rumor? Get to the point, Barry!