ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove Gets a Fresh Design

When it was first announced that ToeJam & Earl would be getting a brand new sequel, the prototype version of Back in the Groove looked like this:

While the layered look is really neat, it felt perhaps a little sloppy.

Well, apparently the fans have spoken up, and HumaNature has responded by revamping the design aesthetic a bit. On the game’s Kickstarter page, they posted an update that includes screenshots of the new look:

Much better, eh?

Really, it was just a matter of thickening some of the outlines, but the effect is pretty astounding. The backgrounds have this 1990s comic strip feel to them, which sounds like it’s much closer to the original vision Greg Johnson had for this. At least, the way the Kickstarter describes it: “it all looks like underground comics from the 90’s. Neat, huh?”

The characters still look a bit sloppy, but since this is an early prototype, my guess is that a lot of the characters are going to need to be redrawn to match the new look. Nathan Shorts, the artist working on this, has his work cut out for him.

It’s great to see a developer so willing to make tweaks in response to their fans, especially when it concerns an IP as beloved as ToeJam & Earl.