Apocalypse Then: Redneck Rampage

On this day in gaming history, in 1997, Redneck Rampage was released.

It’s a title developed by Xatrix entertainment, which later became known as Grey Matter, then absorbed into Treyarch – the “B Team” when it comes to Call of Duty games, such as World at War.

Redneck Rampage was a title which used the build engine, famous in the 90s for use with several games, such as Duke Nukem 3D, Shadow Warrior, and Blood. These titles became known as the big four of build games.

It followed the story of Leonard and Bubba, two country hicks and brothers, as they fight hordes of alien creatures. Along the way you pick up many inventive, original weapons, as well as powerups like alcohol and pork rinds which give you health, but drinking and eating too much can have adverse effects.

One of the best features the game had was the soundtrack. Contrary to what many games in the mid nineties and even in 1997 had, which was mainly MIDI, or E-MIDI in the case of Shadow Warrior, RR had a proper soundtrack by well known Psychobilly artists like The Reverend Horton Heat. You might know them for “Psychobilly Freakout”.

Redneck Rampage was followed by an expansion, Rampage: Suckin' Grits on Route 66, a sequel in Redneck Rampage Rides Again, and a spin-off title in Redneck and Redneck Deer Huntin'.

The licence for the series was purchased from Interplay by Vivendi, and then sold to Blizzard last year. There’ve been rumours ever since suggesting that another Redneck Rampage title might be in the works, and it might be an MMO, seeing as that’s one of the genres that Blizzard loves so much. Otherwise, like some of the other classics from the 90s, like Duke Nukem 3D, it might well be that the series will be released on Xbox Live Arcade or another platform.

For more on this game, check out my hub on HubPages.

Apocalypse Then: Redneck Rampage