"Jason Howden’s horror-comedy Deathgasm is a one-of-kind, unforgettable film that delivers gore, laughs, heavy metal, and horror. The film’s offbeat blend of comedy and hellacious violence has garnered legions of fans and now, ahead of the release of the highly anticipated upcoming sequel, Deathgasm II: Goremageddon, Bit Bot Media is continuing the Deathgasm story with not one, but two horrifying projects. In collaboration with Jason Howden, Bit Bot is creating an all-new graphic novel, Deathgasm 1.5: Director’s Cut, which will serve as a prelude to the highly anticipated film. Meanwhile, Bit Bot, Howden’s Metalheads Inc., and FreakZone Games are joining forces to develop a retro-style 16-bit side-scrolling Deathgasm video game."
With the Kickstarter campaign for the Deathgasm graphic novel and video game having just launched, we caught up with writer Peter Bune to get the scoop on what fans can look forward to:
What was your original exposure to the first Deathgasm movie and what made you want to be a part of the graphic novel project?
Peter Bune: I must’ve seen the Deathgasm teaser trailer on a movie or horror news site and thought, “yup this is my kind of movie, I need to see this!” This was back in 2015 so I had to torrent it or find an illegal download (sorry Jason!) I live in New York so I didn’t even know if this New Zealand KiwiSploitation horror comedy was showing anywhere around me, but I desperately had to get my hands on it. Once I found it, I shared it with my friends and it became our new favorite movie. I’ve bought the movie since then, on DVD and streaming. Then Jason and I met through a podcast I used to do when he was promoting his follow up film “Guns Akimbo”. I think we found that we were into the same stuff, a lot of 80’s VHS era splatter horror. Of course, we were into the early Peter Jackson films. I was working on another comic which Jason saw and made some positive comments. So I commissioned my artist, Industrias Lamonicana, to mock up a “Deathgasm vs. Peter Jackson’s Bad Taste” concept art and we just loved the way it looked. That’s where our collaboration began.
It's said that the events of Deathgasm 1.5 will help bridge the gap between the events of the first and Deathgasm II: Goremageddon. What can you tell us about the story of Deathgasm 1.5 and your work on it?
Peter Bune: Yes! We find Brodie and Medina a few years after the events of the first movie, and they’re on the road with the new members of Deathgasm. But, not only are they touring the country with their own brand of metal, they’ve also been hunting down demons at every show. Every gig ends up in a “From Dusk Till Dawn” scenario. They’re highly skilled shredders and slayers, especially Medina. They’ve encountered a lot of monsters in their time, but now they feel like it's time for them to return back to their hometown of Greypoint.
There's a Kickstarter campaign in support of the graphic novel's release and it's loaded with all kinds of goodies for fans of the series. Is there a particular item / reward you're excited about?
Peter Bune: Absolutely! Metal X Entertainment has set up a crowdfunding campaign that you can now sign up for before it launches. Deathgasm 1.5 will be 80 pages of gross splatter gore goodness available as a hardcover and softcover, with variant cover art by Skinner and Matthew Therrien. But what you’re really going to want to get your hands on is the sickest looking masks of Deathgasm characters Brodie, Zakk, and Aeloth! That’s going to be the most coveted item available on the Kickstarter.
For readers who are just hearing about Deathgasm for the first time and want to start listening to metal, do you have a favorite band or song you'd suggest they start with?
Peter Bune: Hell yeah! My favorite scene from the original film is the “Giant Dildo and Anal Beads vs. Demons fight”, and the song playing is the sludgiest metal you’ve ever heard by the New Zealand band Beastwars called “Damn the Sky”. Definitely an excellent song to go into battle with. That’s my recommendation.
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Deathgasm 1.5: Director’s Cut is an 80-page graphic novel from writer/creator/director Jason Howden (Deathgasm, Guns Akimbo) writer Peter Bune (Squatch Watch), artist Industrias Lamonicana (Fierro), colorist Zac Atkinson (Farscape, Star Trek), and letterer Jeremiah Lambert (Masters of the Universe, Transformers). The book also features contributions from writers Michael Schwartz (Armored, Zombie Town) and Joshua Viola (True Believers, Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver), various hardcover editions with cover art by Skinner (Skin Crawl Magazine), Preston Asevedo (The Exiled), and Matthew Therrien (The Wrath of Becky).
Bit Bot, co-founded by bestselling author Joshua Viola and acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and producer Klayton--known for his projects Celldweller and Scandroid--have acquired ownership in FreakZone Games. This strategic move brings FreakZone Games, a UK-based game development company founded by Sam Beddoes, under the Bit Bot umbrella, expanding the company's reach into original and licensed video game development. Beddoes will continue to lead FreakZone’s game design efforts, while Bit Bot will assume publishing responsibilities. The first major release under this new partnership will be the Deathgasm video game.
“We are thrilled to welcome FreakZone Games into the Bit Bot family,” said Joshua Viola. “After working with Sam on the Rocky Horror Show video game, we realized Sam’s talent and creative vision perfectly align with our goals to develop groundbreaking storytelling experiences. Together, we’re poised to produce badass titles that will resonate with fans worldwide.”
Klayton added, “Our collaboration with Sam and FreakZone is an exciting step forward in our mission to merge compelling storytelling, interactive design and cinematic music, which integrates perfectly with my experience producing songs that have been used in hundreds of films, TV shows and video games.”
In the Deathgasm video game, the Black Hymn has been unleashed, and Hell is bleeding into reality. Fans can play as Brodie, Zakk, or Medina and fight through nine brutally challenging levels—each inspired by Dante’s Inferno and swarming with demonic horrors and gloriously obscene humor—armed with chainsaws, axes, guitars, sex toys, and more to battle hordes of the damned and take down monstrous bosses based on the original film’s most twisted villains. Featuring 9 levels inspired by Dante’s Inferno and a chiptune Heavy Metal soundtrack, the game will present fans’ favorite hapless metal heads as they’ve never seen them before.
“I've been a huge fan of Sam and Freakzone since playing Manos Hands of Fate and AVGN Adventures 1 and 2, so having them develop a DEATHGASM game is a twisted dream come true,” said Deathgasm creator Jason Howden. “It's the video game that 16-year-old me always wanted to pop into my Megadrive, but 90s game developers were too afraid to make. Fans of horror movies, heavy metal and 16bit side scrollers will all have a blast with the DEATHGASM VIDEO GAME!”
“After teaming up for The Rocky Horror Show video game and Terror in the Corn, Bit Bot Media and FreakZone Games have established a reputation for delivering fun, cult-inspired video games together,” said designer Sam Beddoes. “By working with Jason Howden to adapt the story of the original film and incorporating a heavy metal-inspired chiptune soundtrack, we’re working to ensure the Deathgasm video game is faithful to the spirit of the source material while also bringing a fun, challenging, wild, gory, shocking, funny and metal-as experience for retro gamers and movie fans alike.”
The Kickstarter campaign will also offer a variety of other exclusive rewards, including high-end latex masks of the main demon villain, Aeloth, along with Brodie and Zakk sporting their signature corpse paint. Backers can also snag a limited-edition signed Blu-ray of the upcoming sequel film from Raven Banner Entertainment with exclusive slipcase artwork, as well as vinyl and cassette editions of the video game soundtrack composed by Sam Beddoes. Additional perks include original artwork, apparel, and the ultimate prize—a one-of-a-kind, hand-crafted custom guitar, approved by the Devil himself and signed by designer Preston Asevedo.
[...] For more updates, sign up at bitbotmedia.com for the Bit Bot newsletter and follow the company’s social media accounts on Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.
To learn more and support the campaign on Kickstarter, visit: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/bitbotmedia/deathgasm-a-metal-horror-graphic-novel-and-video-game?ref=4rxvnm
After spending more than 10 years as a consultant in the tech and entertainment industry, Jonathan James launched Daily Dead in 2010 to share his interest in horror and sci-fi. Since then, it has grown into an online magazine with a staff of writers that provide daily news, reviews, interviews, and special features.
As the Editor-in-Chief of Daily Dead, Jonathan is responsible for bringing the latest horror news to millions of readers from around the world. He is also consulted with as an expert on zombies in entertainment and pop culture, providing analyses of the zombie sub-genre to newspapers, radio stations, and convention attendees.
After spending more than 10 years as a consultant in the tech and entertainment industry, Jonathan James launched Daily Dead in 2010 to share his interest in horror and sci-fi. Since then, it has grown into an online magazine with a staff of writers that provide daily news, reviews, interviews, and special features.
As the Editor-in-Chief of Daily Dead, Jonathan is responsible for bringing the latest horror news to millions of readers from around the world. He is also consulted with as an expert on zombies in entertainment and pop culture, providing analyses of the zombie sub-genre to newspapers, radio stations, and convention attendees.
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