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Dead End Job interview: Ren & Stimpy-esque twin-stick shooter

Craving a 90's cartoon, Ren and Stimpy-esque procedurally generated twin-stick shooter? Dead End Job might be the game for you.

Bill Lavoy

March 20, 2019 8:30 PM

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As Shacknews continues to work its way through GDC 2019, more and more potentially quality games are showing up on our radar, with the latest being Dead End Job, a twin-stick shooter with an art style that will remind players of 90s cartoons like Ren & Stimpy. Greg Burke had the opportunity to talk to Mark Aldrup, CTO of Headup Games, publisher for Ant Workshop Ltd’s latest work.

It’s unlikely gamers (especially those of us on the back half of our thirties) will need more convincing to check out Dead End Job than its art style, but that’s not where the high points stop. No, you won’t be in a simulator for your actual dead-end job, but rather a procedurally generated world with drop in and out co-op where players will blast ghosts and suck them up into their backpack, not unlike Ghostbusters.

Unlike actual dead-end jobs, the better your performance in Dead End Job, the more likely you are to get promoted once you’ve cleared one of the procedurally generated areas and saved the trapped humans. These promotions come in the form of upgrades, where gamers can choose between one of three random options, such as more damage or health. These upgrades could also be something bad, although Mark didn’t really elaborate on this. Seems consistent with the dead-end job theme, though.

Perhaps best of all, players will be able to enjoy Dead End Job on almost any platform they choose, which is always nice. Headup Games is planning to publish on the PC via Steam, the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the Nintendo Switch.

Dead End Job is currently expected to release in Q2 of 2019, although no specific month or date were given. Shacknews readers can always track upcoming titles through the video game release dates 2019 calendar and follow along with our coverage of events like GDC over on the GamerHub TV YouTube and Shacknews YouTube channels.

Bill Lavoy

Managing Editor

Bill, who is also known as Rumpo, is a lifelong gamer and Toronto Maple Leafs fan. He made his mark early in his career through guide writing and a deep understanding of editorial SEO. He enjoys putting in the work to create a great content, be it a wild feature or grinding out an in-depth collectible guide. Tweet him @RumpoPlays if you have a question or comment about one of his articles.