ToeJam & Earl Creator Discusses TJ&E 4, XBLA Port

Genesis icons ToeJam and Earl have been lying dormant for awhile, but fans certainly haven’t forgotten them. After the duo won a recent fan-favorite poll, Sega announced that they would bring the original game to XBLA. As it turns out, things aren’t quite as clear-cut as you might think. Joystiq’s Ben Gilbert decided to take that “journalist” moniker seriously and did a little bit of digging.

As it turns out, we might not be getting that Xbox port. Sega doesn’t actually own the rights to the franchise! As Greg Johnson, creator of the iconic duo, glibly noted, “They sort of got ahead of themselves a little bit and didn’t realize that they don’t have the rights to the property. It’s an easy mistake to make.” Whoops! Still, Greg has left the door open to Sega to negotiate those rights. He added, “I’m waiting to hear back from them to pick up the conversation. The ball is in their court at the moment.”

The more interesting piece of information to emerge from Gilbert’s report is that Johnson’s company pitched a ToeJam & Earl 4for the Nintendo DS. This multiplayer-focused sequel would have actually been a remake of the original game. Not much is known about the game – it was turned down in the early stages after all. A few tidbits emerged in Johnson’s conversation with Joystiq, namely that “As players move through the levels of the game they come to locations where they are given a safe interlude, and an opportunity to copy rhythms by tapping on the screen in time to a funky beat. This allows players to earn extra presents and extra life.”

I grew up in the Nintendo camp, so I’ve never gotten a chance to play a single TJ&E game. I’ve always meant to track down the original, but I’ve just never gotten around to it. I’m hoping that Sega and Johnson’s company, Humanature Studios, can work out their contract issues so that we can eventually get the XBLA port. If you’re a fan of the series, I definitely recommend reading Joystiq’s report, there are a few awesome little morsels for you to devour.