The talkative gun game “High on Life” is to be made into an animated series for television; JB Smoove of “Leave it, Larry!” has been hired as producer.
Smoove played the role of Gus, one of the game's talking fish/guns, in High on Life, and according to Deadline, there's a “good chance” he'll reprise the role in the upcoming animated series and produce the project as well.
High on Life launched in December 2022 for PC and Xbox and was the biggest release of the year on Xbox Game Pass, but sparked controversy even before release after it was revealed that the game featured AI graphics and voice acting.
Let’s get high on life – LET’S BLOW UP THE STORE!
Just weeks after High on Life launched, Rick and Morty creator Justin Roiland—co-founder of game development studio Squanch Games—was charged with domestic violence (the charges were later dropped due to “lack of evidence”). Despite this, Roiland left Squanch and was fired from Rick and Morty by Cartoon Network.
A PlayStation version of High on Life will be released in summer 2023 for PS4 and PS5.
Smoove is now working with Squanch and his own production company, Alternate Side Productions, to adapt the property into a Rick and Morty-style series.
“When Squanch Games contacted JB Smoove (I like to talk about myself in the third person) to voice a character in their incredible video game High On Life, my first question was what my character would look like. They told me I would be a fish that shoots… which makes total sense to me! As a vegan, I believe a fish should have the right to defend itself! I mean, right?!” said Smoove.
“And now that I'm teaming up with Squanch Games and Striker Entertainment to bring the hilarious High On Life to series, it feels like it was inevitable! They invited me to join them in the gaming universe, and now I'm helping them cross over into the television world! It's a case of game recognition! High on Life is wild, weird and wonderful, and the series will be that and more! Get ready to laugh your way through space with some unforgettable characters like me! We're primed and ready to go!”
Eurogamer wasn't a big fan of High on Life in its review.
“A miserable cocktail of ideas from other action-platformers and the worst parts of Rick and Morty,” wrote Edwin Evans-Thirlwell in Eurogamer's High on Life review, calling it “a mediocre shooter with an unfunny setting problem.”