The cancellation of Thrill Kill happened to coincide with a huge marketing push from the Wu. In 1997, the five years were up, but I had promised everybody that we would be number one in the charts.
“In 1992 I asked everyone to give me five years. “I had a five year plan in my mind,” RZA recalls. The quickest way to make something popular generally lies in banning it. This act only further cemented Thrill Kill ’s popularity to gaming fans. Weeks after putting the final touches on the game, the game’s publisher Virgin Interactive was bought by Electronic Arts, who promptly cancelled the release of the game and shelved all post-production, stating that the game didn’t fit with the “company’s image”.
Hailed as the new Mortal Kombat, Thrill Kill offered gratuitous violence and sexual fetish flavored finishing moves, as well as four-player 3D combat. Shaolin Style was basically a re-skinned incarnation of Thrill Kill, an unreleased game developed by Paradox that lauded the graphic violence and obscene content that was the wave for most of the 90s (See: Gangsta Rap, King of New York, Mortal Kombat, early UFC, etc.). But it also holds a special place in the hearts and minds of people that grew up in the Wu era.ĭeveloped by Paradox and Midway Studios Los Angeles, and published by Activision, buzz in the late 90s for Shaolin Style was rooted in the controversy surrounding the game’s engine. That’s not just my opinion, Method Man, the G.O.D. A lot of shade gets thrown at Wu Tang Shaolin Style, and for good reason, but for Wu-binos around the globe the game is a classic offering from one of the greatest sets of all time.