A Bounty Hunter’s work is never done.
To celebrate the release of High on Life 2 on Nintendo Switch 2, we had the opportunity to sit down with the developers at Squanch Games to discuss how the sequel holds up against its predecessor. We covered what’s new, what’s changed, and the exciting new features players can look forward to.
Without further ado, here is our Miketendo64 interview with Erich Meyr as we dive into all things High on Life 2:
Erich Meyr | Reaching New Heights with High on Life 2
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your role with Squanch Games?
Erich Meyr: My name is Erich Meyr and I am the Chief Design Officer for Squanch Games. I joined the studio essentially when it started at the beginning of time.
In what capacity are you involved with High on Life 2?
Erich Meyr: On High On Life 2 I was the Design Director and also the Creative Director along with Mikey Spano. I’ve been involved in the creative for the High On Life franchise since its inception, directed the overall design, and also implemented some of the designs in the game.
How soon after working on High on Life did the idea of High on Life 2 first come about?
Erich Meyr: We knew we wanted to do a sequel pretty much right after we finished the first game. There were a lot of great ideas still on the cutting room floor and the success of the first game and our remaining excitement made it an obvious choice.
As a sequel to the highly hilarious High on Life, High on Life 2 continues the adventures of the Bounty Hunter, but with a five-year time skip. How much has the world of High on Life 2 changed?
Erich Meyr: The world has changed dramatically for humans, who have become a protected species as the threat of getting smoked is still very real. They’ve begun integrating with the rest of the galaxy in very dumb ways and we get to explore a lot of that in the sequel.
Besides being a sequel, how does High on Life 2 compare to its predecessor and what improvements were implemented for the sequel?
Erich Meyr: The game improves upon everything from the original. We wanted the worlds to be more packed with fun characters, look even better, and step up combat and traversal. Since the first game our team has grown in a lot of great ways and we were able to up the quality bar across the board.
It was previously said that the skateboard was an idea that was first abandoned during the first game, but ended up becoming a central pillar in terms of gameplay. What was the creative process behind implementing the skateboard and what actions promoted it to become as relevant as it did?
Erich Meyr: When we decided to bring it back for this game we were originally thinking of it as a minor mechanic that would help you get around larger spaces faster and be fun to use. As we dug deeper into it, prototyping grinding and wall riding, it became clear that the game was just more fun when you were on the skateboard. We had large sections intended to be off the skateboard that we then changed to include the skateboard as it was clear the game was better with it then without it. Our number one playtest feedback was often – more skateboard!
Given the fact the skateboard was a scrapped idea from the first game, were there any ideas you had to scrap for the second game that you could see yourself revisiting for another game?
Erich Meyr: Absolutely. No idea is ever dead at Squanch and anything we can’t get into a game is saved for a future project. We had a fantastic idea for a gun upgrade system that I’m sure will make its way into the next game along with some very famous and undoubtedly copyright infringing characters to accompany it.
Out of all of the Gatlians available in both games, which one is your particular favourite and why?
Erich Meyr: I have to go with Gus. I love JB Smooves performance in both games; he transforms the character in such a fun way and I love how his voice perfectly goes between relaxed and overwhelmed along with the action. As a close range weapon I love combining your traversal moves to close gaps and using his trick hole to reflect disks. You get the best out of your whole player kit while using Gus.
In the first High on Life, the Gatlians were always a delight to watch, especially when interacting with NPCs. What is your favourite interaction or line of dialogue?
Erich Meyr: My favorite interaction in the game is petting Griffin P Spencer. His whole character and delivery is very much my kind of humor and his genuine responses to being pet cracks me up every time.
Given the amount of detail applied to worldbuilding, lore and character designs, could you see yourself working on, or hoping to work on a spin-off game set the universe of High on Life?
Erich Meyr: Oh, most definitely. There’s so many opportunities already for spin-off games with the characters we’ve created. We definitely have some great ideas. We want any game we make to always exist in the same ‘universe’ and feel like it is uniquely a Squanch Game.
For a potential High on Life spin-off, would you like to revisit an established character and make them the lead character, or create someone new?
Erich Meyr: We’ve created so many great characters, we’d want to take one of them and either develop their story further or create a unique experience centered around them.
And would you keep the same genre, or try something new entirely?
Erich Meyr: It would totally depend on the character. We love all kinds of game genres so I could see us doing a platformer or even a purely narrative game. Whatever we do will be distinct from the gameplay in High on Life.
Like the first game, High on Life 2 features a range of easter eggs, ranging from video game characters to films and more. Do you have a favourite easter egg?
Erich Meyr: I think my favorite easter egg is the secret Tony Hawk level and everything associated with it. One of our designers, Andy Vatter, came up with the whole thing herself and surprised everyone in a show-and-tell, revealing months of work she’d done on the side to make a truly next level easter egg. All the references as part of the easter egg are from some of our favorite games, actually skating the level is extremely trippy, and the reward for it all is a whole new game!
Were there any easter eggs that didn’t make the cut?
Erich Meyr: We have so many secrets into the game it’s hard to think of some that didn’t make it. One of our designers let me know she was planning to put in a robot toaster dog as a reference to Secret of Evermore but sadly there wasn’t time for it.
Will High on Life 2 be the last time we see the Bounty Hunter, or can we hope they return for a third game, completing a trilogy?
Erich Meyr: The game’s story was set up as a trilogy and we’d love to make a third game to complete the story. We know how the third act will go and how we’d like to conclude the Bounty Hunter’s story.
Lastly, is there anything else about High on Life 2 you would like to say that hasn’t been covered yet? Or anything you would like to say to your fans?
Erich Meyr:We are genuinely grateful for everyone who enjoys the vibe, gameplay, and stupidity of our games. We try to create things we’d love to play and find funny and our only real validation that any of this is worth it is our fans getting excited and letting us know. So thank you! And tell your friends! You want to see a third game, right?
We’d like to extend our sincere thanks to Erich Meyr for taking the time to answer our questions, and to Jordyn Halpern for helping arrange the interview. We can’t wait to dive into High on Life 2 and see how it builds upon its predecessor.
About High on Life 2:
Use your talking guns and skateboard to take down an intergalactic conspiracy!
You’ve done it. You’ve taken down an intergalactic cartel, brought humanity back from the brink of extinction, and hunted dangerous bounties to the far corners of the galaxy. Bounty hunting has brought you fortune, fame and love; but when a mysterious figure from your past reappears and puts a price on your sister’s head, your cushy life gets thrown into chaos.
Do you have what it takes to risk it all and bring down an intergalactic conspiracy that once again threatens your favorite species (humans)?
High On Life RETURNS as you and your beloved rag-tag team of alien misfits shoot, stab, and skate your way through gorgeous, dangerous worlds all across the galaxy to blow up the EVIL pharmaceutical conglomerate hell-bent on putting price tags on HUMAN LIFE!
