Skip to main content
GamesRadar+ GamesRadar+
US EditionUS CA EditionCanada UK EditionUK AU EditionAustralia
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Games
    • Game Insights
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
    • Genres
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
    • Franchises
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • Insights
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
    • Computing
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
    • Accessories & Tech
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
  • home
  • Games
    • View Games
      • Games News
      • Games Features
      • Games Reviews
      • Games Guides
      • Big in 2026
      • The Big Preview
      • On The Radar
      • Indie Spotlight
      • Future Games Show
      • Golden Joystick Awards
      • Action Games
      • RPGs
      • Action RPGs
      • Adventure Games
      • Third Person Shooters
      • FPS Games
    • Platforms
      • View Platforms
      • PS5
      • Xbox Series X
      • PC
      • Nintendo Switch
      • Nintendo Switch 2
      • Tabletop Gaming
      • Grand Theft Auto
      • Pokemon
      • Assassin's Creed
      • Monster Hunter
      • Fortnite
      • Cyberpunk
      • Red Dead
      • The Elder Scrolls
      • The Sims
  • Entertainment
    • View Entertainment
    • TV Shows
      • View TV Shows
      • TV News
      • TV Reviews
      • Anime Shows
      • Sci-Fi Shows
      • Superhero Shows
      • Animated Shows
      • Marvel TV Shows
      • Star Wars TV Shows
      • DC TV Shows
    • Movies
      • View Movies
      • Movie News
      • Movie Reviews
      • Big Screen Spotlight
      • Superhero Movies
      • Action Movies
      • Anime Movies
      • Sci-Fi Movies
      • Horror Movies
      • Marvel Movies
      • DC Movies
    • Streaming
      • View Streaming
      • Apple TV Plus
      • Disney Plus
      • Netflix
      • HBO
      • Amazon Prime Video
      • Hulu
    • Comics
      • View Comics
      • Marvel Comics
      • DC Comics
    • Toys & Collectibles
    • Lego
    • Dungeons and Dragons
    • Merch
  • Hardware
    • View Hardware
      • Hardware News
      • Hardware Reviews
      • Hardware Features
      • Desktop PCs
      • Laptops
      • Handhelds
    • Peripherals
      • View Peripherals
      • Headsets & Headphones
      • TVs & Monitors
      • Gaming Mice
      • Gaming Keyboards
      • Gaming Chairs
      • Speakers & Audio
      • Gaming Controllers
      • Tech
      • SSDs & Hard Drives
      • VR
      • Accessories
      • Retro
  • Deals
    • View Deals
    • Game Deals
    • Tech Deals
    • TV Deals
    • Buying Guides
  • Video
  • Newsletters
    • Quizzes
    • About Us
    • How to pitch to us
    • How we score
    • Newsarama
    • Retro Gamer
    • Total Film
Trending
  • Pokemon Winds and Waves
  • New Games for 2026
  • Submit your game clips
  • GDC
  1. Games
  2. Platformer
  3. Psychonauts 2

Double Fine's documentary series PsychOdyssey takes us through the highs and lows of development

News
By Vikki Blake published 11 February 2023

Just how do studios cope with the pressure to "produce a worthy sequel"?

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Psychonauts 2
(Image credit: Double Fine)
  • Facebook
  • X
  • Pinterest
  • Flipboard
  • Email
Share this article
Join the conversation
Follow us
Add us as a preferred source on Google
Get the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more


By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

You are now subscribed

Your newsletter sign-up was successful


Want to add more newsletters?

GamesRadar+

Every Friday

GamesRadar+

Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you're going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them.

GTA 6 O'clock

Every Thursday

GTA 6 O'clock

Our special GTA 6 newsletter, with breaking news, insider info, and rumor analysis from the award-winning GTA 6 O'clock experts.

Knowledge

Every Friday

Knowledge

From the creators of Edge: A weekly videogame industry newsletter with analysis from expert writers, guidance from professionals, and insight into what's on the horizon.

The Setup

Every Thursday

The Setup

Hardware nerds unite, sign up to our free tech newsletter for a weekly digest of the hottest new tech, the latest gadgets on the test bench, and much more.

Switch 2 Spotlight

Every Wednesday

Switch 2 Spotlight

Sign up to our new Switch 2 newsletter, where we bring you the latest talking points on Nintendo's new console each week, bring you up to date on the news, and recommend what games to play.

The Watchlist

Every Saturday

The Watchlist

Subscribe for a weekly digest of the movie and TV news that matters, direct to your inbox. From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we've got you covered.

SFX

Once a month

SFX

Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month!


An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
Subscribe to our newsletter

Double Fine Productions and 2 Player Productions have released Double Fine PsychOdyssey, an "unprecedented documentary experience seven years in the making".

Documenting the development of Psychonauts 2, the free series - which can be seen in full on YouTube and will take you the best part of a full day to get through - is described as "the direct continuation of the acclaimed series Double Fine Adventure, and offers even deeper insight into the passion, humor, and heartbreak of video game development".

"Ten years after the release of their flagship video game Psychonauts, Double Fine Productions returns to its most celebrated franchise with Psychonauts 2," states the playlist's description.

"Now facing the pressure to produce a worthy sequel, the studio must confront overly ambitious designs, poor morale, technical challenges and financial woes, all during a turbulent span of time for the world."

Psychonauts 2 is now Double Fine's best-selling game. That's according to art director Lisette Titre-Montgomery, who recently claimed that her "leadership resulted in shipping [Double Fine's] highest-rated and best-selling game to date".

"April Fools Day was my last day at Double Fine," she tweeted at the time. "I have learned so much over the past four years+ about who I am as a leader and what it means to be a creative visionary," she said. "Thank you for trusting me to bring the world of Psychonauts 2 to life."

Double Fine boss Tim Schafer has confirmed that the studio’s next project will not be Psychonauts 3 but something brand new. After revealing that Psychonauts 2 was "the first real big follow-up to a big story" that the studio had done, Schafer said: "I think it leads me to want to do new, original stuff for the next phase. Coming up with new ideas is really where my head is at right now"... although as Tim Schafer said himself, "never say never" to Psychonauts 3.

Sign up to the GamesRadar+ Newsletter

Weekly digests, tales from the communities you love, and more

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

It was also revealed recently that the first Psychonauts originally started life as a peyote trip scene in Full Throttle.

Did you enjoy Double Fine’s sequel? Find out how Psychonauts 2 and its mental metaphors gave Hope a new way to combat negative feelings.

CATEGORIES
PC Gaming Xbox Series X PS5 Platforms Xbox PlayStation
Vikki Blake
Vikki Blake
Social Links Navigation
Weekend Reporter, GamesRadar+

Vikki Blake is GamesRadar+'s Weekend Reporter. Vikki works tirelessly to ensure that you have something to read on the days of the week beginning with 'S', and can also be found contributing to outlets including the BBC, Eurogamer, and GameIndustry.biz. Vikki also runs a weekly games column at NME, and can be frequently found talking about Destiny 2 and Silent Hill on Twitter. 

Latest in Platformer
The Talking Flower toy sitting next to its box.
Toys & Collectibles The Super Mario Talking Flower told me the "ocean tastes like tears" but I like this Nintendo toy
 
 
Donkey Kong Bananza
Donkey Kong Donkey Kong Bananza devs admit the blatantly OP elephant transformation "probably went too far," but "it's fun"
 
 
Donkey Kong punching through rocks in Donkey Kong Bananza
Donkey Kong Donkey Kong Bananza devs want to make sure Mario and DK's games feel different
 
 
DK and Pauline stare at an explosion of gold in Donkey Kong Bananza
Donkey Kong "Some ideas from Donkey Kong Bananza" may inform Nintendo's next big project, producer says
 
 
Donkey Kong Bananza DK and Pauline looking intrigued
Donkey Kong We asked Nintendo point-blank about Donkey Kong Bananza's biggest mystery: They wouldn't tell us who Pauline really is
 
 
Super Meat Boy 3D gameplay on Switch 2 showing the protagonist, a red cube of meat, running between lasers and blades
Platforming Games Super Meat Boy 3D frustrates me just as much as the original – in a good way
 
 
Latest in News
Five Nights at Freddy's 2
Tabletop Gaming Mckenna Grace opens Pokemon cards at the Oscars, and it's one hell of a vibe
 
 
Buffy: The Vampire Slayer
Fantasy Shows Buffy star Sarah Michelle Gellar blames a Hulu exec who is "not a fan of the original" for the spin-off being axed
 
 
Spider-Man: Brand New Day suit
Marvel Movies Spider-Man: Brand New Day's 24-hour trailer launch makes Avengers: Doomsday's cast reveal look small
 
 
Starfield with Nvidia DLSS 5
Games Nvidia's DLSS 5 "AI slop" filter being torn apart by devs from Baldur's Gate 3, Palworld, and more
 
 
Turquoise Retroid Pocket G2 handheld on a black background
Retro Retroid discontinues Pocket G2 "due to ongoing fluctuations in memory pricing"
 
 
Mayor Fisk/Kingpin (Vincent D'Onofrio) taking part in a boxing match
Marvel TV Shows Vincent D'Onofrio says something major happens to Kingpin in Daredevil: Born Again season 2's finale
 
 
LATEST ARTICLES
  1. Buffy: The Vampire Slayer
    1
    Buffy star Sarah Michelle Gellar blames a Hulu exec who is "not a fan of the original" for the spin-off being axed
  2. 2
    When can I pre-load Crimson Desert and when does it release?
  3. 3
    Spider-Man: Brand New Day's 24-hour trailer launch makes Avengers: Doomsday's cast reveal look small
  4. 4
    Retroid discontinues Pocket G2 "due to ongoing fluctuations in memory pricing"
  5. 5
    There's upscaling, and then there's changing a game's art direction, and your GPU should only do one

GamesRadar+ is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google
  • Terms and conditions
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility statement
  • Careers
  • About us
  • Advertise with us
  • Review guidelines
  • Write for us
  • Accessibility Statement

© Future US, Inc. Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY 10036.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...