Choice Provisions hints at return of Commander Video in ‘Bit.Trip’ sequel ‘Runner3’

By Brad Jones September 27, 2016

Choice Provisions has announced Runner3, a sequel to 2013’s Bit.Trip Presents … Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien. Like its two direct predecessors, the game will be an autorunner where players steer Commander Video through a series of challenging courses.

The Bit.Trip series got underway in 2009 with the Pong-inspired Bit.Trip Beat. Seven games have been released under the Bit.Trip moniker so far, with Runner and its highly praised follow-up garnering the most success in terms of critical response and sales.

Runner2 transformed Commander Video and his surroundings from a simple collection of pixels into a fully realized polygonal character, and it seems that the next installment will feature a similar graphical shift. An image on the new game’s website depicts the changes the character underwent over the course of the first two games, followed by a third image representing the upcoming sequel that bears a tantalizing question mark.

We do know a couple of firm details about Runner3 already. It has been confirmed that voice actor Charles Martinet — best known as the voice of the iconic plumber in the 3D Mario games — will return as narrator, a role that he previously filled for Runner2.

Choice Provisions co-founder Alex Neuse also offered some insight into the mindset of the development team in a blog post accompanying the announcement. Apparently, the game will cater to players who want an intense challenge and those who simply want to breeze through, and there are some “interesting tricks” being employed to make that happen.

At this point, no release date has been announced, and Choice Provisions is keeping quiet on which systems Runner3 will be released on. Fans can catch up on previous installments of the series by taking advantage of a half-price sale on the first two titles which will run across the Nintendo eShop, PlayStation Store, and Steam until October 2.

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Former Digital Trends Contributor

Brad is an English-born writer currently splitting his time between Edinburgh and Pennsylvania. You can find him on Twitter…

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