American McGee’s Alice: Asylum was a project that had been in the works for several years, with McGee crowdfunding efforts and creating a 414-page design bible to pitch to Electronic Arts. Sadly, EA have decided to pass on the project, leaving McGee with no desire to pursue any new game ideas within the current game development environment.
McGee’s career in game development began at Id Software, where he worked on Doom 2, Quake and Quake 2, before being fired in 1998. He then joined Electronic Arts, where he was creative director on American McGee’s Alice, released in 2000. He then founded Shanghai-based studio Spicy Horse and developed a sequel, Alice: Madness Returns, released in 2011. In recent years, he has found success manufacturing horror-themed plush toys.
Although the Alice: Asylum project has been abandoned, McGee has made the design bible available to download for free from his Patreon page. It’s a great way to get a glimpse of what could have been, and a reminder of McGee’s incredible contribution to the gaming industry.
For those interested in learning more about American McGee’s career in game development, his Alice series, and his horror-themed plush toys, be sure to check out his Patreon page. It’s a great resource for those wanting to stay up to date on McGee’s current projects and get a glimpse of what could have been with Alice: Asylum.