Preview: Alice Madness Returns

The Wonderland that you knew from childhood has gone horribly wrong ... again. This is the follow-up to designer American McGee's twisted take on the classic Lewis Carroll tale. Designed with the same dark style of the original, but now featuring entirely new visuals, story and game design.

Release Date: June 14, 2011
MSRP: $49.99
Also on: PS3, Xbox 360
RP-T+ for Rating Pending, Targeting a Rating of Teen or Above
Genre: Action 
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Spicy Horse

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Game Development:
Rumors of a sequel to Alice first developed shortly after the original game was released to critical and commercial success. With a movie adaptation of American McGee's Alice in development at the time, interest at Electronic Arts rose in a remake of the game and work was started on a sequel.

At the February 2009 D.I.C.E. Summit, EA announced a new game in the series, which at the time had the working title The Return of American McGee's Alice. Two pieces of concept art accompanied the announcement, along with the information that the original game's writer and executive producer would also return for the sequel. In November of that year, a fan-made trailer was mistaken by gaming news outlets as an official teaser for the game, in which Alice is in therapy after a relapse nine months following the events of the first game, and appears to hallucinate an image of the Cheshire Cat in place of her doctor.

At EA's Studio Showcase on July 20, 2010, more details about the game were shown, including its current title. In addition to further pieces of concept art and actual, in-game screenshots, the first official teaser was released. Despite (or perhaps because of) the fan video eight months prior, it also portrays Alice in therapy: after being hypnotized by her doctor in a bizarre office filled with dismembered arms hanging from the ceiling, as she opens her mouth to speak, large amounts of blood and teeth pour out. As the game title appears, a whispering voice is heard saying, "Alice... what have you done?"

During the 2010 Tokyo Game Show, new assets, including a second trailer was released. Alice is seen strolling through a London street, and eventually approaches an area littered with toys and a large, carnival-style window, which depicts the Mad Hatter, the Dormouse and the White Rabbit taking tea. Suddenly, she sees an image of her deceased parents in the window's reflection, but turns around to find no one there. The window begins to burn and the silhouette of the Queen of Hearts appears before it explodes in flames, and the Queen's tentacles drag Alice into the inferno. Like the previous trailer, it too ends with a voice saying "What have you done?"

On February 14th, 2011, MSNBC's "In-Game" website unveiled the third teaser trailer as well as a brief interview with American McGee regarding the game. The third teaser depicts Alice wandering around an oriental-styled Wonderland, eventually coming across the Caterpillar who transforms into a giant, menacing butterfly as the landscape is attacked by fiery phoenixes and turned into a nightmarish world. Alice finds herself sitting at a tea party with the Mad Hatter, March Hare and Dormouse. The Hatter sends a robotic teapot to kill Alice, who in turns stabs it to death in the eye with the Vorpal Blade. She smiles insanely (remiscent of a look she gave in the first game's trailer), as again, like the other two trailers, a voice asks "What have you done?"

A fourth trailer, showing gameplay footage for the first time and entitled Beautiful Insanity was released on March 4, 2011. The trailer featured possible gameplay in Victorian London, new costumes and weapons for Alice, the reprised roles of some of the voice cast from the first game, and the appearance of old and new characters include a resurrected Jabberwock and the Dodo, after the trailer the Cheshire Cat says "Now its time to put your blade to work." You can also hear Alice`s Vorpal Blade being equipped.