Released in 1993 by Electronic Arts, Mutant League Football was an arcade version of the pigskin classic that served as a darkly humorous alternative to the more realistic John Madden Football. (Which, coincidentally, became Madden NFL in 1993.) Ultimately though, EA Sports felt that monsters weren't in the game, and so, aside from a 2006 port to the PSP, Mutant League Football was never to be seen again.

That is, until now. Though it's been rechristened Mutant Football League, this new edition will bring the same brand of arcade action and edgy humor to the gridiron when the game is released on computers, consoles, and mobile devices in 2017.

What’s even cooler is that this new edition is being made by Michael Mendheim, the creator and Lead Designer of the original game, who is now serving as the Creative Director for Digital Dreams Entertainment, a studio he co-founded. Here's what he had to say about the new Mutant Football League.

GameCrate: For those unfamiliar with 1993's Mutant League Football, how is Mutant Football League both connected to and different from the original?

Michael Mendheim: I always wanted to make a modern-day version of the game. Not a reboot of the original but a brand-new game based on the concept. Mutant Football League is both a single and multiplayer game, two to four players, which can be played locally or online. While the original was a 2D game with a top down view and passing windows, the new one is in full 3D, with dynamic lighting and shadows. The new game is also much faster-paced than the original and much more violent. All of the characters and teams are also new, but the humor, spirit, and personality from the original game will be kept intact.

GC: You have said that Mutant Football League is like "NFL Blitz with mutants, chainsaws, and deaths," and have compared it to Blood Bowl and Rocket League. But what makes Mutant Football League different from those games?

MM: "NFL Blitz with mutants, chainsaws and deaths" is the perfect way to describe the game. There are some similarities with Blood Bowl, but that's limited to the characters, violence, and the humor. The only similarities we have with Rocket League are that both games are fast paced, easy to play, and provide deep strategies and tactics whether you're playing multi- or single player.

GC: In terms of the football mechanics, Mutant Football League is obviously not as realistic as Madden NFL 16. But one cool thing that you're doing, which I don't think Madden has ever done, is you're including co-op options. How does a co-op game work?

MM: The game can be set up however you desire. You can play two-to-four players on the same team against an A.I. controlled team, or you can play two vs. two or three vs. one, and so on.

As for how it works, if we are playing a four-player co-op game with everyone on the same team against an A.I. controlled team, and we're on offense, one player is the quarterback, and will pick the plays as well as snap the ball, while the other players can control any other offense player they want, and can even switch players once the play begins. When we're on defense, though, the four players choose whatever defense players they want, and they can also switch once the play begins.

GC: Cool. So, is there anything you're doing in this new version that you wanted to do in the original but couldn't for whatever reason?

MM: The most important difference between the original is our online play. Gamers can now play online or with their friends on the couch. This game is designed for multiplayer, versus, or co-op modes, because the game is most fun when competing against other players.

The other element we are going all out on are the gore effects and all the ways mutants can die in the game. They can be sliced, diced, burned, drowned, electrocuted, shot, and pummeled. There are so many ways to decimate these poor mutants that at times I feel sorry for them…but that lasts until we come up with another cool idea for a death.

The overall visual presentation has been rethought, along with the pacing of the game. The original game was a much slower paced game than the one we're building. This game is on steroids.

GC: You've had some community members testing the game out for you. What has been the biggest complaint or request so far?

MM: There haven't been many complaints, the response has been nothing but positive. As for requests, most have been for new features. They want to be able to bribe and kill the ref like they could in the original, which we just haven't implemented yet. They also want more teams, more weapons, more ways to kill, a full season mode, and ways to customize their teams, all of which we're trying to get in. We are self-funding the game, and have a small team, so we can't do everything. But every feature we build is based on what the community wants. This is their game.

GC: I would think that one thing people might ask for are retro options – visuals, rules, maybe even the original game. Are there any plans for that kind of stuff?

MM: EA owns all rights to the original Mutant League Football, so all teams, characters, logos, and audio-visual components from that game cannot be in our game. We're building a new game with fresh ideas. The game is going to look, sound, and play different than the original, but it's very important to us and our community to try and keep the elements people loved about the original game, like its sense of brashness, political incorrectness, humor, sarcasm, and the fun of obliterating your friends' star quarterback while possibly losing your own star player. These are all things we can keep intact from the original.

GC: Finally, along with Mutant League Football, you also made Mutant League Hockey back in the day. If Mutant Football League does well, will you be making Mutant Hockey League next, or will you skip that and do Mutant Cricket League instead? Cuz those bats are heavy.

MM: Again, we can't count our chickens before they are hatched. Right now, our only focus is to make this Mutant Football League the best game it can be.

Though I can safely say that the chances are slim that you'll ever see a Mutant Cricket League game.

Mutant Football League will be released on Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, and mobile devices in 2017