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When you think of Lemmy Kilmister (best known as simply “Lemmy”), video games probably aren’t the first thing to pop into your head. The late rock ‘n’ roll icon first gained prominence in the early 1970s with pioneering space rock band, Hawkwind. But after he was kicked out in 1975 for catching a drug possession charge, he formed Motörhead, a fast and heavy project that blends the intensity of heavy metal with enough energy to rival the wildest punk bands. It’s fast, it’s loud, and it’s the project the Lemmy’s name became synonymous with.
But although the musician spent most of his career pumping out tight bass guitar riffs while screeching his gravelly voice into a cranked up microphone, his influence in the video game world – both direct and indirect – is surprisingly far reaching. It was reported that he was playing a bartop video game at his home shortly before he passed away in late 2015, the exact machine he was known to immerse himself in at a bar on Sunset Strip before acquiring it.
But what we’re examining today is the influence Lemmy had on game development. With his signature gruff look, live-fast personality, and larger than life status in the music world, it’s not surprising he made and appearance in an occasional video game. It actually goes much deeper than that though. So settle in and let’s look at Lemmy’s influence on video games, and please let us know if we missed something.
Motörhead’s music was used in a lot of video games.
As many game developers have discovered, nothing sets the tone better for an amped up gameplay session than adrenaline-fueled rock music, and there’s perhaps no better group to deliver than Motörhead. Beginning with Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3‘s use of the song “Ace of Spades”, the band began appearing on game soundtracks quite frequently. 44 times to be exact, with 20 of those instances using “Ace of Spades”. They can be heard on wresting games, as Guitar Hero and Rock Band challenges, and even grace the soundtrack for 2015’s Call of Duty: Black Ops III.
A Motörhead game was released for home computers in 1992.
Well before video games featured Motörhead’s music in all its CD quality glory, there was actually a game based on the band that released in 1992. Simply called Motörhead, the game was developed by Kaitsu Software, a company with no other known titles to its name. Available on Commodore Amiga and Atari ST computers, it’s your standard early ’90s beat ’em up gameplay with notably colorful graphics, but it features Lemmy as its playable character – or more accurately, a bobblehead-like caricature of Lemmy. Unfortunately, uninspired level design and overly simplistic mechanics keep this from being much more than a relic for fans to examine.
A Koopaling from the Super Mario Bros. universe is named after him.
Going back even further, the raucous musician left a huge mark on one of the most important and beloved video game franchises of all time: Super Mario Bros. Introduced in Super Mario Bros. 3 was seven Koopalings, originally said to be Bowser’s children. When the game was preparing to invade Western markets, Nintendo needed new names for the young’ ens, so they called on Dayvv Brooks, a former game counselor for their call-in tipline who had worked his way up to product analyst. He also happened to be a huge music fan, resulting in one being named “Roy” (after Roy Orbison), another being named “Iggy” (after Iggy Pop), and the smallest, but most self-ruling looking being named “Lemmy”. The character still makes appearances in the franchise, most recently in Mario Kart 8 and Mario Kart Tour.
He voiced a character in Scarface: The World Is Yours.
In 2006, Scarface: The World is Yours released, helping to prove that licensed video games don’t have to be terrible. The game features voice acting from stars such as Robert Loggia, James Woods, and Ice-T to name a few. As you’ve probably figured out by now, Lemmy also provided voice work for the game as Limey, an English arms dealer that protagonist Tony encounters throughout the game.
There’s a Lemmy mod for Grand Theft Auto V.
Leave it to the modding community to craft an extra special tribute to the late rocker shortly after his death. In January of 2016, three modders unleashed an incredibly cool homage in the form of a Grand Theft Auto V alteration. The mod allows players to smoke, drink, and rock the way Lemmy was known to. It’s a great way to simulate his rock ‘n roll lifestyle without putting your lungs and liver at risk.
Haemimont Games released a Motörhead- themed expansion for Victor Vran.
Modders weren’t the only ones moved by Lemmy’s work. In 2017, Haemimont Games dropped an expansion pack for their action-RPG, Victor Vran. The addition has players control Lemmy as he uses rock ‘n roll powers to to take down enemies and try to revive the might Snaggletooth with the help of Lloyd Kaufman (director of Toxic Avenger). It’s as crazy as it sounds!
He played a fictionalized version of himself in Brutal Legend.
One of Lemmy’s more well known video game roles is from Brutal Legend, Double Fine’s hack ‘n’ slash/real-time strategy mashup starring Jack Black and a ton of rock stars. In the game, Lemmy plays
Kill Master, a chopper-riding badass who can heal others with his bass guitar skills. Largely based off his own personality, the character is quite memorable and makes appearances throughout the game. The cast also features Ozzy Osbourne, Lita Ford (of the Runaways), and Rob Halford (of Judas Priest), so if you’re a hard rock fan and haven’t played this one, I suggest you do!
