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Home»Game News»Ice-T Explains Why the Def Jam Games Never Rereleased

Ice-T Explains Why the Def Jam Games Never Rereleased

Ice-T has an answer for why you haven’t seen the Def Jam games make a comeback.

Jakejames LugoBy Jakejames LugoJanuary 8, 20243 Mins Read
There is an image of a person holding a small version of New York City in their hand. The Def Jam Fight For NY logo is above them, with a list of rappers at the bottom.
Image Source: Electronic Arts
This article is over 1 years old and may contain outdated information.

Video game and hip-hop fans have often wondered about the whereabouts of the Def Jam fighting series. In the early 2000s, Def Jam Vendetta and Def Jam: Fight for New York were incredibly popular on the PlayStation 2, GameCube, and Xbox home consoles. The games featured iconic and legendary hip-hop artists battling each other in crazy fights. But ever since then, none of the games have seen a rerelease on modern hardware, and we might finally know why.

After receiving questions from multiple fans, legendary rapper Ice-T posted multiple tweets about the Def Jam games. Itโ€™s something thatโ€™s been brought up for a long time, as many of his fans wanted to see any of the games get rereleased in some fashion. Ice-T finally commented on the speculation for why the Def Jam series has seemingly disappeared.

People Need to Get Paid

So many people ask me why this game hasnโ€™t been brought back for the newer consoles. Maybe because theyโ€™d have to pay for voice and music rights again. Maybe? ๐Ÿ’ฅ https://t.co/A8LiBgYP3b

— ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) January 7, 2024

โ€œMaybe because theyโ€™d have to pay for voice and music rights again. Maybe?โ€ The response was to a quote tweet with gameplay footage of Ice-Tโ€™s character in Def Jam: Fight for New York. Players were able to control Ice-T and beat down other rappers who were featured as characters in the game. But that wasnโ€™t the end of the conversation, as Ice-T followed up with another post after reading the replies.

Related:

Ice-T Reveals He Initially Hesitated To Perform In Grammys’ Hip-Hop Tribute

โ€œHereโ€™s the BIG problem… I donโ€™t think they paid ANY of us ANYTHING to be in that original gameโ€ฆ I know I didnโ€™t get any type of substantial money. It was a situation where you didnโ€™t want to be left OUT of the game. Wellโ€ฆ Yesterdayโ€™s price is not Todayโ€™s priceโ€ฆ!โ€ Judging by the response to his fans, Ice-T wasnโ€™t happy with getting nothing from being part of the Def Jam games.

There is a shot of a group of rappers posing together. They are in a subway and wearing different hip-hop style outfits.
Image Source: Electronic Arts

The consensus among fans over the years has been that Electronic Arts would make a lot of money if they ever found a way to rerelease all the Def Jam games. Since the release of Def Jam Vendetta back in 2004, there have been two sequels that followed, with an additional port of Def Jam: Fight for New York released for the PlayStation Portable. But if EA wasnโ€™t looking to pay a lot of money to all the rappers in the games, itโ€™s no wonder they havenโ€™t been revisited.

When asked about other video game series that he appeared in, Ice-T pointed out that he was compensated for being part of them. โ€œYes sir!… GTA paid me thoughโ€ฆ lol. So did Gears of Warโ€ฆโ€ Fans also asked the rapper if he would consider taking some other form of payment if a money agreement couldnโ€™t be reached. Understandably, Ice-T replied โ€œโ€ฆ Iโ€™m a married manโ€ฆ No. SMH.โ€ As much as fans would love to see these games make a comeback, the people involved with them need to get paid. Nobody works or is involved in something for free.

Related Topics
Def Jam Ice-T
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Jakejames Lugo
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Jakejames Lugo is a writer that has been covering video games, movies, TV, and entertainment for over a decade. He also makes video content for platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and many other places. Jakejames continues to share his thoughts on everything within entertainment over social media to this day.

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