June 13, 2016: Interview With Munchkin Apocalypse Guest Artist Len Peralta

Welcome back to the spotlight, Len Peralta! We talked back in November about his work on Star Munchkin Guest Artist Edition. This time, we wanted to discuss his work on Munchkin Apocalypse Guest Artist Edition and Munchkin Apocalypse 2 Guest Artist Edition, out now exclusively at Barnes and Noble!

You were very open with your Star Munchkin drawing: streaming, YouTube, and social media posts. What was it like working on a more secretive project with Munchkin Apocalypse?

It was tough! I found out that I would be working on this project last summer, around the same time I found out about Bill & Ted's Excellent Boardgame. I worked on it, but I wasn't sure when it would be out. It was never announced officially with the other Guest Artist Editions, so I never knew if it would see the light of day. So it was a complete surprise when I started getting tweets about the game being on the Barnes and Noble shelves. With all this secrecy, it makes me curious what other surprises Steve Jackson Games has under its sleeves!

Did you look at the original version of the game before starting on your own?

I always do. First, I wanted to see how John Kovalic handled the original card so I don't repeat him. I've said this before, but John always took the best jokes! This makes my job so much harder. But I want to make sure my take on the card is original without straying too far from the original content.

You've worked on the Munchkin comic as well, and issue 15 in particular has a bit of an apocalyptic opening. Do you have a similar creative process to both, or do you tackle them in different ways?

Munchkin Apocalypse was a little different because it was full of its own tropes and inside jokes. So I had to make sure that apocalyptic feel still worked within that framework. Although I will say, I brought a lot of Mad Max: Fury Road vibe into the art. I did sort of cartoony versions of that wasteland and I hope fans of both can enjoy my take on it.

You knew this was coming: What is your favorite card from the set? Yes, I'm making you choose!

I love them all of course! My favorite ones were the Bloggers. They were so much fun to draw. And from the larger Seal cards, there is one called Firewall, which is fun because I based the character on my son Max.

What other projects are you working on?

Right now, I'm in between big projects, so if there is anyone who needs an artist on their game or on their book or comic, I'm your man!

Do you have any upcoming projects fans should keep an eye out for?

Look for a game called Order of Invention from Breaking Games. Also be on the watch this summer for my art in a few more issues of Munchkin comics! And if you're a deep cuts person, look for my artwork in a comic called The Depaysement about a Japanese rock band who is booked to play the moon.

-- Hunter Shelburne