Tim Schafer wants to make ‘Treehouse of Horror’-style spin-offs for “serious” games like ‘Skyrim’

Double Fine founder Tim Schafer has shared that he would like to create spin-offs for “big, serious IP” like Skyrim, in the style of The Simpsons‘ Treehouse Of Horror Halloween episodes.

Speaking to NME for his Boss Level profile, Schafer shared that he thinks games currently have a “limited” scope, and wants the games industry to expand the audience it caters to.

“When you go to a theatre, there’s a movie for your kids, your grandparents, and there’s a movie for everybody – romantic comedy, action, stuff like that. But the scope for games is still kind of limited in that way,” shared Schafer, who said that there are “so many types of games to be made, that aren’t – and they’re games that would draw more people in, who don’t consider themselves gamers right now.”

“Where are the romantic comedies?” the founder asked, adding that games and TV have become “so gritty and dark” in recent years. On that topic, Schafer – who said he would “like to keep pushing the boundaries of what a game is” – revealed that he had his own, lighter idea for a series of games.

“I always wanted to do a Treehouse Of Horror episode for some big, serious IP like Skyrim,” he said, referencing The Simpsons‘ Halloween specials that tell zanier, self-contained stories that wouldn’t usually fit within the series’ regular episodes.

In recent years, Treehouse Of Horror specials have parodied Parasite, Stephen King’s It, and Stranger Things.

Schafer also joked that he would “love” an Elden Ring comedy spin-off, and explained how a misunderstanding at LucasArts helped him to realise that “sometimes the ideas that seem silly – the ones you want to hide from other people – are the ones that are the best.”

In other gaming news, it’s been announced that Patch 9 for Baldur’s Gate 3 will bring the Paladin class, a level cap increase, and Matthew Mercer.