Black is a malevolent creature sent to hunt down Calypso. There is little information regarding his story, nor any connection with the other contestants.
His face is completely covered (except for his eyes) by a balaclava with two zippers (looking almost like a gimp mask), one going along the middle of the top of his head and the other across his mouth. While his 3D model shows him as grotesquely obese and bruised with black tape around his body, he appears quite muscular in his ending artwork.
Story[]
Black is on a mission on behalf of an unknown individual to locate and assassinate Calypso.
Black wins the competition, and goes to face Calypso. He heads to Calypso's lair, where instead of the man himself, he finds a bomb with a note; "Screw you! Love, Calypso." The bomb explodes, dismantling the area. However, Black survives the blast and leaves, going back into Manslaughter to continue his manhunt.
Trivia[]
In Twisted Metal: Lost, it's revealed that Black was sent by a more "colorful" Calypso to take down this darker iteration. It's unknown if that was the original intention in Twisted Metal: Black.
It's unknown how related this version of Black is with the original from the first game that was featured in Mr. Ash's ending.
The bomb that brings down Calypso's hideout in Black's ending, apart from the "loving" note Calypso adds to it, is almost identical to the one that John Doe's doomsday gang planted in the medical research plant. Whether this is a reused asset or implication that Calypso was behind the plot is left up to the player to decide.
The bomb in Black's ending originally did not have the same design as John Doe's bomb. In the unused cutscene from the prototype, Black's story is narrated not by the character himself but by Black's creator - his name not revealed. He quotes: "At first, I thought it was over. All of my dreams dashed...ruined! My family's death still unavenged!" But for unknown reasons, that element was removed in the final debut version of Twisted Metal: Black.
Black evolved from a model of a fat woman covered in leather straps. The developers jokingly referred to her as "Zipperchick" according to Kellan Hatch in the Dark Past Documentary,[1] and she was originally supposed to drive Axel as seen in concept art from Sweet Tour. Even though Black became a well-toned man in the final game's cutscenes, the model used for the main menu and ending cutscene is still that of Zipperchick, likely because the menu graphics were done early on in development. The same thing can be noticed in other characters, with them also using older models in the main menu. The reason for the model being used in Black's ending could be due to time constraints.
Gallery[]
Black in the character selection screen.
Poster of Black from Twisted Metal: Black.
"Zipperchick" concept art as the driver of Axel.
"Zipperchick" render. Previous concept of the character that would become Black in TM:B.
