A mere 17 days after a massive farewell show at the UK’s Villa Park — one that raised around $190 million for charity — Black Sabbath frontman and solo artist extraordinaire Ozzy Osbourne passed away on Tuesday, July 22. He leaves behind a remarkable legacy with not just the music he and his Sabbath bandmates created, but the styles of music they spawned, and the legions of bands/musicians they inspired.
Reams and reams can be (and have already been) written about the man, his humble beginnings, his storied past, his struggles with addiction and of course, his music. That, however, is not what we’re here to do today. Apart from music, Ozzy’s been featured in film, television, art and a whole host of other media. His music has provided the soundtrack to several game franchises including Rock Band, Guitar Hero, Grand Theft Auto, Forza and even the WWE 2K series. But his own personal involvement has been fairly light. Here then are three instances when the Blizzard and videogames crossed paths.
Horizon Call of the Mountain
The promo below for Horizon Call of the Mountain on the PSVR2 is his most recent foray into things related to gaming that are out in the public eye. Here, Ozzy leans wholesomely into his The Osbournes character that introduced him and his family to the world at large back in 2002. His reference to being ‘very technical these days’ appears to be a fun throwback to this immortal moment from the show.
World of Warcraft
Before hollering and yowling at the sight of Storm Birds, Ozzy was busy feuding with the Lich King. For non-World of Warcraft aficionados, he is a ‘powerful, undead being, primarily known for leading the Scourge, an undead army’. All caught up? Good. Now, just why this feud? Well, you’ll have to click below and find out for yourself.
Brütal Legend
While Ozzy appears in promos for the two games above, Double Fine Productions’ 2009 Jack Black vehicle was the only time (as per some extremely thorough research) the Prince of Darkness has appeared in a videogame. And although the game was pretty pedestrian, it sported a fantastic metal soundtrack and cameos from Rob Halford, Lemmy and Lita Ford. Here, in full then, is Ozzy’s cameo in the game:
