Local artist takes creativity to next level

A local comic artist has taken his creativity to another level.

Multiple levels, actually.

Jamari Lawson's "Surrender-Man" has been brought to life in a new side-scrolling independent video game, crafted with the programming prowess of Lawson's former computer science teacher and good friend Scott "JNoodle" Jacobson. Tyler Jacobson, Scott's son and Lawson's good friend, also served as a game consultant.

“I’m always working on the actual Surrender-Man comic, but the big project I’ve been working on has been the game,” Lawson said Wednesday.

Scott Jacobson, now newly retired, contacted Lawson before Summer 2023 to see if he wanted to collaborate on a game that would add new elements to Lawson's original artwork.

“I was like, ‘Absolutely, I would love to make a game,’ but I don’t know anything about game design," Lawson said. "I’ve played games my whole life and I know what I like about them."

With Scott's coding skills and input from Tyler, with whom Lawson was in a game design club in high school, Lawson's Surrender-man has made the leap from the page to the screen.

“Surrender-Man as a whole has been this multi-media package for me. I’ve always wanted it to be a comic and a game and an animation,” Lawson said. “I jumped at the chance to make a game.”

“Henshin Battlegod Surrender-Man" is not a conventional game. Lawson said it was created to entertain the brain as well as give it a bit of a workout.

“I kind of wanted to make a game that was fun, but I wanted it to have a focus," Lawson said. "I wanted it to be a brain game, a challenging game, almost like you’re going to a brain gym.”

The team incorporated the Stroop effect to add another layer of play to "Surrender-Man." The Stroop effect is when the name of a color is written in a different color, giving the brain pause as it processes, for example, reading the word “green” written in red.

“You’re looking at the word and you’re also trying to not fall off the platforms, not get killed by the enemies and then as the enemies come, whatever the word says, if it says green, you might see an enemy that’s also green. If you hit that one, you’ll get more points,” Lawson explained. "It's definitely very fun."

Tyler and Lawson have been friends since about 2008. Tyler said what most impresses him about Lawson is his dedication to Surrender-Man, which Lawson has consistently worked on since high school.

"Seeing his first panel and how he has progressed to his 10,000th has been so rewarding to see," Tyler said. "His commitment to his passion and his ability to adapt will always be inspirational."

Scott noticed Lawson's artistic talents early on when he was one of his students. He has been keeping tabs on his Surrender-Man comics and encouraging Lawson along the way.

“Honestly, when I see people that have excellent art skills and story ideas and nobody’s taking advantage of them, I'm going to give them an offer they can't refuse and I'm going to ride their coattails," Scott said with a chuckle. "This is going to be something someday, and I just want to know I was a part of it."

He said he always considered Lawson a third son.

"He could ask me anything and it would be like my son asking me something," he said.

Scott said things are starting to blow up for Lawson and his Surrender-Man world. The game, which can be played for free or purchased for $2 at itch.io, has already been viewed or played about 3,000 times.

"Hopefully it will be a quick straight shot to the next step for him," Scott said.

Lawson said Surrender-Man has limitless storylines ahead, providing a creative outlet for years to come.

“If I have a month where I’m into something, I’ll take it and convert it into a Surrender-Man story, more as a way of expressing my creativity and my passion as a geek,” Lawson said. "The more you can sell comics and games the more you get to make these things, but first and foremost, he’s like my mascot for creativity. He represents me expressing the things I love and that I'm passionate about and I feel like that sort of energy is contagious to people."

Visit youtube.com to see the motion comic.

    Jamari Lawson demonstrates Wednesday how to play "Henshin Battlegod Surrender-Man," a side-scrolling video game that stars his original artwork and Surrender-Man character.
  

    A scene from one of Jamari Lawson's Surrender-Man comics.