Highlights

  • No More Heroes 3's director revealed the backstory behind Travis Touchdown's disheveled appearance, which was caused by an attack from his super fan, Kimmy Howell.
  • Travis spared Kimmy's life in a previous game, but she later ambushed him, leaving him injured and healing at the No More Heroes motel before the events of the game.
  • This backstory adds context to Kimmy Howell's transformation from a high-school girl with a crush to a crazed pop star idol obsessed with killing her hero.

No More Heroes 3's director recently explained the backstory behind Travis Touchdown's disheveled appearance during the opening of the game. Originally released in 2021 for the Nintendo Switch, No More Heroes 3 sees Travis taking on the galactic superhero rankings, facing off against a number of super-powered alien and human assassins in order to become the top-ranked killer and save the world from Prince FU.

Despite the game's story being rather simple, there are a few plot holes and unresolved plot threads in No More Heroes 3. One of these unaddressed details was Travis Touchdown's appearance in both the game's 2019 reveal trailer and final release. In both instances, Travis had grown a beard and wore a neck brace, which was a drastic departure from his usual outfit. While he would transform using his armor and take on a much more familiar appearance, this one thing was never really explained, with most fans just accepting it given the other strange things that happened in the game.

No More Heroes Travis Touchdown
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What Happened to Travis Touchdown Before No More Heroes 3?

In a recent interview with Destructoid, No More Heroes 3 director Suda51 gave the full backstory as to why Travis had such a different look in the opening. According to Suda, Travis was stalked and later attacked by his super fan, Kimmy Howell, before the start of the game. Kimmy Howell was an optional boss in No More Heroes 2, who had a creepy and obsessive crush on her hero. While Travis spared her life after their battle, telling her to get stronger before fighting him properly, Kimmy got the jump on Travis at some point between NMH2 and 3. "At some point between those two games, she hit him with a surprise attack, but he got away alive, and was healing up back at the No More Heroes motel," says Suda.

Travis from No More Heroes III

Suda notes this is actually the first time anyone from the press has asked him about this detail, with Suda's translator, James Mountain, chiming in about him asking the director about the same thing. The answer that Mountain received from Suda at the time was "I don't remember." While a minor part of the overall game, this gives some extra context about Travis' state at the start of No More Heroes 3.

This backstory also gives even more context regarding Kimmy Howell's boss fight in No More Heroes 3. Taking on the stage name of Kimmy Love, she vows to kill her hero in front of a live broadcast, with both Travis and Kimmy engaging in a very entertaining rap battle against each other before the actual fight. This backstory shows just how far Kimmy fell, from being a high-school girl with an obsessive crush to a crazy pop star idol who is obsessed with wanting to kill her hero.