Ubisoft have picked up Lost. Not only that, the first game will be out by next year (hoo! fast turnaround!) and they expect the franchise to run a while. It seems CSI did rather well as a game conversion - first I've heard of it - enough so that the TV folk have been encouraged enough to develop further conversions.
I think TV conversions make far more sense than movie conversions, seeing as the movie's shelf life is often mere weeks, whereas a successful show series can run and run. Episodic gaming sounds interesting. There's all sorts of opportunities for weaving storylines across platforms, and embedding clues or whatnot in each, pointing to storylines in the other. Tricksy, but different. And if anyone's likely to make a tv-to-game conversion interesting, it's the Lost folks: their attention to detail is magnificent.
“Our experience with CSI opened our eyes to the potential of games based on TV shows,” said Pascal Bonnet, Ubisoft’s director of licensing. “Sales of games based on movies tend to peak for the three months around the film’s release, but a game based on a TV show can sell for up to six months and you’re not committed to coming out by the theatrical release.”
I wonder if we'll be able to get the game direct onto Live by next year, digital downloads? Because that'd be pretty cool too.
I give it 5 years before the Game will BE the TV show.
The Engine will be developed and released as a game in itself but that will also act as an open Audition for virtual actors.
It will have MMO aspects and scripted "quest" content like WOW, it'll have aspects of reality TV shows like Big Brother, and every player is a potential future character to be added into the broadcast TV series. You can meet and interact the Character in game at any time, as they will be people payed to play the game, in character, all day long.
Consider the TV broadcast a bit like a 7 season in-game cut-sequence, in the same style as "The Office", showing the most relevent events over the last week (to move the dynamic story forward), and David Brent style interviews.
In 10 years, there will be only Virtual Actors, and anyone can be discovered, from thier armchair, playing on thier Microsoft PlayStation 720 or thier Nintendo Kakk.
100% Fact. I see the future.
Posted by: Cris | May 23, 2006 at 10:04
Oh god, no. A game that twists and weaves and swings you around all over the place and by the end of it you know a lot more but really it's just a million more questions?
I can only take so much!
Posted by: Weefz | May 24, 2006 at 15:00