To be continued…
Continuing the movies in video games
By Tina Benitez -- Playthings, 7/1/2005
What if Cuban drug lord Tony Montana survived at the end of the 1983 film Scarface? What if Jaws weren't killed and went on to live a long, destructive life on the beaches? Now, retailers can answer some of the movie “what-ifs” their customers may have, as more video games carry on the sagas of movies past.
Because new games are not tied to film releases, they can basically stand on their own in stores as a part-two in game form or cross-sell with the actual film and other merchandise to spark interest in the classic flicks.
In Scarface, The World is Yours, a new game from Vivendi Universal Games, Los Angeles, players can find out just what happened after the tumultuous shootout. Nichol Bradford, senior global brand manager for Vivendi Universal Games, says that the company is working closely with Scarface partners to cross-sell other Scarface items with the game.
“We find that people are familiar with the icon of Scarface, even if they haven't seen the movie,” says Bradford. “Those people will go back to see the movie, making a Scarface event out of playing the game—they'll watch the movie and then play the game right after for a total experience.”
Scarface takes over where the Montana character left off in the film. The game, set for release early 2006 for Xbox, was written by David Mckenna (Blow, American History X). Characters will be voiced by Al Pacino and original cast members Steven Bauer and Robert Loggia.
“Our game doesn't change any aspects of the film except for the last 10 minutes,” Bradford tells Playthings. “Then we toss the player into one of the most dramatic scenes in cinematic history. Right in the mansion, you fight your way out to start over, or you die like Tony did in the movie.”
Dead ringersSpeaking of classics. Where were you when Jaws came to shore in 1975? Jaws Unleashed brings the shark back 30 years after the movie made it famous. In Unleashed, Majesco Entertainment, Edison, N.J., the player, as Jaws, targets specific body parts and get points for eating fish, boats or pesky beachgoers. Unleashed plays on Xbox and PlayStation 2.
Director Sam Raimi's Evil Dead 2 also continues in Evil Dead: Regeneration (compatible with PS2 and Xbox) from THQ, Calabasas, Calif. Lead character Ash, voiced by star Bruce Campbell, is thought to have murdered his companions at camp. Soon, it's time to kill off the deadites and retrieve the Necronomicon, the book of the dead.
Jack Skellington and the rest of Halloweentown return in A Nightmare Before Christmas, Oogie's Revenge, Buena Vista Games, Burbank, Calif. The first game based on the 1993 film written by Tim Burton, Oogie's Revenge works on Xbox and PS2. The Story of the Pumpkin King is also available for Game Boy Advance just in time for Halloween!
Catch the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, Buena Vista, with new pirate adventures, for the PlayStation Portable, summer 2006. The continuation of Martin Scorcese's Taxi Driver (1976) comes back spring 2006, as well as a Dirty Harry-based game from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, Burbank, Calif., and The Collective, Newport Beach, Calif. Clint Eastwood will oversee production of the latter, to be released in 2006 for portable use.
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