Starbreeze and Lionsgate announce a partnership to create a VR first-person
shooter based on the
John Wick movie franchise. They specify this will
come in spring 2016 to the HTC Vive, but add that "Starbreeze will be publishing
the product across multiple VR platforms." Here's word:
The companies will
team to create a standalone, first-person shooter game based on the world and
characters of the John Wick films and centered around the infamous Continental
Hotel. In addition, Starbreeze will further integrate the John Wick storyline
into its wildly popular Payday game, which has over nine million players
worldwide, facilitating cross promotion and integration of the two games. John
Wick producer Basil Iwanyk of Thunder Road Pictures and the movie's production
team will be collaborating closely with the WEVR and Grab teams for the
development of the VR game and experience.
Starting soon, fans can check out a promotional experience of the game at select
events and stops on the HTC Vive World Tour, which is making its way through the
United States and Europe. A teaser game will be available at the launch of HTC
Vive and available via SteamVR, with the launch timing to be unveiled later this
year. The full game is expected to be available on most existing VR headsets in
Spring 2016.
"We're thrilled to partner with the best of the best in VR and game development
with Starbreeze, WEVR and Grab, who are collaborating with the movie's producers
to ensure an exciting, immersive and authentic virtual experience," said
Lionsgate President of Interactive Ventures & Games Peter Levin. "John Wick is
the perfect cross-platform property to extend into the fast-growing gaming
world, and we believe that a cutting edge VR game will deepen fan engagement and
accelerate John Wick's evolution into one of our next big action franchises."
"Lionsgate is a leader in producing and delivering the kind of provocative,
original and engaging storytelling that you need to launch an exhilarating and
marketable game," said Starbreeze CEO Bo Andersson Klint. "The John Wick
characters and universe really resonated with our Payday fans last year when we
first incorporated them into our game, so we're thrilled to partner with the
studio and the John Wick creative team to create a new standalone game enhanced
by the state of the art in virtual reality."
"Lionsgate has been a great partner on John Wick because the studio not only
believes in traditional storytelling but also recognizes the value of extending
its movies beyond the screen and involving fans in new ways to explore the
characters and stories," said producer and Thunder Road Pictures CEO Iwanyk.
"Working with accomplished gaming companies like Starbreeze, WEVR and Grab is a
terrific opportunity to bring the world of John Wick into an exciting new
dimension."
John Wick was a global box office hit last year, and Lionsgate is currently
developing John Wick 2 for release next September. The film stars Keanu Reeves
as an ex-hit man who comes out of retirement to track down the gangsters who
took everything from him.