Speaking to the Associate Press (Via Edge) under anonymity, an Electronic Arts manager confirmed that Pandemic Studios was indeed producing a game based on the recent Batman flick, The Dark Knight. The AP piece speculates that the game may have been shelved due to quality concerns, actor Heath Ledger's passing, or poor sales potential.
Why so serious? Because industry analyst Michael Pacther feels the game could have sold four million units, a huge improvement over the abysmal sales of EA's Batman Begins which only moved 587,000 copies. Translated into the language that EA speaks so fluently (money), that's $100 million, $70 of which could have gone directly to the publisher.
Dark Knight actor Gary Oldman had spilled the beans to G4 about the game's existence in an interview recently, but a title had never officially been announced. According to the EA manager who backed up Oldman's claims, the game doesn't appear on EA's internal release list through March of 2009.
So would anyone buy this game based on the strength of the movie alone? If the quality of the title was poor, does anyone think consumers are smart enough to keep their purchases in check? Or do you think they'd blindly fork over cash for digital trashed based on the name alone?
Contest:
8:38 AM on 08.08.2008
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I would not, however, buy a Dark Knight game. Games based on movies tend to either mess with the plot too much and get random and silly, or follow it too strongly and end up boring or annoying because of it. I bet a ton of other people would though, just cos 'OMG BATMAN THE DARK KNIGHT SO AWSUM YEAH!'.
I did think of this however - how about a Batman game, using the Assassins Creed engine (or similar)? You could make a huge Gotham city to run around in. Youve got random stuff happening on the streets all the time (would use Emotion engine for that). The climbing mechanics would suit it because they wouldnt be as much in focus; i felt they were too easy and boring to be as important as they were in AC, but for a Batman game youd have other methods of getting places - grappling hooks, using the cape, batmobile, etc etc. And the villains would be more interesting, of course, since theyre batman villains, theyre always crazy.
In this day and age when games are taking longer than ever to make, it probably means there will be an increase in games filtering out way after a film's release.
I say a DVD/game package (blu-ray for PS3) would be great business.
I had Batman: Forever on the megadrive, if thats what you mean. That game was hot.
Anyway. BIG SHOCK; EA tried to make another movie game. Lucky someone told them it was GOING to be crap rather then the reviewers telling them.
I remember one on the C64. You had to swing the batmobile round with the wire on lamp posts and use the batwing scissors to cut those big balloons the joker had. It was great.
As for the open-world suggestion... A button you press to make Batman say "Car". The batmobile then shows up everytime like in the movie and you don't have to worry about throwing poor old ladies from their Nissan.
have you guys heard there's a game out based off that max payne movie coming out?
Oooh, that sounds fun. I might have to emulate that. Or buy a C64 on Ebay.
@Ambulancy:
I see what you did there ... ;)
Man this brings back memories.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kP6z0ZH4pI
Listen to the fuckin' music too. Sorry but 'fuckin' music' is the only way I could talk about this game. Great stuff.
no GHOSTBUSTERS on c64
http://www.classic-pc-games.com/c64/games/ghostbusters.html
Know this, EA: The Dark Knight was amazing. You better f'n live up to it.
It was hard though. I think.
I was like 6.
The NES Batman was good and had great music. Also, hard.
Sounds like that publisher needs a better agent.
If a TDK exists, but does not get released because it sucks, I am quite happy.
Oh my, so THERE was the money to develop the game. Someone at the props department is going to get fired!
I didn't buy the Incredible Hulk game..........
I wouldn't buy a bad batman game no matter how much i liked the movie.
I'm glad they're delaying it. I'd rather have a good batman game next year than a shitty one now.