Paramount enters the online gaming space with ‘Rango’ – The Hollywood Reporter


Paramount Digital Entertainment is entering the online video game space with a new multi-year partnership with casual game developer Funtactix.

The first title through this deal will be an online game world based on the Western computer animated film Paramount Pictures / Nickelodeon Movies. Rango, which features the voices of Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Alfred Molina, and Bill Nighy.

Rango: The WORLD, an online multiplayer game, will launch concurrently with theatrical release on March 4.

Rangotells the story of a company chameleon who ends up sheriff in the faithless town of Dirt, where he meets a group of characters who laugh at the traditional Hollywood western formula. The games explore this variation of the Wild West more.

For Rango: The WORLD, we are creating a living online universe, a place where fans of the film can step into the world, create their own personalities so that they can socialize, explore, compete and play, ”said Sam glassenberg, CEO of Funtactix. “We will add to the world over time and build community.”

Paramount also authorized Rangoto Electronic Arts, which is launching Wii, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo DS games based on the new movie. Glassenberg said the online gameplay is very different from console gaming, as are the target platforms and the business model. Rango: The WORLD is free and does not require a game console.

RangoThe characters and their outrageous antics are well suited to a variety of gaming platforms and players of all ages, ”said Tom lesinski, president of Paramount Digital Entertainment. “Rango: The WORLD offers young fans of the film a fun way to interact and personalize the characters and story in an immersive online environment.

Funtactix has been developing consumer online and browser games since 2006, including the award-winning 3D multiplayer browser action game Moondo. Rango marks one of the first applications of Funtactix’s ‘The WORLD’ solution, a multi-year technology investment designed to create authentic online experiences with compelling characters and breathtaking visuals, giving fans the ability to enter the world of their favorite movie.

“There is a depth in the world that unbranded games cannot approach,” said Glassenberg. “More than that, our technology and our approach break down the line between audience and entertainment, the imaginary fourth wall. We create authentic experiences for fans to get into the movies themselves.

While computer-animated films allow the game developer to utilize the digital assets of the film, Glassenberg said his studio is also working closely with Paramount to bring live action movies to the space of. online games using the “The WORLD” solution.

“We’re already in production on several other projects outside of the CGI space, so we know it’s working,” Glassenberg said. “The ability to directly use artistic assets is certainly one benefit we bring, but there are many more. Our goal is to create authentic experiences for fans. This can be done through art, through animation (capturing star movements), through writing (working with the creative team that created the source IP), through music, and through collaboration and trust. We use all of the above to create our worlds.

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