Posted:
19:22:46 on December 15 2001
By: Steve Krutzler
Dept: Gaming
Viacom Consumer Products' director of Interactive Product Development Harry Lang spoke with HomeLAN about the recent consolidation of Paramount's STAR TREK gaming license under the Activision banner.
"We’ve had a pretty good year. Armada II has just shipped and the response is very good. Also coming this month is Star Trek: Voyager-Elite Force for the Playstation 2. We’re very happy with what our partners were able to accomplish this year. And we’re even more excited about what is in store for next year," Lang said of sucesses in 2001.
With Interplay and Simon & Schuster both out of the way, will keeping TREK games under the sole pervue of Activision be better for consumers? "It doesn’t necessarily make developing a Star Trek game any easier. However, it will definitely allow more crossovers between characters, ships, and races, which were always difficult in the past. It will open up new possibilities for crossovers and more “epic” storylines. You will also see a far less crowded release schedule. With only one publisher, the release schedule can be more carefully and strategically planned," Lang says.
Lang was scant on what exact new titles were in the works for 2002 beyong the upcoming BRIDGE COMMANDER, saying only, "Yes, as I mentioned there are now more possibilities for a variety of storylines based on various properties. This is something we’ve wanted to do more of in the past, and now it will open up numerous possibilities for some very interesting storylines."
He also reveals that TREK mobil-phone games are coming soon: "The first Star Trek mobile phone game has just launched in the U.S. called Star Trek: First Duty. Another one is in the works for early ’02 as well. First Duty allows the player the chance to enter the prestigious Starfleet Academy. There, he/she will learn all aspects of Starfleet and the various ships. After graduation, they will have the opportunity to use their skills in the second game, Star Trek: Prime Directive. Handheld PC’s/PDA’s and Game Boy Advance are a possibility down the line, but we want to be sure we have the right kind of Star Trek game for those platforms just as we do for mobile phones."
Lang also shows some surprising modesty for a Viacom official, saying they've actually decided NOT to mine the new ENTERPRISE series for gaming titles yet, giving the series more time to grow: "Yes, but as you know, it can take longer to create a great game than it does a new show or movie. We also want to give the show some time to establish the characters, races, enemies, ships, etc.... And we chose not to just quickly put out a game to capitalize on it. It definitely has some appealing qualities that will allow us to do things a little differently than with the other shows."
For the full interview, check out this page.
(Thanks to Ken Miller for this submission).
