Disaster movie director Roland Emmerich is launching a new franchise known as Space Nation that will encompass online games, animated shorts, and even its own TV series.
As reported by Deadline, Emmerich, the director behind Independence Day, 2012, and multiple other large-scale disaster movies, is leading a franchise set to start with a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG).
Space Nation, due out in the second quarter of 2024, sees players assume the roles of ship captains as they build, fight, and survive in “a universe inhabited by alien species”, while also working to “unravel the mysteries of the Telikos Cluster”.
An alpha test takes place this August ahead of launch next year, which will allow for the exploration of Space Nation before it expands into a TV series, animated shorts, and spin-off games.
“Hollywood’s increasing interest in video games reflects a wider recognition of gaming’s popularity and storytelling potential,” Emmerich said in a statement. “The expansive universe we’re building in Space Nation is a tremendous opportunity to captivate audiences wherever they consume entertainment with innovative new forms of storytelling.”
With backing to the tune of $50 million, Emmerich has teamed up with Jerome Wu, who worked on World of Warcraft, Tony Tang, who worked on Warframe, as well as entertainment executive Marco Weber, who produced Emmerich’s 1999 sci-fi thriller The Thirteenth Floor.
“The landscape of entertainment is evolving rapidly, and we see an incredible opportunity to redefine its boundaries,” Wu said in a separate statement. “With our collaborative efforts, we aim to transform the way content is consumed, shared, and experienced.”
Watch this space. Literally.
Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.
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