blade-runner posts

It's one of the most revered sci-fi movies of all time, and at one point developer Gearbox Software thought hard about making it into a game. The 1982 classic Blade Runner still holds up well and has been the subject of game adaptations before, most notably a 1997 released action-adventure game from the now defunct Westwood Studios.

On the Official Xbox Magazine web site, Gearbox's head man Randy Pitchford states that at one time Gearbox had pursued getting the Blade Runner game license rights, saying, "We chased it down and we could of had it." However, they decided to abandon their plans for the game after looking at the costs. Pitchford states, " . . . the way we wanted to do it, we wanted to spend 25-million dollars. And when you do the math on that, we weren't going to make it back." That's likely true, although we have to wonder what kind of game design would require such a high budget.

Production house Halcyon Company, first option holder to develop various media adaptations (film/television) based on Philip K Dick's literary work, has announced plans to convert some of the sci-fi legend's writings into videogames.

According to GamesIndustry.biz, Halcyon plans to adapt at least two games, a major animation and two movies from Dick's work--which has spawned such classic sci-fi films as Blade Runner and Total Recall.

Currently, Halcyon is working on a game based on the upcoming film Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins, due for release next year.

Previously, Dick's work has been adapted to interactive entertainment when Westwood Studios developed the cult-hit Blade Runner game in 1997 and French developer Cryo Interactive adapted Ubik in 1998.