The Movies Preview

We all know that Peter Molynuex and Lionhead Studios are responsible for creating one of the most critically acclaimed PC god sim titles - Black & White. Later Lionhead and EA produced an expansion pack, Black & White: Creature Isle (Peter Molynuex was not involved with the project), which unfortunately didn't amount up to much. Actually it's been quite a while since ol' Peter and his crew at Lionhead completed a game. Recently, however, it seems they have combined all of their strengths and are hard at work to meet the deadline for several promising PC and console titles (more details on that at Lionhead's official web site). The Movies is one of their projects that introduces a rather interesting and innovative concept to the gaming scene, allowing gamers to get behind the cameras and start making cinema magic. But, it won't be so easy you know. Working on a set and juggling with many demanding responsibilities is all part of the experience, so you're gonna have to put your back into it.

Who's baldy? Oh that's Ruprekt, he's cool!

We'll call it "Buffy: The Vampire Slinger!"

In The Movies you will be in charge of your very own Hollywood studio (how many times have we daydreamed about that one, eh?). An important thing you should know right off the bat, is that the game doesn't have any familiar licensed Hollywood names. So you can immediately scratch the idea of directing intense nude scenes with sweat-drenched Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez. Instead, it will be possible to hire fresh untapped talents and come up with names for actors by yourself. The general idea behind The Movies is to allow gamers to work freely in a film studio, as they cooperate with scriptwriters, up and coming film stars, production crews, etc. The game has everything an ambitious young director needs to achieve filming glory. You'll be able to create comedies, romance flicks, westerns, action movies, and the like. Creating each flick also gives you the opportunity to choose from a wide variety of studio settings. But, taking control of a movie studio means that you've accepted numerous important duties, not all of which include peeping at topless actresses. It's all very challenging. In fact, running movie projects, coping with studio finances, hiring and laying off workers, is all in your hands.

In order to stay in one of the most risky and strenuous businesses in the world, you're gonna have to concentrate on earning as much cash for the studio as you can (a willpower that nourishes almost any Hollywood undertaking :)) As shown at the E3, gamers will have to keep an eye on their finances practically all the time. Filming costs money, especially if the project is prolonged and you have to keep paying the staff and other regular studio expenses. In order to prevent studio bankruptcy, players are required to watch a five-star meter closely - it shows how long you worked on a particular film. If the production status reaches only one or two stars, your film won't make much of a buzz and you can expect to make nothing more than a corny B movie. The again, that might be a good move, given that your resources are rather limited at the beginning of your career. Sorting out staff salaries is another financial priority you must tackle head on. This is where the developers put in a very simple system of letting you know exactly how much you've spent on each cast and crew member. Small icons (shaped like tiny dollar bills) will appear above the head of anyone who may be overpaid or underpaid; that way players can effectively monitor the wages of all employees.

One of the most painful aspects of movie-making is tending to actors and actresses and all their needs. Usually, talented actors can be a real pain in the neck (Oh say it! Ass! - Ed), and unless you are careful they might turn into regular prima donnas, or in other words, they become uptight and pompous. Still, the road to stardom is long and hard, so it takes a lot of time and film experience, until your actors can develop into true superstars.

Hey, the boom's in the shot!

One of the many filming sets...

The best part of the game is the level of interactivity. You'll have the freedom to move around the set and instruct your actors and crew members whenever you want. While filming, you use a very simple and intuitive slide bar that allows you to control the action that takes place on the scene. Sliding the bar left and right changes the way actors behave on stage; in fighting scenes, for instance, you'll be able to select the level of brutality. That means you can initiate everything from mere slapping and kicking to vicious bone-crunching action and total carnage. In romance movies, on the other hand, things could get a bit more "juicy," shall we say. Sliding the bar all the way left, makes the lead actors look at each other and hold hands at the most, but as you slide all the way to the right, they will become very passionate and start a lot of... err... improvising on the set. Players are advised to use caution with the slider bar and the way they direct scenes of romance and violence. The simple fact is that the game spans through various ages of film history, so if you produce an excessively violent movie and play it in the 30's, it is likely viewers won't be impressed by it (More likely, they'll be revolted by it - Ed). Whereas in the 80's and 90's, movies are fundamentally different, hence more violence and "adult content" will achieve more glory and higher ratings.

Lionhead concentrated on making The Movies seem visually appealing, therefore players won't feel disheartened when they get to check out the results of their long work. Character models look lovely and were excellently animated, while some of the sceneries were tweaked to perfection, making some of the sets appear extremely true-to-life. The catchiest part we were informed about at the E3 was the option of arranging a full trailer to the movie you've toiled on. Filmed sequences will then show up, flashing some of the scenes which appear just the way they've been shot - all costumes, sets, and actors are there, creating exactly the sort of ambiance you've envisioned for your ultimate cinema masterpiece. This cool element was actually built in to compensate for the lack of an option for viewing a full-length version of your movie. At this point, the designing team stressed that incorporating such a feature would be almost impossible, so they made this neat loophole, which will allow players to form theatrical trailers for their pictures. Moreover, a special treat is in the works for PC gamers. After fashioning a trailer for your very own motion picture, you will be able to view it outside the game and even e-mail it to a friend or put it up on the Net for download! Now that's a classy move, you gotta admit.

Even now, The Movies looks and sounds very impressive. Many features have remained undisclosed at this stage, and we believe the developers are quite a long way away from finishing the project - from what we were told the game is set to hit all platforms sometime during 2004. We'll bring you more updates as soon as they surface.