Whedon's Firefly to Become MMORPG

Posted on December 11, 2006

The Multiverse Network, Inc. has optioned the rights from Twentieth Century Fox to develop an MMOG based on Firefly, the science fiction television series and film (Serenity) created by Joss Whedon. A Wired article notes how popular the show is with fans -- especially with the diehard Browncoats. Multiverse will have to try and please these fans in order to be able to populate the MMORPG with players.

The "Browncoats," as Firefly's most devoted fans are known, have been campaigning to bring the show back almost since the moment it was canceled in late 2002. Now they'll get their wish, albeit in a new form.

"We see virtual worlds as an extraordinarily promising new entertainment medium," said Adam Kline, Fox Licensing's vice president of media enterprises in an e-mail. "We believe Multiverse can deliver an experience that will remain true to the original series, while enabling a whole new level of personal involvement for fans."

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The online version will move away from those central characters -- after all, there's only one Mal Reynolds. In an MMORPG, "everybody has to have their own story," says Multiverse co-founder and executive producer Corey Bridges.

Bridges also says television series are great properties for turning into MMos. He also says, "If you're doing science fiction, you have to really think it out and create an incredibly rich environment that is compelling in its own right, and worth exploring and going back to week after week. That's what Joss Whedon did with Firefly."

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