14 DAY TRIAL // Video game publisher Ubisoft and Sony Pictures Entertainment are announcing that they are now collaborating on a project to create a feature film based on the Watch Dogs universe, which will be launched in the next two years.
Jean-Julien Baronnet, the chief executive officer at Ubisoft Motion Pictures, states, “Since both Sony and Ubisoft have movie and video game branches, this deal creates exceptional opportunities for us to merge the realms of the story-based cinematic experience with the interaction of the video game.”
Actual production work on the Watch Dogs project will be carried out by New Regency, which has worked on movies like Devil’s Advocate, Fight Club, Heat and City of Angels.
Hannah Minghella, the president of production for Columbia Pictures, adds, “The themes and open gameplay of 'Watch Dogs' lends itself perfectly to the big screen. The game has intense action and adventure, but the story focuses on information and the control of information, which we think will lead to an exciting thriller.”
It’s unclear whether the two companies are planning to follow the story of Aiden Pearce or whether they will create another protagonist that shares many of his characteristics.
The video game version of Watch Dogs is set in a future version of Chicago where information is the most powerful weapon for both outlaws and law enforcement.
Gamers will be able to hack into the Central Operating System of the city in order to get access to a wide variety of data on its citizens, while also controlling everything from cameras to public transportation.
The game is designed to give the player freedom and the tools to pursue any kind of challenges he is interested in.
Watch Dogs will be launched on November 19 in the US and November 22 in Europe on the PC and current-gen consoles, as well as on the Wii U.