Vin Revisits Riddick In "Dark Athena"
Mar 12, 2009
Movie stars who lend their talents to videogames are becoming a dime a dozen. But Vin Diesel is a different breed: a true, old-school gaming fan, he takes a personal interest in his games. Having founded Tigon Studios several years ago to push the boundaries of interactive entertainment, Vin is now rolling out the latest chapter in the epic "Chronicles Of Riddick" series, "Assault On Dark Athena." We caught up with Vin to ask about his involvement in the game, and a few other items of interest -- such as his penchant for playing "Tekken" on 50-foot screens.
I was wondering if you could talk a little bit about your involvement in the Riddick games, in [Escape From] Butcher Bay and now in Dark Athena. What’s your role in that?
"My dedication to fighting games has been a little sick at times."
Vin Diesel: First of all, I'm involved in amassing the perfect team. And then I take pride in trying to bring out the integrity that's in the movie and letting it live in the game. Also being the guy that wants to push the envelope in terms of gameplay. We come off Escape From Butcher Bay with a great game, an award-winning game, and we say, "How the hell do we push the envelope? How do we one-up that? How do we go further?" And the idea of multiplayer, with this kind of intimate game, this kind of singular-experience game, was the hat-trick in my mind – to be able to give you the same level of gameplay, and now allow you to play your best friend, was a huge component in trying to push the envelope for Dark Athena.
You tried to do an eclectic mix of different elements – some shooter, some stealth, some melee combat – and it looks like that was a real aspect of the gameplay, combining all of that seamlessly.
Escape From Butcher Bay has that first-person shooter style – and I'd always been a fighting game lover. I wanted to make sure that we had a strong melee component. I wanted to make sure that you didn't just have to be hiding behind a crate in order to take down a bad guy, that you did have another option, a cool option, engaging in some hand-to-hand combat. All that stuff also plays with Riddick and the abilities that we know he has, like being able to see in the dark. How we were able to incorporate that into this multiplayer online experience is what got really exciting for me.
You said you're a fighting game lover. Any classics that come to mind?
I am a Tekken guy. I am a Dead Or Alive guy. I'm a Soul Calibur guy. And I played these games like every kid would love to have played these games – on fifty-foot screens. My dedication to these fighting games has been a little sick at times, because it's been in these huge auditoriums, and I've created these tournaments -- I have all these guys come and play, and we'd sooner be playing fighting games for money than poker.
So you actually set up these tournaments with giant screens and play fighting games with your buddies?
Yes I have, and in multiple countries, by the way. I have been known to set up these tournaments at different levels amongst everyone I know for these fighting games.
Is it just a friendly thing, or is it actually money-on-the-line, pro-level gamers?
Pretty good gamers – I've gone to some places where I've snuck into some tournaments with pro players, and shocked them a little bit – they go "Okay, this is Vin Diesel, all right, you hold this controller" – and the next thing you know, "K.O.!" [laughs]. So, nothing official, all kinds of fun, but definitely maxed out that experience, played it to the fullest. There's nothing cooler than sitting in an auditorium filled with people and having your avatar on a 50-foot screen kicking someone's booty.
VIN DIESEL INTERVIEW, CONTINUED >>>
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I wanted to ask you a little bit more about Butcher Bay and Dark Athena. Compared to being the usual movie spin-off games that we see, these seem to be more like equals to the movies that they're based on. Do you see videogames as being almost an equal partner in expanding the Riddick character and the Riddick universe?
Yes I do. The objective in creating Tigon [Studios] was to have the ability -- because I have access in a unique way to Hollywood -- to make videogames at the same level that you would approach making a franchise movie. Meaning, pulling out all the stops, taking a very serious approach to the story in the same way that studios do to their films, and bringing in top-caliber talent across the board. As a fan-boy growing up, I always appreciated an IP [intellectual property] that allowed me to delve deeper into that universe if I felt compelled.
That reminds me of a comment someone once said about the Star Trek world, thanking Gene Roddenberry just for making this universe "for us to play in."
Exactly.
That people can contribute their own elements to it as well.
That people can contribute their own elements, which is definitely what's happened with the Riddick and the Chronicles of Riddick franchise. And while we were creating The Chronicles of Riddick, 6, 7 years ago, to be quite honest, we had over-created. We had created enough content for three films to be made. And as a producer of the movie, and as somebody that was shepherding the Chronicles of Riddick film, simultaneously being a gamer, I found myself in this unique position, where I could create a videogame company, that could push forward the videogame, with the same attention to detail that we were upholding for the film. It was also a wonderful way to explore other story concepts, other adventures, that you wouldn't normally be able to afford in the picture. So, for example, it would be like being able to have a prequel backstory to any movie of your choice. Chronicles of Riddick, we know that the prequel was Pitch Black. What Escape From Butcher Bay gave us was an opportunity to give you the prequel to Pitch Black.
The prequel to the prequel.
The prequel to the prequel. And to further your understanding of this universe – that was exciting to me on a film-lover level, that was exciting to me as a role-player, a "Dungeons & Dragons" role-player, so it really became an opportunity to explore adventures and stories that we didn't have the resources, if you will, to explore in the movie.
As far as story-telling in games [is concerned], do you have any preference yourself as a gamer, if you're playing a level and then a cutscene comes along, are you impatient and want to skip past it, or do you tend to be drawn into the story, or is it just [a question of] how well it's done in a given scenario?
I think obviously it's always how well it's done in a given scenario. However, I'm a huge fan of interstitials. I'm a huge fan of game animation, on any level. From Escape From Butcher Bay, we had a 30 minute animated movie, from start to finish, that was compelling in its own right. In your best-case scenario you've got pure storytelling in those moments. As a gamer I appreciate that. As a gamer I appreciate taking five minutes to relax from this adrenaline and to think about what my next moves are and to be introduced to the universe of the game. I am a huge fan – I don't know anybody that doesn't like that animation. I don't know anybody that doesn’t appreciate it. Do you?
I know some people who occasionally prefer to get back to the game sooner rather than later, but I think it’s generally how well it's done, like you say – if the animation is absorbing, people will want to watch it.
That's very true. I think the trend is more story-driven games. And I think a lot of the games as of late have been really capitalizing on that. I mean, some of these recent games – like the GTA's and what have you – you can go and watch a comedy show. That's cool stuff. That means – that's just the beginning. Wait until we're playing a massive multiplayer online game, like the next iteration of Wheelman, where you can literally go into a concert and enjoy watching the concert as your avatar.
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