Quantum Break Shawn Ashmore

Still one of the Xbox One's most anticipated first party exclusives, news on Quantum Break has been relatively scarce since the game was first announced back at E3 2013. Presented as an evolution in both gameplay and narrative, Remedy Entertainment has set out to produce one of the most ambitious pieces of interactive storytelling to date - blending the video game and TV mediums into a single experience. As players progress through Quantum Break, their decisions will be reflected in a companion live-action series - which, reportedly, provides further insight into the game's villains.

Originally expected for release Holiday 2014, a lack of official details going into E3 2014, led many industry insiders to assume that the title would actually debut in 2015 - an assumption that was later backed up when Remedy set a Q2 2015 launch for the game. Since that time, the studio has unveiled a pair of demo videos but, despite providing insight into its time-manipulation mechanics, even the most basic Quantum Break details remain under tight-wraps - including who will star in the cross-medium project.

However, thanks to an official Remedy Entertainment social media post, we now know that geek-friendly actors Shawn Ashmore (X-Men: Days of Future Past and The Following) as well as Dominic Monaghan (Lord of the Rings and LOST) can be counted among the Quantum Break cast.

Check out the tweet from Remedy, along with pictures of the actors in motion capture jumpsuits, below:

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Unfortunately, the studio does not specify which characters the actors will be portraying. In fact, while the performers appear friendly, their onscreen counterparts might actually be enemies.

After all, what little we know of the Quantum Break story has revealed that the game will center on three main characters - who, thanks to a failed time travel experiment at North Eastern U.S. Riverport University, all receive time-related super powers.

  • Jack Joyce - The game's main protagonist, Jack can manipulate time in the moment, allowing him the ability to dodge bullets, create explosive rifts, and outright freeze time, among other abilities.
  • Beth Wilder - Quantum Break's second do-gooder - working alongside Joyce. Remedy has yet to detail the extent of Wilder's powers.
  • Paul Serene - Antagonist, and Founder of Monarch Solutions, Serene can see into the future - using his ability to manipulate events in his favor.

Obviously, neither Ashmore or Monaghan will be playing Beth Wilder, suggesting that the actors could be filling out the roles of Joyce and Serene, respectively or different characters entirely - or maybe Ashmore is Joyce and Monaghan will portray a yet-to-be mentioned supporting player.

Still, with an increasing number of Hollywood actors/actresses appearing in video games (Kevin Spacey in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare and Ellen Page in Beyond: Two Souls, to name a few), it's highly unlikely that steady working talent like Ashmore and Monaghan would jump into a time-consuming and physically demanding project like Quantum Break if they weren't playing significant parts of the production.

Quantum Break Shawn Ashmore Dominic Monaghan

The presence of full motion capture suits also suggests that the actors are actually performing, at the very least, key scenes in the game - not just lending voices to existing character models. While developers are beginning to use actors' real looks in game (for example: Troy Baker's physical appearance was reproduced in Advanced Warfare), at this point it's unclear if Ashmore and Monaghan will simply be providing mo-cap, facial animation, and voices for their characters. Since gamers have already been given a very clear look at Joyce, it would seem that in-game models may not be based entirely on their respective actors (though, Joyce does resemble Ashmore). It's always possible that Ashmore and Monaghan are taking on roles that haven't been detailed yet.

After all, given that Quantum Break will feature a live-action component, it would make sense for Remedy to use the actual appearance of their performers - in the event that the characters will need to appear in the TV series. Still, we do not know how many characters will actually overlap in the two mediums. Just because Joyce is the main character of the game does not mean that he'll appear in the TV series - especially given that the TV series is supposed to tell the story from an entirely different perspective (that of Monarch Solutions).

Nevertheless, it wouldn't be the first time that Remedy had actors portray both live-action and digital versions of their characters - since several Alan Wake performers reprised their characters in flesh-and-blood for the game's various live-action video components: Bright Falls and Night Springs.

For now, we can only speculate who Ashmore and Monaghan will be portraying in Quantum Break, not to mention whether they'll physically appear on the live-action side but we'll be sure to keep you up to date as Remedy provides further details. Either way, it's exciting to see a talented pair of actors helping the studio realize their vision for Quantum Break - which Remedy has repeatedly touted as an evolution in interactive storytelling.

NEXT: Quantum Break Gameplay Footage Revealed

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Quantum Break is targeting a Q2 2015 release for Xbox One.

Follow me on Twitter @benkendrick.

Source: Remedy Entertainment