Former id Software level designer and creative director of the cult classic Alice series, American McGee has had quite the career in the games industry, working on a variety of unique projects. While he's spent a long time conceptualizing a third entry in the Alice series, it seems he's also been hard at work collaborating with Radar Pictures on a new project, announcing that he's developing a game set in the Wizard of Oz universe called Oz: Adventures.
Interestingly, the project won't just be a video game, with McGee claiming that it will actually be a transmedia property that will include a tie-in TV show. Talking about the idea during a live stream on Twitch, McGee revealed Radar Pictures wants to get the show on a streaming service like "Amazon, Netflix, or HBO," with the crossover encouraging fans of the series to try the game and vice versa.
The rest of the Twitch stream details some interesting tidbits about the new project. For one, McGee reveals that he was approached by an anonymous Chinese publisher to create a game studio to work on a fresh project, the likes of which he was asked to conceptualize and pitch to the company. His initial idea was Alice: Asylum, which is the creative director's planned third entry in the Alice series. Unfortunately, acquiring the rights to Alice has been tricky, with the first two games in the series being published by EA.
Instead, McGee asked his Patreon subscribers what they'd like to see him tackle, and the resounding answer was allegedly the Wizard of Oz. Before long, the game caught the attention of Radar Pictures, who pitched the idea of making it a transmedia project. As for the story, McGee claims it turns the land of Oz into a riff on the "Bermuda Triangle" myth, as people of all different eras and time periods are dragged into the magical world against their will and must escape. As expected from McGee, it seems it'll have darker undertones than its fairy tale premise might suggest, with the director claiming his take on Oz is a "live or die experience."
For those worried that Alice: Asylum will be left behind with production starting on the new transmedia project, it seems the idea is still very much alive. During the stream, McGee claimed the publisher behind Oz: Adventures is interested in returning to the franchise once this new game is done, claiming the idea is to "come back and deal with Alice: Asylum after." the new Wizard of Oz game already looks to be an ambitious venture for McGee and one that will no doubt result in a unique take on a classic tale.
Oz: Adventures is currently in development.
Source: Twitch