Shiny! Or maybe not so shiny, according to a lot of fans.
The news was announced today at San Diego Comic Con. Firefly, a cult classic directed by Joss Whedon was aired on Fox for only 14 episodes, along with the movie Serenity, but it has a massive following. The Browncoats, as fans call themselves, have been raging and crying for something to fill in the Serenity crew gap, so QMx Interactive, Fox Digital Entertainment, and Spark Plug Games have put Firefly Online together to try to attempt to quell the fire. But will it be enough?
Most likely not. For one, fans are still (and rightly so) carrying a grudge against Fox for canceling Firefly in the first place. Joss Whedon refused to give in to Fox’s demands to change some scenarios and character personalities, and thus, Firefly was gone as quickly as it swooped in.
Secondly, it will initially come to iOS and Android devices once it releases in Summer of 2014. Although I’ll admit that there are a number of great games for these operating systems, Firefly Online will burst with popularity and quickly die out because MMORPG’s are not really meant for tablets or smartphones; they’re really meant to be experienced on a PC.
Thirdly, Spark Plug games have some big shoes to fill. Titles by Spark Plug include Plight of the Zombie, Puzzle Quest, and Dairy Queen Tycoon. Their track record doesn’t show that they could pull off something this huge, since their games are more fun and simple based. Also, their graphics are very cartoon-ish, so to try to take on this mission to satisfy hundreds of thousands of fans is pretty daunting.
Looking at the trailer, it doesn’t look promising. And I’m sorry to completely lose hope because if you follow me on twitter or facebook, you saw my all caps tweet about how excited I was. Digging deeper, I became more disappointed the more I read. At best, it looks like a game to keep yourself occupied when you’re waiting for your friend at Starbucks or between college classes. I want this game to be gripping, competitive, and upstanding of the Firefly and Joss Whedon name.
Could it be great? Sure it can. The trailer didn’t reveal anything more than the main objective of the game, which is to find a crew, get a job, and keep flying. I suspect that it will be a time-passer on the iOS and Android devices, but maybe it will become something better when and if it hits PC.