Disney and Lucasfilm are kicking off a new digital venture called ‘Star Wars: Journeys’, interactive “storybooks” that bring the Star Wars universe to life in what actually appear to be more like a mixture of story and games. This marks the first digital collaboration between Lucasfilm and its parent company. The first app ‘The Phantom Menace’ is currently only available on Apple devices via the iTunes store for a slightly hefty $6.99. More storybooks will be rolled out in the future, one for each existing movie before J.J. Abram’s ‘Episode VII’ hits theaters on December 18th, 2015.
The story mode is pretty much a straightforward telling of the movie’s plot, utilizing original artwork that is partially animated (kind of like a web comic) and allows “readers” to explore the environment and unlock additional chapters.
Each book will also include a game mode. For ‘The Phantom Menace’ it’s a pod-racing game and as you make your way through the book, the racing pods can be modified and improved. Creators assure that each storybook will have its own unique game play, meaning this will be the only racing game for the series. Later books will have a different form of game play.
The ‘storybooks ‘ will also include detailed information about the various characters, vehicles and locales in the story.
Disney has had success with similar previous releases based on its movies, most recently ‘Frozen’. ‘Star Wars: Journeys’ is targeted to kids aged 6-12, which is why they are currently only available on the Apple platforms, but the studio does plan to expand to Android devices moving forward.
Want a taste of what’s in store? Check out this promotional video for a quick glimpse:
The clip is short, so here are a few screen grabs to allow you to take in a bit more detail:
Will you be downlaoding these for any little Jedi in your life? Or even just for the kid inside you?
Source: Variety
