Issues with the knew knightmare episodes...
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The ones that are in development won't involve the player being blindfolded or directed by a team?!?! Whats that all about - surely thats the whole object of knightmare; thats what we all enjoy about it isn't it?
"The original show involved blindfolding a young player or dungeoneer with a knight's helmet and sending them into a blue walled studio. Cromakey techniques then transposed this into an enthralling hand-drawn dungeon, created by artist David Rowe. A revived show would stay true to those early principles but with virtual reality and avatar (3D cloning) technology removing the need for any blindfolding or guiding of the studio based adventurer."
Is it just me who really dosn't think that this will work?
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That's what several of us said when we first heard about it (me included, I'm not going to hide from that). But when you think about it a bit more, you can realise the opportunities available with the updated format- a faster pace, challenges of new and different kinds, a whole new type of experience for those playing, etc.
The idea tends to grow on you.
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Tim Child has always wanted to do this. Series 7 and 8 were starting to tend that way anyway - just look at the sight potions and spells etc.
The original premise was to get a person inside the game. The original solution employed Chromakey, mixed reality and so forth - and it was through necessity rather than design. All this amazing new VR technology allows the dungeoneer to integrate seamlessly into the dungeon. The flaws in the old system become very much apparant when it's time for a dungeoneer to fall down a pit!
For me, Knightmare was about the enormous tension that it built up. As long as the new series has it, it WILL be Knightmare.
Having a dungeoneer that can actually see may pose a bit of a problem when trying to build tension. If you cannot see then when under threat you can neither run nor fight - going totally against Fight or Flight. This may be lost, or at least diminished, by giving the dungeoneer sight. However, there are still many other ways to build tension. In any case, I'm sure after 9 years, Tim Child has a huge cache of ideas at the ready! I'm confident the new series will be a success. OK, so it will be different - but then, no two series are the same, anyway.
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When my children are born, they will be brought up wearing helms. Children should be blindfolded and not see.
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It does grow on you when you think about it I must admit. But I would like to at least see some blindfolded sections.
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Well, there's nothing stopping them from having "blind spots" in the dungeon where the dungeoneer has to be guided. Similarly, there could be areas (perhaps in the final conflict?) when communications between the dungeoneer the antechamber are blocked (no-one can be heard and the dungeoneer cannot even be seen) resulting in the dungeoneer having to work things out himself/herself.
Hmm. Not a bad idea, actually! ;D
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Children should be blindfolded at all times.
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Do you blindfold them?
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this was posted by BeVeryAfraid (Mr. Child) just yesterday i believe. in the Budget topic in general...the final section is the most relevant here...
A few answers to a few questions.
The CK tests came first naturally - then the first pilot.
The budget (cost) per programme for Knightmare was £50k. As programmes were only 23 minutes long, gameplay was usually constrained to no more than 20 minutes, after you had subtracted the duration of end and closing titles, plus resume.
So at £2.5k per minute it was very expensive for a gameshow (there being no tarrif for adventure games at the time). It was however cheap for drama, but then drama could always be repeated, whereas most gameshows aren't.
In 1993 we kept all the staff and cast on for two days at the end of series production and made a 30 minute pilot for the US market, entitled Lords of the Game.
All the cast were used except Hugo who was replaced by an American actor. Players were provided by the US Air base at Mildenhall in Suffolk. The pilot was not successful, US production companies being terrified of Cromakey-based shows, because of the technical complexity. A German production of Knightmare was agreed with RTL in Cologne in 91 but was then cancelled.
We were to make the first series (50 shows) in the UK, flying in German players and actors, and then export the production to Cologne for series 2.
Finally, a Sci-Fi adventure game format (in the Space Hulk/Aliens) style has been developed and is doing the rounds of the TV broadcasters. We think it's rather good.
It's called GARGANTUA 3.
And for those who are worried about the incorporation of Knightmare into full VR, I say: if we thought we couldn't do atmosphere and tension with this technology, then we wouldn't try it at all.
BVA
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The Knightmare "franchise" (if one can call it that) is in the safest hands it could possibly be in i.e. those of its creator.
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Well, the format rights are but the made programmes and books remain the property of Granada Media, so I'm not sure whether what he has is the actual franchise. Mind you, if the new series airs and is successful, a new franchise will evolve around it - and the old one will be revitalised, too (all the old books going back into print, for example).
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And maybe action figures?
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Or playsets entitled "Dicken meets the blocker" or "Ridolfo and Pooka double-set combo" or "real fire action Smirkenorff". Somebody start a thread ... actually, best not to.
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