Embark on an epic pint-sized quest September 23rd on On Oculus, SteamVR, and Viveport.
After five grueling years of development, critically-acclaimed filmmaker Jon Favreau (Iron Man, The Mandalorian) is finally set to launch his long-awaited dream-like VR adventure Gnomes & Goblins later this month on Oculus, SteamVR, and Viveport. First debuted back in 2016, publisher Wevr will be showing off a beefy 20-minute demo later today as part of the Venice International Film Festival.
Developed in collaboration with VR director Jake Rowell, Gnomes & Goblins will have you embarking on a fantasy-driven adventure through an enchanted virtual world teeming with magical creatures, interactive mini-games, collectible artifacts, and various other activities in which your decisions have a direct impact on the story. Centered around a captivating “journey narrative,” you’ll step into the role of the hero as you befriend an adorable race of pint-sized goblins and work to protect their Smurf-like society from destruction at the hands of a terrifying foe.
“The appeal is to have somebody who is not a gamer and never had a VR experience, be able to enjoy this without feeling that they need to have a certain skillset, but we also don’t want it to be passive cinematic experience where people just sit and enjoy it like a ride,” said Favreau. “It needs to be something where you engage in the way that you would in life. It should feel like you’re developing a relationship with these characters.”
“This is one of those interesting projects that outlasted other ones,” said Wevr CEO Neville Spiteri during an interview with Gamesbeat. “The journey of VR for us continues to be a labor of love and passion. We firmly believe in this space. We firmly believe in the visual storytelling space as well as the immersive space.”
“And we’ve learned a lot about making VR through TheBlu, location-based entertainment, and now this larger product. VR has continued to evolve. The hardware has been progressing every year. We’re seeing a much broader range of titles. We are big believers in it, and I think we have to just keep riding the waves, one after another.”
Originally drawn to the project after seeing Wevr’s underwater VR series TheBlu, Favreau first began work on Gnomes and Goblins in 2015—the early days of the modern VR—before shifting gears dramatically in 2017. Over the next three years, Favreau and his team—with the support of producers Madison Wells Media and Favreau’s own Golem Creations—would continue to work on the ambitious character-focused experience while monitoring the latest developments in immersive technology.
Gnomes & Goblins launches September 23rd on PC VR headsets via Oculus, SteamVR, and Viveport. For more information on the project visit gnomesngoblins.com.
Image Credit: Wevr
