Jupiter & Mars is a new game coming from Tigertron for PlayStation 4 & PSVR. Unlike many others, it’s both fun and a game with a conscience.
During this weekend’s PlayStation Experience, Tigertron took to the stage to introduce the game. “We’re creating the kinds of games we grew up loving and have been inspired by, with environmental activism as part of our DNA.” said James Mielke, creative director. “We’re trying to make our world a better place.”
So how does that happen in Jupiter & Mars?
Here’s how Mielke describes it:
Jupiter & Mars is a game concept I have been working towards for the past seven years or so. The PlayStation 4 and PlayStation VR platforms were the right place to debut this concept, and after two years of working on making this game a reality, it’s a real relief to take the lid off of it and show it to the world. While it’s playable in non-VR, it really shines when you put the headset on. You’re suddenly in a vibrant, pulsating underwater world where you’ll see familiar places in an all-new context, and that’s pretty exciting when you’re in a virtual reality setting. We’re really putting the work in to make this a 360-degree experience, offering equal parts visuals, audio, and haptic feedback.
Everywhere you look are sunken remnants of mankind’s past, populated by sea creatures big and small, and illuminated by evolved lifeforms that have assimilated into their being centuries worth of chemicals, plastics, metals and everything else humans have dumped in the oceans. While the world’s oceans have begun to reclaim and restore themselves, some particularly stubborn remnants of mankind’s technological past still remain. It’s up to our heroes, Jupiter and Mars, two evolved dolphins (one player-controlled, the other your hybrid player-controlled/AI partner) to make things right.
If you’re familiar with any of the projects I’ve been a part of in my past, like Q Entertainment’s Child of Eden (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3), and Lumines Electronic Symphony (PlayStation Vita), and Q-Games’ Visualizer (PS3), you can be sure to expect the same focus on eye-opening visuals and a curated musical experience. Although it’s only a snippet of the full song, you can hear a bit of the custom theme track “Shooting Stars” we recorded in London with Jonathan Atkinson (a core member of the late-George Martin’s production team) and Nami Miyahara (singer on Genki Rockets’ “Heavenly Star”).
The game is currently slated to surface in May 2018, and we look forward to unveiling more surprises and announcements between now and the game’s release. Again, this game has been a long, long time in the making, and it’s a real labor of love. If people can learn to love our characters like we do, and that care carries over into the real world, we all win. Everyone working on the game is naturally nervous with anticipation, but also super excited as well. We hope you’ll find Jupiter & Mars a compelling experience worth showing a little love.
