Oddworld Inhabitants Readies Game, CG Film

Veteran developer Oddworld Inhabitants, creator of the Oddworld series of adventure and action games, has finally resurfaced with news of its current projects. Early last year, the company announced that it would be significantly trimming down its staff and modifying its business model to focus on game design as well as creation of other forms of entertainment including animated films. Today, speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, company head Lorne Lanning has announced that Oddworld Inhabitants is planning both a video game and CG animated film based on a property called Citizen Siege. Lanning first mentioned the Citizen Siege concept in 2004, calling it "politically controversial," though has not gone into detail regarding its gameplay. Before entering the games industry in the early 1990s, Lanning's background was in CG animation, and he believes that Oddworld has the ability to work successfully within both that field and its traditional domain of video games. "Citizen Siege was conceived as a game and film from the very beginning," said Lanning. "Oddworld has had the chance to create original property that was designed as a film and as a game experience simultaneously. So the two influence one another as they grow. This is an idea that's being talked about by media companies, but for the most part isn't really happening yet."