Watchmen downloadable console game coming in 2009 with feature

Warner Bros. Interactive will publish Watchmen in 2009, an episodic downloadable game based on the upcoming film, for the Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and Windows PC.

The game captures the action and intrigue of the Watchmen film directed by Zack Snyder. The screenplay for Watchmen is by David Hayter and Alex Tse, based on the award-winning graphic novel illustrated by Dave Gibbons and published by DC Comics. The film is produced by Lawrence Gordon (Die Hard), Lloyd Levin (United 93) and Deborah Snyder (300), with Herbert W. Gains (The Brave One) and Thomas Tull (The Dark Knight) serving as executive producers.

In an alternate 1985 America, in which costumed superheroes are not only real but have ultimately been outlawed, one former hero goes looking for the truth behind the murder of one of his own, but uncovers a devastating conspiracy to drag the world implacably closer to its own end.

Playing the film’s core group of masks, the masked adventurers at the center of the story, are Malin Akerman (The Heartbreak Kid), Billy Crudup (The Good Shepherd), Matthew Goode (Match Point), Carla Gugino (Night at the Museum), Oscar nominee Jackie Earle Haley (Little Children), Stephen McHattie (Shoot ’em Up), Jeffrey Dean Morgan (Grey’s Anatomy), and Patrick Wilson (Little Children).

“We’re bringing the Watchmen universe to gamers in a distinct episodic game revealing action and combat for a great overall experience for fans,” said Samantha Ryan, Senior VP, Warner Bros. Interactive. “The filmmakers have been extremely helpful in developing the high-quality game story and we are working to match the outstanding visual style of the film.”

The game based on Watchmen will go beyond the film and delve into the characters, rivalries and challenges in a mature action-brawler. It provides gamers with visceral superhero combat as urban vigilantes Rorschach and Nite Owl.