Games of Games of Thrones – What’s Available and What We’re Hoping For
Game of Thrones is a TV series that most people will at least be familiar with having been adapted from the series of books (A Song of Ice and Fire) written by George R. R. Martin. The series has not only been very successful but also led to a surge of interest in reading the books the series is based on. Not surprisingly, there have been a selection of games released on both PC and consoles that tie in with series. Game of Thrones: Genesis was the first game to be released in 2011 on the Windows platform with gameplay taking place over the course of 1000 years in Westeros. This is a strategy game where the goal is to capture various nodes leading to taking the iron throne either in campaign mode or against a friend in story mode. The game itself met with mixed success and reviews.
In 2012, Games of Thrones was released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows. The game plays out during the same time period as season 1 of the series and ties in with series in several ways, most notably the soundtrack. This is an action role-playing game offering more of an immersive experience for the player, switching between two playable characters in a similar way to the chapters in the books. Though criticized for its gameplay, it has been praised for its storyline. It is worth looking out for George R. R. Martin’s cameo appearance as Maester Martin in Castelwood. 2013 saw the release of Games of Thrones: Ascent on mobile devices (iOS and Android) as well as on Facebook. The game is a strategy game that according to George R. R. Martin features “alliance building, treachery, marriages, murders, and most of all the constant struggle to be the greatest house in Westeros.” In 2014 Disruptor Beam, the game’s developer, released an expansion for the game which added new quests and players could now travel beyond the wall. The game is massively popular possibly due to the platforms it was released on.
2014 saw the release of Game of Thrones: A Telltale Games Series, an episodic graphic adventure developed by Telltale Games which received more positive critical reviews. It was released for PlayStation 4, XONE and for PC. Its relative success has led to development of another season by Telltale Games. While Game of Thrones has had mixed success on consoles it has become very popular in iGaming circles, with a slot game available to try here on Slots.io that’s officially licensed and based on the series. With the increasing popularity of iGaming worldwide it is no surprise that Game of Thrones is available as a slot. There is also an eagerly awaited MMORPG being developed Bigpoint which promises to tie into the hit series as well.
With the advent of Virtual Reality and Sony’s PS VR in particular could a Game of Thrones game be in the Future? While there is as of yet no news on the development of such as game, the PS VR would be the ideal platform to immerse the player in the world of Westeros and fight for the Iron Throne.
