EA Announces A Real American Videogame

Electronic Arts has announced it is developing a new G.I. Joe videogame to coincide with the release of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, the live-action movie coming to theaters this summer.

Developed by EA Hasbro, the G.I. Joe movie game will pick up where the upcoming film ends, giving players a chance to "re-create and re-live the greatest moments from the film, cartoon series and action figure toy line." Players will have access to 12 G.I. Joe characters with unique abilities and weapons in single-player and two-player co-op gameplay.

"G.I. Joe has been an icon of action for 45 years," said Mark Blecher, Hasbro's General Manager of Digital Gaming and Media. "EA has tapped the legacy of the G.I. Joe vs. Cobra saga to create an amazing interactive experience inspired by the movie, comic books, animated series and iconography that we hope will resonate with millions of fans."

"EA is excited to play a major role in bringing this icon of pop culture history to a new generation of enthusiasts through interactive gaming," added EA Hasbro General Manager Chip Lange. "G.I. Joe offers exceptionally rich storylines and a cast of characters that lends itself incredibly well to creating an over-the-top action adventure video game that will thrill gamers as well as G.I. Joe fans."

I don't recall "exceptionally rich storylines" figuring prominently in the G.I. Joe formula but product tie-ins run wild certainly has, and even though videogame adaptations of crappy summer blockbusters is nothing new Joe's long history of crossover products makes it feel more organic than most. The movie will probably suck and the videogame will almost certainly be worse, but it's G.I. Joe and somehow that makes it seem alright. And who knows? If we're lucky, maybe we'll get some cool new lunchboxes out of the deal.

G.I Joe: The Rise of Cobra: The Videogame Based on the Movie Based on the Cartoon Series Based on the Action Figures based on the Toys That Debuted in the Mid-60s is scheduled for release in summer 2009. For more information, go to gijoe.ea.com.