Kuma Games is developing a series of “gameisodes” with the upcoming season of the History Channel’s highly-rated original show, Dogfights.
Dogfights features recreations of famous air battles, using state-of-the-art computer animation, rarely-seen archival footage, and original video shoots, and is narrated via first-hand accounts of the combatants. Beginning with the new episode “Zero Killer,” which details Allied efforts to defend against Japanese kamikaze pilots, viewers will be directed to HistoryChannel.com or KumaGames.com, where they will be able to download the free Dogfights gameisode. Current plans call for at least 11 gameisodes to tie into the show.
The games will follow the script of each broadcast, and will incorporate images from the show. “There will be a variety of planes to fly, starting with WW2 planes like Zeros and Hellcats,” Kuma Games CEO Keith Halper said. “We receive the script for each show from the History Channel, and we evaluate it to make an accurate but fun gaming experience that’s true to the show.”
Kuma is able to create a new gameisode in four weeks, working with the show’s producers to ensure that the planes are modeled correctly and that combat tactics and settings are accurately recreated. Along with the game, players will also be provided historical information on the planes in each gameisode.
Kuma Reality Games is best known for its KumaWar title, which features a series of reality-based battles taken from recent U.S. history. The game has generated significant controversy over its use of the ongoing Iraq war as a game setting.
