E3 2005: Level Up
Oompas and Zorgons
Product: Charlie & Chocolate Factory
Company: No Company
Date: 05/30/2005
Avaliable On:

Among 2K Games' other E3 offerings are a set of movie-based games set to release alongside their reeled counterparts later this year.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is based on the movie hitting theaters this July. Taking place somewhere outside the movie?s timeframe, you play Charlie as he guides a pack of Oompa Loompas around the factory cleaning up the mess left in the wake of Willy Wonka?s infamous tour group.

Gameplay is similar to Pikmin or Lemmings with some platforming areas thrown in. You?ll order around Oompas with simple commands as they repair machinery around the factory. To do this, Charlie will have to navigate the factory and find the parts the Oompas will need. In addition to an army of Oompas, Charlie will also be able to use the candy he finds in the factory to earn special abilities.

The movie?s director, Tim Burton, is apparently involved in the game?s creation, though the extent of his involvement in the project is unknown. The rights to the actor?s likenesses and voices have also been acquired, which means we might finally get a chance to see a digital Johnny Depp in the near future.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory will release alongside the movie this July.

Zathura: Adventure is Waiting is based on Columbia Picture?s upcoming movie of the same name. The movie, directed by Jon Favreau and based on the book by Chirs Van Allsburg, is about two boys who are sucked into a magical board game, leading them to an adventure of galactic proportions.

You play as either Danny or Walter, each with their own distinct abilities as they try to find a way back home. Along the way, they?ll also have to brave a group of reptilian aliens called Zorgons, robots and a dangerous meteor shower.

The game?s major mechanic will center on the boys' sibling rivalry and getting the boys to put them aside in order to solve puzzles. There?s no word on how this will play out in the game, though it does sound like an intriguing idea.

Zathura will include 15 levels, all based on locations from the movie. The game will also expand on areas mentioned in the books.

Adventure awaits this October.

Starscream aka Ricky Tucker

GameVortex PSIllustrated TeamPS2