MUMBAI: It has been three weeks since Indian audiences have been introduced to a new fictional TV format in the form of real time story telling through the first international adaptation of the American hit 24. With a 360 degree marketing campaign – almost like that used for full length feature films - to help create the buzz around the series, host channel Colors has decided to perk it up by throwing in a sparkling digital ingredient for viewers.
And it’s coming in the form of a 3D interactive mobile game for iOS and Android phones. Developed by Gameshashtra Solutions, it is targeted at those who want to have the thrill of playing Jai Sing Rathor (Anil Kapoor) – the main protagonist of the show – while on the go. Called ‘Safari Storme 24-The Game, it is available for download only in India. It will allow gamers to go through three maps of Worli, Dadar and Parel with 30 levels of two minutes each. As of now only the Worli route is available while the other two will be launched in the coming weeks.The first map of Worli is a rooftop setting.
Four and a half months went into creating the 3D game. Fans will keep going through levels, scoring points, winning ammunition and then checking scores with others on the ‘leader board’ through their Facebook or Twitter accounts.
India has a great potential to become a destination for film shooting but the current system of multiple clearances at various levels make it an unattractive destination for filming, says Manish Tewari
“The three locations in the game are also there in the series,” says Colors digital head Vivek Malhotra. “We kept the game in the spirit of the show by taking the concept ‘race against time’ rather than the political drama in it,” he adds.
Explaining the game technique Malhotra says that players have two ways of surviving - hit and survive or duck and survive. As the game levels progress, the enemies come in hordes and ammunition also stacks up.
Coming up with a 3D game has probably cost sack fulls of money, apart from what has already been invested in the expensive show. But the channel seems to not be too worried about it.
“For the first season it is not about making money,” says Malhotra who is aiming at getting 1 million downloads for the free game. However, advertisements will be inserted into the game that would give them some amount of revenue.
24 is Colors biggest fiction property created by Anil Kapoor Productions and RDB. Delly Belly director Abhinay Deo is the series director while Rensil D’Silva is the scriptwriter.
The show is presented by Safari Storme while Next is one of the associate sponsors. The launch day saw it garner 3.4 million viewers with most of it coming from the urban areas while the second week saw it get an average of 2.6 million viewers.
“Television executives in India are increasingly understanding that you can take a TV show into other experiences for viewers. Look at KBC which has a game which allows fans to test their general knowledge skills online and on the mobile. And now Colors has developed a 24 game which will allow youngsters and old alike to shoot, and kill while rising up in levels,” says a media observer. “The fact that it is primarily for the mobile will bring in a lot of fans who will play the game when they have a few minutes to spare, whether in the bus or the train or in between meetings. It’s a great move. Hopefully, some of the gamers who are not viewers of the series will be lured to watch it after playing the game.”
Another media observer says that there is little hope of 24 ever becoming a massy series along the lines of soaps and dramas. “It’s great to flog the horse, but the horse only has that many backers,” says she. “Colors has gambled with 24 and it is to be lauded for the effort especially in terms of taking TV production and narrative to a different level. But it should bear in mind that 24 is going to be a niche affair for some time. So it should not expect too many incremental gains from the game as well.”
