The Movies: Stunts & Effects

For those who haven’t heard of Lionhead Studios’ The Movies, here’s a bit of a recap: The Movies is a Sims-like game which allows you to take on the role of a film tycoon, controlling a studio through time from the early 1920s, right up until 2005. As the main force behind the studio, you are able to control everything, from the actors you hire (and whether or not you think they need to work out more, or even need surgery), to the scriptwriters, sets, props – the whole shebang. This in itself would make for a rather fascinating simulation; however the game doesn’t stop there. The Movies is also, in essence, a movie-making tool, which allows players to write, cast, design and shoot their own movies. You can then upload your film to Lionhead’s The Movies website, and vie for “industry awards”.

This new expansion pack, Stunts & Effects, brings several new elements to the original game. Stunts and effects, strangely enough, are the highlight, and give you the ability to hire stunt people, and control their development. A high-risk stunt can lead to your stuntman becoming more highly-rated; it could also land him or her a nice long hospital stay. (Don’t even think about letting your movie stars do their own stunts – it could spell disaster!) The associated new building types include training facilities, Stunt School, and yes, a hospital. Some of the more interesting sounding stunts include car crashes, horse riding antics, and helicopter explosions.

In addition to the stunts, Lionhead has also introduced a new particle FX engine to the game, which means your fire, smoke and explosions will look better, plus now you can include weather effects, shattering glass, muzzle flashes and lasers in your film. The list of effects really goes on and on.

The expansion pack also includes a ‘free camera’ mode, which will allow movie makers to place a camera anywhere, and blend a shot between two camera setups. Additions to the Advanced Movie Maker aspect of the game also include: easier prop placement, thumbnail pickers for costumes, and a camera overlays feature.

In all, The Movies: Stunts & Effects includes 15 new sets, 58 costumes with variations, nine new vehicles, supporting props and miniature models, and over 1,100 scenes across sets.

If you’re still not convinced, I recommend you check out Lionhead Studios’ website (lionhead.com), where you can watch some of the movies that others have made. It’s a blast!