The adventures of John Crichton and co provided a roller coaster ride for science fiction fans, although it wasn’t just restricted to the silver screen. The show was cancelled a season before it was originally meant to end, leaving fans on a cliffhanger for almost 4 years. I’m not a big fan of weekly cliffhangers but Farscape took that to new heights and beyond.
Thankfully Co-producer Brian Henson was able to secure a deal that would allow him to publish a short series dubbed Farscape: The Peacekeeper Wars. Since then we’ve heard rumors about a web series and even some comic books, but we’ve yet to see any further adventures in the Farscape universe.
Of all the TV to MMO articles that I’ve written, Farscape would probably be one of the easiest to handle in regards to development and release. There’s a host of interesting science-fiction MMO games based in space, and a Farscape MMO could quite easily take inspiration from any of them.
I would imagine a Farscape MMO to be delivered in a similar way to Star Wars: The Old Republic. The Star Wars MMO didn’t really rewrite any core mechanics or features of your typical MMO game, but it approached storytelling from a different angle due to the vast expanse that is; the lore surrounding Star Wars. In a similar way the Farscape universe is filled with hundreds of different species and planets, each with a detailed background story. A perfect backdrop for an in-depth approach to storytelling in MMORPG games.
Although I would imagine many aspects of a Farscape MMO to share features with the likes of EVE Online, there is also some room for more unique features. If you’re not familiar with the show the crew use the famous Moya as their lodgings and vessel. Unlike your traditional spaceship Moya is a living, breathing entity; well in a way. So players could potentially upgrade the pilot and core systems, while a certain degree of AI or automation is involved to depict a free-thinking mind.
I wasn’t the biggest fan of the series but the potential for a Farscape MMO is undeniable. Did you ever watch the TV show? Would you like to see the world of the Peacekeepers come to light in the MMO world?