A VR video game experience based on Project Hail Mary is coming later in the year. Taking place during a world saving journey to a distant sun, Tau Ceti, Project Hail Mary: Journey Among the Stars will allow players to take on the role of Dr. Ryland Grace (played by Ryan Gosling in the recent blockbuster movie) as he pilots his ship and works with Rocky, his Eridian friend.
Developed by Maze Theory–a VR-focused studio behind titles like Doctor Who: The Edge of Time and Peaky Blinders: The King’s Random–Project Hail Mary: Journey Among the Stars will be of interest to fans primarily due to a new storyline previously unseen in the book or film, written by Andy Weir.
What is Project Hail Mary: Journey Among the Stars about?
Project Hail Mary: Journey Among the Stars is described by the developers as “a mixed-reality experience expanding Andy Weir’s bestselling sci-fi universe into immersive interactive entertainment, placing players inside a pivotal, untold chapter of the Hail Mary mission.”
With the massive success of Project Hail Mary in theaters (it has even contributed to the spike in popularity of a decade-old space flight simulator game), it’s no surprise a video game adaptation is coming to capitalize on it’s popularity.
Players will be able to play as Dr. Grace through some of the best moments of the story, which are mostly interacting with Rocky and looking around the Hail Mary. As shown in the trailer, Rocky will interact with players in a few now iconic ways including thumbs down, jazz hands, and fist bumps (fist my bump!). Amaze Amaze Amaze!
Andy Weir’s adds a new chapter to Grace and Rocky’s story
The most exciting part of this VR title is that Andy Weir, the author of the original book (as well as The Martian, another book-turned-blockbuster smash hit), has written a canon addition to the story. Weir stated, “Since creating Project Hail Mary a few years ago, fans have been waiting for more. This is the first step outside of what happens in the book and movie that you can experience in mixed reality.”
While finer plot details on what that “step outside” means, we can likely expect a tense situation involving critical systems aboard the Hail Mary failing, based on what Maze Theory’s website has advertised, which players will need to solve with the help of Rocky’s engineering skills.
Project Hail Mary: Journey Among the Stars will release sometime later this year, with further details on platforms and gameplay coming soon. If fans of the movie are itching for more content before this distant time frame, be sure to check out the novel or audiobook!
