If ever there was a film franchise tailor-made for video game tie-ins, it has to be Disney’s 1982 TRON, which was the first film to take computer-generated imagery into the mainstream of Hollywood filmmaking—even if it was using DEC minicomputers to do it. Although it’s taken nearly 30 years to follow up on TRON, Disney’s 3D follow-up TRON: Legacy has been in the incubator for a while, and now Disney is priming audiences with TRON: Evolution, a new video game title that aims to bridge the story gap between the original 1982 TRON and the forthcoming TRON: Legacy feature. And, of course, the game was developed hand-in-hand with TRON: Legacy, benefiting from the same production assets, principle photography, cast, and even soundtrack.
“TRON: Legacy re-envisions a unique digital landscape that is perfectly suited to the video game world,” said TRON: Legacy producer and production president for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Sean Bailey, in a statement. “TRON: Evolution is a natural extension of TRON: Legacy, and I can’t wait for fans to see them both.”
TRON: Evolution focuses on the new TRON character of Quorra—played in the upcoming movie and voiced in the game by Olivia Wilde—and her story before the events in TRON: Legacy. The game also features Bruce Boxleitner (who played the original Tron character and has roles in both movies), as well as two tracks from the Daft Punk score for TRON: Legacy.
TRON: Evolution is available now for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The PS3 version includes a stereoscopic 3D option for 3D-capable HDTVs and also supports the PlayStation Move controller for lightcycle game play. All three versions of downloadable add-on content available through a one-time-use retail code, including two multiplayer maps and a Sam Flynn multiplayer character skin that will be available December 14. Disney plans to release additional add-on content in the future.
A related game, TRON: Evolution—Battle Grids (yes, the title needs a colon and a dash) is also available for the Nintendo Wii, featuring 15 minigames supporting as many as four players in the same room, along with a story mode.
TRON: Evolution is ranted T for “Teen” by the ESRB, while TRON: Evolution—Battle Grids is rated E10+. TRON: Evolution for the Xbox 360 and PS3 is priced at $59.99, with collectors editions going for $129.99 (and including movie tickets and a collectible illuminated light cycle model). TRON: Evolution—Battle Grids for the Wii is $49.99, and a Games for WIndows Live version sells for $29.99. TRON: Evolution games for the Nintendo DS and PSP will be $39.99.
