IGNN–The Imaginary Game News Network

ATLANTA, GA–Maury Cathan always dreamed of being Captain Ahab from Herman Melville’s classic novel, Moby Dick. As a boy, he used to pretend that he was tracking the great white whale all over his Brooklyn neighborhood, occasionally bursting into homes and crying out, “Damn you, Queequeg! When I tell you to throw me a harpoon, I don’t mean pointy end first.” So now, as president and lead developer of Classic Quill Studios, his dream is taking shape in the form of Moby Dick: The Game.

“We chose the Wii, of course, because the remote will give players a feeling for all the nautical tasks that take place on a whaling vessel, from swabbing the decks to pulling in the main sheets,” Cathan told IGNN, adding, “And when I say sheets, I really mean the ropes that control the sails. There’s often a bit of confusion around that. It’s not like they rigged whaling ships with bedding or had to sleep up in the masts.”

Asked if Classic Quill was planning to support Natal when it releases later in the year, Cathan nodded enthusiastically. “Absolutely. Imagine the drama at the end of the game when you, as Ahab, are tangled in the lines with only your arm free to wave at the angry sea. That’s what Natal brings. Or being able to realistically wipe your nose in real-time and see it on screen. Were you aware that Ishmael had a runny nose through 48 percent of the narrative?”

We weren’t, of course, and when we noted that Ahab’s arm-waving portrayal in the movie occurred after the captain had drowned, Cathan seemed alarmed. He quickly recovered, however, and mentioned that Classic Quill was planning on supporting Sony’s motion wand thingy, too, although he didn’t know how it’s use could improve upon Melville’s masterpiece unless maybe it was spongy and you could throw it.

In the development version of the game that IGNN was allowed to test drive, we played the role of Moby Dick himself, and we were somewhat surprised to find ourselves battling a giant kraken from Europa.

“We took a few minor liberties with the story in order to add extra action elements and excitement,” Cathan admitted. “However, I feel it’s safe to say that if Melville had thought of including an enormous sea serpent from space, I’m sure he would have done so in the book much as we have in the game.”

Classic Quill’s plans extend well beyond the retelling of Moby Dick; in fact, Cathan sees his studio at the forefront of an entirely new genre of game, which he calls Live Action Literature or LAL. “I see it as analogous to the music games that are so popular these days. It’s a chance for regular people to experience something that ordinarily would require great skill such as learning to play guitar or, in this case, the ability to read.”

Future planned projects include: Wuthering Heights, Great Expectations, The Old Man and the Sea, and the rambling, incoherent internal monologue of James Joyce’s Ulysses, which Cathan describes as being akin to listening to a discussion of national security policies between intellectual giants Glenn Beck and Ozzie Osborn, “while you’re underwater and hopped up on LSD. I’ll tell you flat out,” confessed Cathan, “I’ll never do that again.”

But the ultimate project Cathan envisions is an LAL series consisting of all of Shakespeare’s plays, “Just imagine putting yourself in immortal roles such as Othello or Macbeth or Henry the Whatever. Tell me that won’t sell. I tell you, it’s going to be huge.” Gideon Chazwit-Stoop