Hinterland sells 1.3m copies of The Long Dark
Canadian studio's survival game gains momentum with film deal for live-action adaptation from Resident Evil producer Jeremy Bolt
Vancouver-based Hinterland Studio has announced that its minimalist survival game The Long Dark has managed to sell 1.3m copies in advance of its launch on August 1. It had been previously announced that the title sold 750,000 copies back in April, so the developer has managed to almost double its sales in a few months leading up to the official launch. Furthermore, Hinterland and The Long Dark could be in for a bigger spotlight, as the studio just landed a movie deal with Bolt Pictures.
Resident Evil producer Jeremy Bolt will help the game developer bring a live adaptation of its wintery survival adventure to the big screen, and Raphael van Lierop, founder and creative director at Hinterland, will be handling the movie's script.
"My goal with Hinterland - starting with The Long Dark -- has always been to create original entertainment properties that could span multiple mediums, exploiting the storytelling potential of each form," said van Lierop. "Partnering with Jeremy on this project is the first step in achieving that vision of true cross-platform storytelling in the world of The Long Dark."
The studio commented that The Long Dark is a "post-apocalyptic story with a Canadian twist, and echoes the themes and tone of films like The Road, or television like The Walking Dead."
Bolt added, "I first reached out to Raphael, as a fan of The Long Dark. I was immediately taken by the game's stunningly immersive landscapes, eerily solitary and realistic nature; it is an existential tale of moral, emotional and physical endurance with strong characters to build on; it is also a mystery. It is an honor to try to do justice to it on film."
There's no word yet on a director or actors for the feature film, but van Lierop has already created a short film called Elegy to showcase his goals in transitioning The Long Dark to live action. The five-minute film, which you can view below, was directed by Jared Pelletier, performed by Oscar-winning actor Christopher Plummer, and written by van Lierop.
"I describe Elegy as a visual poem. Jared's passion for the source material is evident -- he really connected with The Long Dark's artistic sensibilities, and the game's unique sense of identity within its own fiction. I think Elegy stands as an example of the level of quality and the overall tone I'd like to deliver in The Long Dark film," added van Lierop.