Michael Nankin has been working on the Defiance television show that ties in with the massively multiplayer online game of the same name from Trion Worlds. The project has occupied hundreds of creators for years and is finally coming to a head. The game debuts April 2, and its story builds to the beginning of the TV show that debuts on April 15.
“There’s a seamless transition from one to the other, and we are hoping that will lead gamers — after becoming attached to the characters after two weeks of play — into the pilot,” Nankin said.
You can play the game without ever watching the show and vice versa, but as TV series goes on, some characters will leave the show and transition into the game. Global issues affect both worlds, as the show is set in St. Louis and the game is based in the San Francisco area. The sci-fi show has the flavor of a western, but Nankin describes it more as an immigrant drama.
The first season will have 13 episodes. Some are finished and some aren’t. That’s what you call real-time production. Here’s our video interview with Nankin.
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SyFy’s Michael Nankin tells us about the making of the Defiance television show from VentureBeat on Vimeo.