Sometime later this year a game based on Tony Jaa's niche martial-arts flick, Ong-Bak, will be released for multiple gaming platforms thanks to Studio HIVE picking up the IP rights to produce games based on the low-budget, hard-hitting action movie series.
Akarapol Techaratanaprasert, business development director at Sahamongkol Film International shared his thoughts about the game, saying...
“Ong-Bak is well known as a powerful international martial arts brand. We are very selective with our licensing partners and found in Studio HIVE the right partner to bring Ong-Bak to gaming platforms. Their approach to tie in movie and game is the right way to create a perfect interactive entertainment"
Man I just hope we get the bone breaking, elbow-crunching, knee bashing, shin shattering action that Tony Jaa made look so authentic in the movies, in the game. It's too bad Jaa wasn't cast in the upcoming Expendables flick but maybe he'll make it into the next movie.
As for the game...no details were released about Ong-Bak other than that it's going to be based on the action-heavy movie franchise. The game, so far, will have close story ties and plot directions overseen by Sahamongkol Film International because they don't want this to turn out to be a bad movie tie-in game like so many other franchises out there.
Also, no confirmation was made on whether Tony Jaa's likeness or fighting style will make it into the game...it's not like they can get just any Muay Thai kickboxer to fill his shoes.
We'll keep you posted on any further developments regarding Ong-Bak, but I'm hoping it's going to be a brutal, hard-hitting fighting game to please us martial-arts action fans, closer to Jackie Chan's Stuntmaster as opposed to the cash-in title Jet Li's Rise To Honor.
