SONY PICTURES VIRTUAL REALITY AND SPECULAR THEORY LAUNCH HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA RHYTHM GAME IN VR ARCADES WORLDWIDE
“Hotel Transylvania Popstic™” Available to Play at Over 500 VR Arcades in North America, Asia and Europe”
On the heels of the debut of Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, which has earned over $100 million at the global box office, Sony Pictures Virtual Reality (SPVR) today announced that it has partnered with Specular Theory, an award-winning immersive content studio, on a new VR rhythm game, “Hotel Transylvania Popstic™.”
Based on Sony Pictures Animation’s popular Hotel Transylvania franchise, “Hotel Transylvania Popstic™” enables players to choose between beloved characters Drac, Mavis, or Johnny as DJ and select songs from that character’s playlist. Players then use their agility and dancing skills to hit incoming targets and avoid obstacles with the help of a custom VR peripheral attachment called a Stic.
The Stic, which adds a new take on music rhythm games, is built for all ages and skill levels. To aid in game play, several hundred Stics, which are recommended but not required, were shipped to arcades around the world. “Hotel Transylvania Popstic™” is now available at more than 500 VR arcades, including SpringboardVR, Private Label VR, Synthesis VR, VR World NYC and Viveland, in North America, Europe and China.
“From the outset, Hotel Transylvania Popstic™ was designed to work for the growing VR arcade audience. It’s the perfect pairing of a movie brand that families love and a music rhythm game that is as fun to watch as it is to play,” said Jake Zim, Senior Vice President, Virtual Reality, Sony Pictures Entertainment.
“It’s been great to partner with the team at Sony Pictures Virtual Reality to work with their IP in a new way and create something authentic for the VR medium. It demonstrates a needed shift in the ecosystem, and we look forward to more major studios collaborating with indie creators to elevate the industry,” said Ryan Pulliam, CMO and Co-Founder Specular Theory.
“The game is well designed and a blast to play. This partnership represents the best in how SpringboardVR, creators and operators can be aligned in getting great content out to the market,” said Will Stackable, Co-Founder, SpringboardVR. “The way Specular Theory and Sony Pictures VR thought about the benefits of launching first in the out-of-home VR space and designing the game accordingly is exactly what we welcome from the creator community.”
For more information on “Hotel Transylvania Popstic™” go to http://www.popsticvr.com/.
ABOUT “HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3: SUMMER VACATION”
In Sony Pictures Animation’s Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation, join our favorite monster family as they embark on a vacation on a luxury monster cruise ship so Drac can take a summer vacation from providing everyone else’s vacation at the hotel. It’s smooth sailing for Drac’s Pack as the monsters indulge in all of the shipboard fun the cruise has to offer, from monster volleyball to exotic excursions, and catching up on their moon tans. But the dream vacation takes a dangerous turn when Mavis realizes Drac has fallen for the human captain of the ship, Ericka, who holds a mysterious secret that threatens them all. Directed by Genndy Tartakovsky and written by Genndy Tartakovsky and Michael McCullers, the film is produced by Michelle Murdocca.
ABOUT SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT
Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Entertainment Inc., which is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE’s global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition, and distribution; television production, acquisition, and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services and technologies. SPE
ABOUT SPECULAR THEORY
Popstic™ is a VR gaming platform created by Specular Theory, Inc., the award-winning immersive content and technology company based in Los Angeles. Using a proprietary gaming mechanic and custom peripheral attachment called the Stic, Popstic™ creates “Stic-based” VR games across categories in music, dance, fitness, and sports. Popstic™ games connect mind, body and movement with music, using rhythmically-generated puzzles and fast-moving sequences.
Specular Theory’s acclaimed, fast-growing studio has been recognized for its groundbreaking work across entertainment, v-commerce, and gaming, including their trailblazing Perspective VR series, one of the most talked-about pieces at the Sundance and Tribeca Film Festivals. The studio is one of the few companies to win honors in nearly every VR category, including the first ever VR Streamy Award and the Innov8 v-commerce competition, presented by Walmart’s tech incubator Store No.8.
Contact:
Lisa Broock
Sony Pictures Entertainment
Ryan Pulliam
Specular Theory
