Vivendi announces Van Helsing
Do the monster mash. DO IT.
Vivendi has announced details of Van Helsing, a third-person action title based on Universal Pictures' forthcoming eponymous action-adventure flick. The movie from writer-director Stephen Sommers - responsible for The Mummy and The Mummy Returns - returns to draw inspiration from the studio's classic horror back catalogue. Again.
The game puts players in the shoes of monster hunter Van Helsing and transports them back to 19th century Transylvania to hunt down and destroy classic characters such as Dracula, Wolf Man and Frankenstein's Monster. Van Helsing can deal death with a range of melee and ranged weapons in an arsenal that will include tojo blades, scimitars, pistols, a shotgun and - in what's clearly going to be the most fun weapon in the game - a hand-cranked gattling gun.
The game will apparently recreate key moments and battles from the movie as well as fleshing out the mythology of the characters with the use of a backstory that isn't featured in the movie. The game is due for release on PS2 and Xbox in the UK around the same time as the movie (natch), which opens on May 14th.