Also, the Doctor Who Universe is huge. There
are hundreds of companions, monsters, planets and gadgets to draw from – your choices don’t just stop at Daleks and Cybermen, even if they are the show’s most well-known antagonists. Do you include guns and violence? Well, although these are not the things people immediately associate with Doctor Who, remember the Doctor spent an entire season marooned on Earth working for UNIT, who spent quite a lot of time running round shooting and blowing things up. People die in Doctor Who, all the time, sometimes
in the most horrible of circumstances. Steven Moffat once made a huge point of the Ninth Doctor shouting “Everybody lives, Rose! Just this once! Everybody lives!”. Still, if you are going to kill a character, make it for a good reason!
Christopher Dring: Doctor Who is a real challenge for developers. Do you make a game based on the current Doctor? If yes, you’re potentially alienating all those older fans of the show. What is the gameplay hook? The Doctor doesn’t shoot or hit or take part in any form of combat if they can help it. I’ve seen Doctor Who games try to be all things to
everyone. There’s a key to time, and you play as multiple Doctors, and you fight Daleks, then Cybermen, then it turns out the Master is behind it all, or really it was Davros the whole time… But I’ve also seen it try and
do things very specific. I had to admire Maze Theory’s found phone game that acted as a sequel to Blink. A 2021 mobile game based on an episode from 2009… that’s quite the niche proposition. But it was a really good effort. In fact, Maze Theory doing the whole Weeping
Angels in VR thing. When they first showed me that demo, I got goosebumps just at the thought of it. So clever. Doctor Who is about a hero who wins through thought, not fighting. It’s frightening and silly and funny and emotional. All wrapped up in stories that can take place basically anywhere. Wouldn’t it be amazing if we could get a game like that?
Doctor Who can go anywhere, at any point in time. What do you reckon are the unique challenges that poses for a developer on perhaps a AA (or er, BBC) budget? Sean Millard: The TARDIS’ ability to go anywhere and anywhen isn’t the challenge; ultimately, it’s just appearing in a new level or world for the gamer to enjoy. The challenges are far more about pacing the gameplay, staying true to the brand and honouring the audience.
Nick Holden: It’s a challenge of imagination in design and creativity in production, but a faithfully designed Doctor Who game wouldn’t have much in the way of action in it. The Doctor often solves mysterious problems using a logic that is never fully made clear.
Doctor Who: The Adventure Games October/November 2023 MCV/DEVELOP | 47
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