Robert Kirkman's Skybound Partnering With Oxenfree Developers Night School Studios
01/18/2021 09:36 am EST
Robert Kirkman's Skybound Entertainment and indie videogames developer Night School Studios have announced a partnership around Night School's upcoming release, Oxenfree. Skybound plans to help Night School develop Oxenfree as a franchise brand, seeking opportunities to expand into film, a web docuseries, merchandise, and more.
Oxenfree is an adventure game with a story that is both a coming-of-age tale and a supernatural thriller. Oxenfree is due out January 15 for Xbox One, Windows 10 and Steam (PC and Mac).
Players will take on the role of Alex, a bright and rebellious teenager, as she brings her new step-brother Jonas to an overnight high school party gone horribly wrong. Rites of passage and senior year traditions set the stage for a group of friends sneaking off to Edwards Island, a decommissioned military outpost with no phone service. Inspired by classic cult films like Stand by Me and Poltergeist, Oxenfree is a narrative-driven adventure game that promises surprising twists and an emotional outcome for players.
"Skybound is kicking off the New Year in a big way. As soon as we got our hands on Oxenfree and experienced this unique narrative driven game we knew that the IP had huge potential and that the Skybound team needed to be a part of it," said Kirkman in a press release. "Creating multiplatform entertainment in the thriller genre is in our wheelhouse, and it's great to partner with the passionate developers at Night School to delve deeper into the Oxenfree realm."
Here's the list of upcoming events and assets related to Oxenfree that Skybound has planned:
- "All-Day Live Stream of Oxenfree" with Skybound & Friends on January 15th @ 11am PT
- Fans are invited to tune in to twitch.tv/skybound starting at 11am PT where we will be playing and discussing the game throughout the day!
- An Official Oxenfree Making of Webseries called "The Story of Oxenfree"
- The Story of Oxenfree videos will be released daily on youtube.com/user/Skybound starting January 11th – January 14th, leading up to the Friday "Skybound and Friends" Twitch stream
- "The Story of Oxenfree" episodes will focus on: Story & Narrative, Art, Gameplay & Mechanics and Characters & Voices
- The Episodes were produced by Genevieve Jones and directed by Michael Cruz, Shot by Collin Brazie and Charles Gibson, Edited by Ron Babcock and Michael Cruz, with music from the game composed by SCNTFC
- Skybound and Night School have also commissioned Outcast comic artist Paul Azaceta to create a limited edition Oxenfree poster
"We are beyond excited to be working with Robert Kirkman and Skybound to expand the Oxenfree world," said Sean Krankel, co-founder and CEO, Night School Studio. "Skybound have shown time and again that they know how to take weird, creepy, cool stories and bring them to various media in super authentic ways. Oxenfree has been a labor of love for Night School, and it's clear to us that Skybound will treat our story and characters with respect in games, film, and beyond. We're looking forward to creating awesome content together and offering fans a deeper dive into the world of Oxenfree!"
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