How involved was the channel in production?

We are pretty heavily involved, approving things along the way much as you would a TV production, certainly how our brands are used, commenting on how the action looks and so on. It’s a very similar level of involvement.

Will you use the game in any programming?

Not sure, since we’re not done with the game yet. But that’s certainly something we would consider. We did use some footage from a non-branded game, Rome: Total War, in a show called Decisive Battles. [As did BBC show Time Commanders.]

Can you see yourselves exploring areas beyond military strategy in the future?

Most of the games are strategy, but the Shootout game is the first time we’ve done a first person shooter. Strategy does have the closest link to programming. I think there’s more of a place for the history to be included, although even in Shootout there were a lot of sidebars that really created the history for you. It’s also a bit about us being an adult network, that’s what fascinates people about our programmes – what are the events that really impacted world history? – and strategy is a big part of that.

Can there be educational benefits to these historical videogames?

It’s interesting, there was a lot of discussion with the panel [held in Rome with the mayor of the city and the Italian education minister, at an event to promote Great Battles Of Rome] about the fact that the older generation needs to start to accept that children are going to watch videogames. If there’s a possibility to use their own media to reach them then that has really positive results, and that’s something that we would look forward to. We’ve seen an acceptance of video in the classroom for many years now, and we’ve launched a number of video products for the US education curriculum, so I think it’s a natural next step. If there are games that can explain history in a fun way that reaches children, then I think that’s positive.

With young people spending less time watching TV and more time playing games, will other TV channels follow your lead?

We’ve really tried to co-ordinate the two with Shootout, where we’re cross-promoting them to ensure people aren’t leaving the show to play the game. But the overall point is that media are converging, and we have to mean something to people, whatever their medium of choice is. The brands that manage that are the brands and the networks that are going to make it through this very substantial shift.

 
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