Who's Bad? This New Video Game Idea

Michael Jackson MMO Game Under Development

A shot of 'Planet Michael' capturing the essence of the King of Pop...Creepy

I love following the latest headlines in the video game world, but this next story had my brain moonwalking its way out of reason. A company called "SEE Virtual Worldsm" announced it is developing a Michael Jackson based MMO (massive multiplayer online) game called "Planet Michael," which will take inspiration from everything that encompasses the King of Pop. Although no gameplay details were revealed, the game is supposedly taking inspiration from Jackson's creative works, as well as his life outside of the recording studio. Not surprisingly, this has many gamers, including myself, scratching their heads harder than Bubbles the Monkey searching for ticks.

Yay, Lets Climb a Tree!

According to the developers, "Planet Michael will offer fans around the globe an innovative, first-of-its-kind interactive gaming and social experience that truly celebrates Michael Jackson's extraordinary life as an artist and humanitarian." Although that tells us nothing concrete about the game, I have a hard time imagining how this will work. Usually, MMO games like "World of Warcraft" or even "Everquest" require a hefty user base that is drawn in by the game's vivid and diverse world, but above all it's the gameplay that matters. Michael Jackson's music career DOES have many unique worlds that were buil on thanks to his music videos that the developers could feed on. Whether it's a graveyard level based on 'Thriller,' or a back alley beating neighborhood based on 'Beat-It,' there IS room to work with. But just how will this game play?

Moonwalker clearly hinted at the possibilities of multiplayer

Many wisecracks are already circulating the internet, so I figured I might as well throw in my two cents on what this game will be like. First, if it wants to succeed, it needs to be a quest based system like World of Warcraft. Obviously we should have different playable class systems, with players able to choose whether they want to be a good buy or a bad guy. So here are the classes I had in mind. Good guys: the police. These are going to be your tanks in the game. You can upgrade them to have riot gear as you level up because once you reach the higher levels, you're going to have to fight off swarms of pedophiles. Next up are the angry parents. These are your ranged attackers. Parents will have either air tasers or pepper spray, all of which are upgradeable. Lastly are the pediatricians. Clearly these are your healers, and they'll mostly be geared with antibiotics and syringes, due to the massive amounts of sexually transmitted "debuffs" your party may get from playing in the world of Michael Jackson. As you level up your pediatrician, you can also learn child psycho therapy. You'll need this later on if you fail a child saving escort quest. 

Bubbles the Monkey! What I remember most of Michaels life

Bad guys: the more popular class will be the metal image of Michael Jackson found on his album 'History: Past, Present, and Future Book 1." Clearly the tank of the bunch, this metallic moonwalker will have several abilities at his disposal such as Candy Treats, Pixie Dust, and Rocket Propelled Boots. Don't ask me about the boots, they're awesome. Next up are the chimps. These furry primates are your ranged attackers that fling monkey poo at their foes at a moments notice. You can upgrade your armor by speaking with the all wise leader of the chimps, Bubbles the Monkey. He'll offer you upgrades like shiny monkey gloves, which boost your agility in poo throwing. You can also gain a stamina bonus on your armor with upgradeable suspenders. Finally, the healer of the group will consist of members of the Jackson 5 (with the exception of Michael of course). Jackie, Jermaine, Tito, and Marlon will all have the ability to heal you through their angelic voices. Singing words of encouragement, your party can receive healing bonuses that don't require the use of a numerical HP system, but rather "ABC's," because it's as easy as 1,2,3. 

The end boss of my Michael Jackson MMO...Joe Pesci

The quest system works the way you'd expect. Good guys usually get escort quests by finding at risk, rape targeted kids and getting them away from Neverland Ranch. You may have to fight a monkey or two, but it's pretty challenging. The bad guys quest chain involves escort quests of luring kids into Neverland Ranch using candy and the promise of going to an amusement park. Other bad guy quests involve fighting zombies on the set of Thriller, preventing Bubbles from having a monkey attack in the mansion, and acquiring Eddie Van Halen to do an awesome guitar solo to boost your stats. Oh and the final dungeon of the game, which just so happens to take place in a dank, cold, dripping cave, involves you fighting mud creatures in order to get to the final boss... which is Joe Pesci from "Moonwalker." Ah! I can't wait to play it now.

A good use of Michael Jackson in a video game

But seriously, is a Michael Jackson MMO game really necessary? The man was known for his influence on Pop music. Sure the Sega Genesis game "Moonwalker" was a fan favorite, but a massive online world involving a guy that may or may not have slept with Macauly Culkin is a tough sell. Everyone loves Michael's music, so stick with that. There's already a Michael Jackson game coming out that focuses on that and it's called "The Michael Jackson Experience." It uses the soon to be released Microsoft Kinect Motion Controller allowing players to dance like Michael. It's a perfect idea, and I guarantee you that it will sell like ice cream of the future. But if you start to veer off the essence that was Michael Jackson, then it's going to be a big joke...just like this article. Enjoy.