John Wick Hex game director Mike Bithell has released the first episode in a new audiobook series called North Star Rising.
The six-part series takes listeners on a "space adventure" starring Samantha Béart, Rahul Kohli, Jayce Diaz, and David "Scroobius Pip" Meads. You can check out the first episode on the official North Star Rising website.
The video game director and writer says the family-friendly series is an effort to bring some "optimistic ongoing entertainment" to listeners in an unequivocally dark time. Likewise, Bithell asks listeners to donate to their local foodbanks in lieu of payment for the audiobooks.
"Our next games are a ways out, I wanted to write something about humanity and friendship and get it out now," Bithell wrote on Twitter while announcing the series.
Along with video games (naturally), I've long turned to audiobooks and podcasts for reliable respites from real-world problems, and there's no better time than now for free escapism. Also, space is awesome.
The website's description suggests the space journey told in North Star Rising won't be an entirely smooth ride: "The room had been silent, but as Alpha did a little bow, an almost imperceptible rumble began. It was almost imperceptible, until it suddenly and abruptly wasn’t. The air itself rang, and began to blast and blow around the control room with absolutely no idea where it was going. Outside, the light from the stars intensified, and seemed to warp and refract, as if seen through water, or after one too many glasses of cheap wine."
Read about the development of John Wick Hex and how it proves the value of collaboration between movie and video game studios.
