''Firefly Online'' is a

vaporware In the computer industry, vaporware (or vapourware) is a product, typically computer hardware or software, that is announced to the general public but is late or never actually manufactured nor officially cancelled. Use of the word has broade ...

strategic

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video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

based on the '' Firefly'' franchise. It was being developed by Spark Plug Games and Quantum Mechanix for Microsoft Windows,

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, and Android. Although never officially cancelled, there have been no updates about the game's release since March 2016.

Gameplay

Players would have assumed the roles of spaceship captains, assembling crews, completing missions, and trading with others. The game would have contained a central story alongside various branching stories, and players might have been able to create jobs for each other to complete. Players would have been able to customize their ships while playing, and view "in-universe guides" around planets which provide information on them. Furthermore, both space and planetary environments were planned to exist. The game would have contained over 200 worlds to visit. Players would have been able to assemble a crew, needing to choose crew members who possess the skills and abilities they need, such as engineering or weaponry skills.

Development

Prior to the announcement of an official title, a fan made game titled ''Firefly Universe Online'' was being developed by DarkCryo.

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

gave their blessing to the game, but the studio ceased development following the announcement of an official release based on the ''Firefly'' franchise. ''Firefly Online'' was announced at the 2013

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for

and Android. It was later announced for Microsoft Windows and

. QMx Interactive joined Spark Plug Games to produce the game. Joss Whedon, creator of the series, was not involved with the development of the game but was aware of it. The development team was planning to add future

downloadable content Downloadable content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can either be added for no extra cost or it can be a form of video game monetization, enabli ...

which might have included the ability to switch to the

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faction, involved the inclusion of "Reavers", and was aiming to incorporate cross-platform functionality. The PC versions would have been distributed via Steam. Gameplay of ''Firefly Online'' was shown at the 2014 San Diego Comic Con. At that Comic Con it was announced that the original TV series cast was going to voice their in-game characters, along with a number of cast from the series, with '' Star Trek: The Next Generation''s Wil Wheaton providing the male voice for the player's avatar. Originally planned for launch in Spring 2015, the developers were required to recreate large amounts of it after the original show's cast were brought on to provide voice acting. John O'Neill, CEO of Spark Plug Games, said that they were having to "change everything" and that they were deliberately not providing development updates to avoid "saying something that’s wrong again." The last post on Firefly Online's Facebook page dated March 2016 said, "We're still here. We're still flyin'. Game is still in development. Stay tuned."

References

External links

* (archived) {{Firefly Android (operating system) games Firefly (franchise) games IOS games MacOS games Cancelled Android (operating system) games Cancelled iOS games Cancelled macOS games Cancelled Windows games Video games based on television series Video games based on works by Joss Whedon Windows games