BBC Studios takes first steps in blockchain gaming with Doctor Who: Worlds Apart

Reality Gaming Group has secured an exclusive global license from BBC Studios to develop and publish a ground-breaking digital trading card game based on global hit television series Doctor Who.

The partnership will enable fans to collect and trade digital versions of their favourite characters for the first time, before adventuring through the Doctor Who: Worlds Apart game as the Doctor, battling friends in turn-based contests. The new title also marks the BBC’s first move into the blockchain gaming space.

Each trading card a player collects will be tokenised into a non-fungible token (NFT) secured and protected on the blockchain, which means there can be no copies or disputes about ownership. Doctor Who: Worlds Apart players will own unique digital collectable items which can be used in the game or traded with other players.

As with physical trading cards, some will be rarer than others, and all will feature Doctors, companions, allies, and enemies from across Doctor Who’s expansive history.

Limited edition packs containing five digital cards will be available for fans to buy from October 2020. Once these limited-edition cards have sold out, they will not be available to purchase again, except by trading with others.

The accompanying Doctor Who: Worlds Apart trading card game will be released for PC in 2021 with mobile to follow, allowing players to go head-to-head with their card collections. More cards will also be made available at launch.

UK-based publisher Reality Gaming Group’s Digital Asset Trading (DAT) Platform uses blockchain technology to turn any IP into a rare and collectable digital asset that can be traded between fans using dedicated marketplaces. Its debut title, mobile AR combat game Reality Clash, was released in 2019 and has been noted for pushing the boundaries of what’s possible when AR, VR, geo-location and blockchain technology are combined.

Tony Pearce, co-founder of Reality Gaming Group, said: “We are tremendously excited to be working with BBC Studios to bring Doctor Who’s huge global community an exciting new digital experience based on a pastime we all know and love – trading cards.

“The cards used in Doctor Who: Worlds Apart are both functional and collectible, so fans can actually own a piece of the game while they play.”

John Kavanagh, licensing manager, gaming and interactive, BBC Studios, said: “This is what BBC Studios does so well, exploring new technologies and bringing our most iconic brand to an area of the gaming industry which we’re sure will engage and thrill fans.”

More information about Doctor Who: Worlds Apart can be found at: https://doctorwho-worldsapart.com

Princess Anne unveils hand-knitted Doctor Who clothing range from UK luxury brand Corgi

In a second helping of Doctor Who news, it’s the luxury brand Corgi that has climbed aboard the TARDIS, having partnered with BBC Studios to launch the range of Doctor Who knitwear worn by Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor in the latest series of the sci-fi soap opera.

Corgi’s Doctor Who range will include 100 per cent cashmere socks, wool socks, a cashmere scarf, a wool scarf and a hand-made cashmere and cotton blend jumper, all of which will be from yarns sustainably sourced from UK suppliers.

The knitwear, Corgi has stated, is made using traditional hand knitting techniques and hand finished to the “very highest standard”. All the products are made in the UK at Corgi’s factory in Ammanford, Wales.

 The range was designed by costume designer Ray Holman (Doctor Who, Torchwood) for the Thirteenth Doctor’s costume and is now available to fans across the world for the first time.

 Holman said: “I chose to work with Corgi after visiting the factory and seeing the high quality materials they use and the beautiful products they create. As a small company in the heart of Wales the craft of knitting is still very much alive and we were able to use these skills in the creation of the jumpers, socks and scarves for this range. It has been a pleasure to work with Corgi and create such a wonderful range of garments for The Doctor.”

 Corgi is a Welsh, family-run company producing luxury socks and knitwear. Established in 1892, the company is still located in a small Welsh mining town and has developed a reputation as a leading luxury sock and knitwear brand.

The company was awarded a Royal Warrant by HRH the Prince of Wales in 1988, and continues to supply the Royal family with knitted goods. The launch of the range coincides with a royal visit at the Corgi factory in Wales, with Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal arriving to meet staff in her capacity as President of the UK Fashion & Textile industry.

Princess Anne was shown the new Doctor Who range as part of this visit, and presented with a cashmere Doctor Who scarf as a gift.

 Chris Jones at Corgi, added: “We’re very excited to be working with BBC Studios on a product range for Doctor Who. Working with the creative team, we have produced a beautiful line of distinctive knitwear and socks that deliver both style and high quality that we hope fans will love.”

BBC Studios and Escape Hunt launch new Doctor Who Escape Room, Doctor Who: A Dalek Awakens

BBC Studios has formed a new partnership with Escape Hunt to develop and launch a new Doctor Who escape room called Doctor Who: A Dalek Awakens.

The newest game can be booked from today at Escape Hunt Reading and Birmingham Resorts World with several other venues, including Norwich and Basingstoke, opening throughout 2020.

Players will step on board a doomed spaceship, invaded by the fearsome Dalek. This age-old enemy has tapped into the ship’s power system and is preparing for a path of ruthless extermination, the only way for teams to stop the Dalek, is to shut down the ship’s power.

But by shutting down the power, players will also shut down the ship’s life support system, risking the lives of all 10,000 passengers and crew on board.

Teams of up to six are given 60 minutes to solve the puzzles, resolve this impossible situation and prevent catastrophe before the time runs out and extermination is guaranteed for all.

Richard Harpham, CEO Escape Hunt PLC, said: “We are delighted to be creating a second game, Doctor Who: A Dalek Awakens, with BBC Studios following the success of our first game with them, Doctor Who: World’s Collide.

Doctor Who has a loyal and dedicated fanbase which we have seen from the success of our first game, so to be able to bring some variety to the public with a brand new and innovative game centred around the iconic Dalek characters is an exciting prospect for Escape Hunt.

 “We look forward to bringing the new game to life at Escape Hunt venues across the UK.”

Doctor Who: A Dalek Awakens is playable at Escape Hunt Reading from March 9th and at Birmingham Resorts World from March 11th, while fans in Norwich and Basingstoke can sign up to hear when the immersive adventure is available to book in their cities.

BBC Studios and Forbidden Planet celebrate Doctor Who with exclusive t-shirt partnership

BBC Studios and Forbidden Planet have devised an initiative to release a new and exclusive line of Doctor Who T-shirts throughout the current twelfth series of the popular sci-fi TV show. The newest season started airing on January 1s this year.

A range of 10 Doctor Who T-shirts will launch during the new series, themed around each week’s episode, with each being available to pre-order at ForbiddenPlanet.com the morning after transmission.

Kicking off the new series, Doctor Who returned to BBC One on January 1st for a New Year’s Day special named Spyfall, with subsequent episodes broadcasting every Sunday. The series sees Jodie Whittaker continue her role as the Thirteenth Doctor, as she resumes her travels through time and space with friends Ryan (Tosin Cole), Yaz (Mandip Gill), and Graham (Bradley Walsh).

Anita Majhu, senior licensing manager at BBC Studios, said: “This is such an exciting line and we’re thrilled to be offering Doctor Who fans the opportunity to be a part of the new series in this way.”

Anthony Garnon, licensing and special projects manager, Forbidden Planet, added: “Months of behind the scenes planning and co-ordination, this is Doctor Who merchandising on a whole new level. Don’t just watch the episode, live it with Forbidden Planet.”

T-shirts will be available to pre-order online at ForbiddenPlanet.com and will be priced at £15.99.