Michael Jackson in video games

{{Short description|none}} {{more citations needed|date=October 2012}} There are at least nine [[video game]]s that [[Michael Jackson]] has [[video game music|composed music]] for or are directly related to him. [[Sega]] was the [[video game developer|developer]] for at least six of them: the [[Arcade game|arcade]] and [[Mega Drive/Genesis]] versions of ''[[Michael Jackson's Moonwalker]]'', ''Michael Jackson in Scramble Training'' for arcades, ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog 3]]'' for the Mega Drive/Genesis, and ''[[Space Channel 5]]'' and ''[[Space Channel 5: Part 2]]'' for the [[Dreamcast]]. The other three were produced by other companies: ''[[Michael Jackson's Moonwalker#Home computer versions|Moonwalker]]'' for [[home computers]] by [[U.S. Gold]], ''[[Michael Jackson: The Experience]]'' by [[Ubisoft]], and ''[[Planet Michael]]'' by SEE Virtual Worlds.

== ''Michael Jackson's Moonwalker'' == {{Main|Michael Jackson's Moonwalker}}

''Michael Jackson's Moonwalker'' is a franchise for several [[video games]] based on the [[Moonwalker|film of the same name]] created by [[Sega]] (for [[Arcade game|arcades]] and the [[Mega Drive/Genesis]]) and [[U.S. Gold]] (for [[home computers]]) in [[1989 in video gaming|1989]] and [[1990 in video gaming|1990]] that incorporate the personage of and were co-developed by Jackson himself. The arcade version, home video games and home computer versions all differ in terms of gameplay, but the story and concept remain constant. The story, which is taken from the ''[[Moonwalker]]'' film, follows Michael, using various music and dance related abilities, on a quest to save kidnapped children from the hands of the evil "Mr. Big". The games incorporated synthesized versions of the musician's hits, such as "[[Beat It]]" and "[[Smooth Criminal]]". The games have now achieved cult status<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnet.com/news/remembering-michael-jacksons-video-game-legacy/|title = Remembering Michael Jackson's video game legacy}}</ref> and are remembered for being a memorable point in Jackson's change to a different stage persona from "[[Thriller (Michael Jackson album)|Thriller]]", to "[[Bad (album)|Bad]]".

The game's development dates back to 1988, when Michael Jackson contacted Sega about developing a video game that would capture his persona. Sega and Jackson then began working on an [[arcade video game]] based on his ''Moonwalker'' film and "Smooth Criminal" [[music video]] released that year. The ''Moonwalker'' arcade game was eventually introduced in 1990.<ref name="RePlay">{{cite magazine |title=News Digest – "Moonwalking" With Sega: Hot New 3-Player Video Coming Soon |magazine=RePlay |date=August 1990 |volume=15 |issue=11 |page=18 |url=https://archive.org/details/re-play-volume-14-issue-no.-11-august-1990-600dpi/RePlay%20-%20Volume%2014%2C%20Issue%20No.%2011%20-%20August%201990/page/18}}</ref>

==Other Sega games== === ''Michael Jackson in Scramble Training'' === ''Michael Jackson in Scramble Training'' was released for arcades in 1993, running on Sega's ''AS-1'' [[motion simulator]] cabinet. It was an [[interactive film]] ride featuring [[pre-rendered]] [[3D computer graphics]] and allowed up to eight players to interact with the game. Jackson provided [[voice acting]] and appeared in live-action [[full-motion video]] (FMV) sequences, while some of his music was also used.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Horowitz |first1=Ken |title=Playing at the Next Level: A History of American Sega Games |date=21 October 2016 |publisher=[[McFarland & Company]] |isbn=978-0-7864-9994-6 |page=122 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hxhmDQAAQBAJ&pg=PT134}}</ref><ref name="Wired">{{cite magazine |title=Sega's Wild Ride |url=https://www.wired.com/1993/04/segas-wild-ride/ |access-date=4 September 2021 |magazine=[[Wired (magazine)|Wired]] |date=April 1993}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Williams |first1=Leah J. |title=New Reports Have Everyone Fired Up For A Sega World Return |url=https://www.kotaku.com.au/2021/06/sega-theme-park-australia/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602023132/https://www.kotaku.com.au/2021/06/sega-theme-park-australia/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 2, 2021 |access-date=4 September 2021 |work=[[Kotaku Australia]] |date=2 June 2021 |language=en-AU}}</ref>

=== ''Sonic the Hedgehog 3'' === {{Main|Sonic the Hedgehog 3#Michael Jackson's involvement}}

Michael Jackson was allegedly involved in the music production of ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog 3]]''. Conflicting accounts arose as to why he left the project, including the [[1993 Michael Jackson sexual abuse allegations|1993 child sexual abuse accusations]] against him, or that he was unhappy with the sound quality of the Genesis which was generally considered inferior to [[Super Nintendo Entertainment System]] and other competing game consoles of the time period. On June 23, 2022, former Sonic Team leader Yuji Naka confirmed that Michael's songs were in the released game.<ref>{{Cite web |last=McWhertor |first=Michael |date=2022-06-23 |title=Michael Jackson Sonic urban legend finally put to rest by Sonic Origins |url=https://www.polygon.com/23179908/sonic-origins-michael-jackson-music-tracks-sonic-3-knuckles-yuji-naka |access-date=2022-07-07 |website=Polygon |language=en-US}}</ref> Jackson was never officially credited within the game.<ref name="sega-16.com">{{cite web | url=http://www.sega-16.com/2009/05/sega-legends-michael-jackson-sonic-3/ | title=Sega Legends: Michael Jackson & Sonic 3 | last=Horowitz | first=Ken | publisher=Sega-16|date=2009-05-19 |access-date=2009-12-17}}</ref>

=== ''Space Channel 5'' and ''Space Channel 5: Part 2'' === {{Hatnote|For main articles, see [[Space Channel 5]] and [[Space Channel 5: Part 2]].}} In ''Space Channel 5'' and its sequel ''Space Channel 5: Part 2'', Jackson appears as a fictional character named Space Michael (スペースマイケル, Supēsu Maikeru), whose likeness and voice is provided by Jackson.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=2012-02-28|title=How Michael Jackson Willed His Way Into Sega's Space Channel 5|url=https://www.siliconera.com/how-michael-jackson-willed-his-way-into-segas-space-channel-5/|access-date=2021-08-18|website=Siliconera|language=en-US}}</ref> In both games, Michael speaks in English, which is subtitled into Japanese in the Japanese version.

In the first ''Space Channel 5'' Michael uses his singing skills against a singing robot and joins Ulala in the fight against Purge after she rescues him from the Rhythm Rogues. Originally meant to be a one-time cameo appearance, Jackson had a more prominent role in ''[[Space Channel 5: Part 2]]'', where he became the new head of Space Channel 5. Whilst Ulala is distracted by a fake scoop, the headquarters are attacked, and Space Michael is kidnapped by Purge and the Rhythm Rogues. Ulala rescues him in a level featuring several of Michael's signature dance moves. He then joins Ulala in a confrontation against Purge.

The May 2007 issue of [[Electronic Gaming Monthly|EGM]] contains a quote from series creator Tetsuya Mizuguchi concerning Jackson's involvement: <blockquote> "We were in the middle of production of ''Space Channel 5'', in 1998 or 1999. I got a call from the U.S. from my partner - the executive producer of ''Space Channel 5'' - and he said, 'Oh, Michael wants to act in ''Space Channel 5''.' I said, 'Who's Michael?' 'Who is Michael Jackson?' he said, '''The'' Michael Jackson - the ''real'' Michael Jackson.'

My partner had shown him the 60-to-70 percent complete version, when it was almost at the end of the game. We had one month to finalize. But Michael wanted to do something, so we suggested that if he was OK with it, we could program the people in the game to do the Michael Jackson dance when taken over by aliens. He said 'yeah.' We initially had five aliens who danced. One of them became Michael Jackson.",<ref>Michael Donahue, "Forced Guests: Cameos that make us sceam 'Yessss!'" in ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' 226 (March 2008): 34.</ref> </blockquote>

== ''Michael Jackson: The Experience'' == {{Main|Michael Jackson: The Experience}} ''Michael Jackson: The Experience'' is a [[music video game]] based on Jackson's music and songs. It was developed and published by [[Ubisoft]] and Triumph International (subsidiary by The Michael Jackson Company LLC), and was released on November 23, 2010 for the [[Wii]], [[Nintendo DS]], and [[PlayStation Portable]].<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/gaming.gadgets/06/16/michael.jackson.game/ | work=CNN | title=Game will let you sing, dance like Michael Jackson}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/06/michael-jackson-is-coming-to-the-video-game-world.html | work=Los Angeles Times | title=Pop & Hiss}}</ref> Later it was released on other platforms: [[Xbox 360]] (compatible with [[Kinect]]), [[PlayStation 3]] (compatible with [[PlayStation Move]]), [[Nintendo 3DS]], [[PlayStation Vita]] and [[Apple iOS|iOS]]. The game features many of Michael Jackson's hits, such as "[[Bad (Michael Jackson song)|Bad]]", "[[Beat It]]", "[[Smooth Criminal]]" and "[[Billie Jean]]".

== ''Planet Michael'' == {{Main|Planet Michael}} ''Planet Michael'' was a planned [[MMORPG]] based on Jackson's music. It was being developed by SEE MJ Virtual Worlds (The Michael Jackson Company LLC and SEE Entertainment) and was originally scheduled for release in 2011, but was eventually canceled. ''Planet Michael'' was to be based within the [[Entropia Universe]].

== ''Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2'' == {{Main|Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2}} ''Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2'' is a boxing game for the Dreamcast, Nintendo 64, PlayStation, PlayStation 2 (a North American launch title for the system), and Game Boy Advance. Michael Jackson is one of a number of celebrity characters unlockable through gameplay.

== References == {{reflist}}

[[Category:Michael Jackson-related video games| ]] [[Category:Video games based on musicians]]