Could the Law & Order TV franchise become a video game franchise? A new deal certainly makes that a distinct possibility.
Wolf Games, an interactive entertainment company using AI tech to build narrative games, says it has raised $9 million in a new funding round, and announced a wide-ranging partnership with NBCUniversal “to explore building immersive games to expand some of the world’s most beloved IP” that “will allow fans to play within their favorite IP universes like never before.”
Wolf Games was co-founded by Elliott Wolf, the son of legendary TV producer Dick Wolf, who is also an investor in the company. NBCUniversal, of course, is home to many of Wolf’s programs, including Law & Order, Chicago Fire and a slew of other programming.
The new investment round was led by Main Street Advisors, as well as Maverick Carter, artist Rashid Johnson and Fenway Sports Group chief Tom Werner, alongside returning investors Dick Wolf, Jimmy Iovine, and Paul Wachter. The company had previously raised $4 million in a seed round earlier this year.
The partnership with NBCU opens up the possibility of bringing the company’s IP (like, say, the Law & Order or Chicago franchises) to the interactive worlds being developed by Wolf Games.
The company’s first game, Public Eye, is slated to launch in beta later this year.
“Generative AI is unlocking a new frontier for entertainment,” said Elliot Wolf, chief creative officer and co-founder of Wolf Games. “Wolf Games’ platform is engineered to generate living, cinematic gaming universes that create new forms of daily play with world-class storytelling at their core. Our partnership with NBCUniversal unlocks the ability to expand beloved IP through this model, bringing fans new ways of connecting with the stories that they love.”
Lindsay Vogelman, senior VP of strategic partnerships & partner marketing for NBCUniversal, added, “We’re excited to partner with Wolf Games, an innovative company that is respectful of storytellers and has deep roots in the traditional creative and production process. Wolf Games is combining human creativity with cutting-edge AI technology to create unique gaming experiences, and we look forward to exploring how this technology can be used to build out experiences for fans of our beloved IP.”
“Wolf Games is reimagining what interactive entertainment can be — using the most cutting-edge creative tools in service of what matters most: great writing and storytelling,” said Werner. “The company will help define the next generation of media by putting fans and communities at the center of the story. I am thrilled to support the Wolf Games team and for what’s ahead.”
