The Golden Compass (video game)

The Golden Compass
Developer(s)
Publisher(s)Sega
Director(s)
  • Michael Persson
  • David Msika
Producer(s)
  • Maja Persson
  • Jorge Oseguera
  • Lidia C. Hernandez
  • Mark Harwood
Designer(s)
  • Dax Berg
  • Benjamin Cholewinski
  • Kenneth Lee
Programmer(s)Martin Jensen
Artist(s)Jonathan Gwyn
Writer(s)Dalan Musson
Composer(s)Jamie Christopherson
Platform(s)PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, Xbox 360, Windows, Nintendo DS
ReleasePS2, PS3, Wii, Xbox360, DS
PSP & Windows
Genre(s)Action-adventure, puzzle, platform, beat 'em up
Mode(s)Single-player,
multiplayer (DS only)

The Golden Compass is a 2007 action-adventure puzzle video game developed by Shiny Entertainment for PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows, and by A2M for Nintendo DS. The game was published on all platforms by Sega, and was released in Europe in November 2007 (except the PSP and Windows versions, which were released in December), and in North America in December. It is the video game of the 2007 film of the same name, although it is also partially based on the 1995 novel upon which the film is based, Northern Lights by Philip Pullman. The game was released prior to the film and features a slightly different sequence of events towards the end of the story, as well as additional footage at the end of the game not seen in the film. This was due to a last minute re-edit of the last half-hour of the film by New Line Cinema, which could not be incorporated into the game, as it was based on the shooting script.[7] Due to this the game manages to portray motives and themes of the book in much more detail, including details only present in later books of the trilogy.[8] The Golden Compass was the last game developed by Shiny before Foundation 9 Entertainment merged them with The Collective.[9] A significant feature has Dakota Blue Richards and Freddie Highmore reprising their roles from the film.

The game received primarily negative reviews across all platforms, with many reviewers arguing the plot was incomprehensible unless one were familiar with the film and/or novel. Other common criticisms included graphical glitches, poor gameplay and level design, bugs, and a general sense that the game was rushed to release before it was ready (a common aspect of licensed tie-in games from this era).

  1. ^ "The Golden Compass (Xbox 360)". GameSpy. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  2. ^ "The Golden Compass (Wii)". GameSpy. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  3. ^ a b "The Golden Compass". Eurogamer. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  4. ^ "The Golden Compass (PSP)". GameSpy. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  5. ^ "The Golden Compass (PC)". GameSpy. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  6. ^ Dobson, Jason (February 27, 2007). "Shiny, A2M Developing Sega's The Golden Compass". Gamasutra. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
  7. ^ Shea, Cam (November 22, 2007). "The Golden Compass Interview". IGN. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  8. ^ "r/hisdarkmaterials - Some thoughts on the video game". reddit. November 14, 2019. Retrieved December 1, 2019.
  9. ^ Sinclair, Brendan (October 9, 2007). "Foundation 9 merges Shiny, Collective". GameSpot. Retrieved November 10, 2013.