When I started at secondary school there there were a number of staple themes that us pre-pubescent boys would regularly discuss before the topic of girls took over. These were mainly: football, TV shows, WWF (now WWE) wrestling and Fighting Fantasy novels.
For those not familiar with them, the joy of the Fighting Fantasy novel is that you are in control, you decide what should happen from the role of a dice or gut feel. The path you choose then maps out before you, unless like me you didn't like the path and quickly went back a few stages and cheated to get a better outcome.
The Fighting Fantasy novel much like Dungeons & Dragons role play relies on the imagination of the participant and their choices.
Last week we saw the arrival of 'Bandersnatch' an interactive TV programme on Netflix courtesy of Charlie Brooker and the team behind the Black Mirror series
Cards on the table here. I have yet to watch it. I have a two-year-old so free time around the festive period is at a premium. I will be watching it and very soon.
If it is any good or not as a drama isn't what excites me here, nor what has captured the imagination of the public. The very fact that you can dictate and choose how you want a TV show to play out is amazing. This is the first time something like this has been available to be tailored to an individuals taste, it is ground breaking.
Much like the fighting fantasy novels the success of Bandersnatch will open production companies up to thinking about how they can make their shows more interactive. How can they create a piece that people keep coming back to again and again to try different combinations of choices.
If you think back to the leap in gaming given to the world by Grand Theft Auto III on the Playstation 2. Suddenly users were no longer playing a game from A to B, they had the opportunity to explore in a recognisable world, to go rogue, do their own thing and not get anywhere near the games storyline if they didnt want to. The Bandersnatch revolution is to TV and film what GTA3, Dungeons & Dragons and Fighting Fantasy novels are to gaming, board games and books, they have had their traditional experiences upgraded and altered.
The data gathering and marketing opportunities that can be woven into these kinds of programmes must have advertisers licking their lips in terms of how they can learn more about interests and behaviours of potential customers. How long before we see the first interactive commercial?
Bandersnatch is hugely exciting if for no other reason than the glimpse it gives into what the future of entertainment will be for audiences around the world. Throw in a virtual reality headset and suddenly the viewer isn't far away from really living and interacting with their favourite show, movie or piece of content.
I can't wait to finally sit down and watch it. All I know so far from the rumour mill is something to do with Kelloggs Frosties, I'm intregued.
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