Longest Journey sequel renamed, dated, and financed

Nearly a year after it was first announced, the sequel to the game The Longest Journey has finally started taking shape. Developer/publisher Funcom announced that the 3D adventure game will now be released in fall 2005 with a new title, Dreamfall. Previously, the game was known as The Longest Journey: Static.

Funcom also announced that the game will be partially funded by the Norwegian Film Fund, a government agency created to support Norwegian film production. It marks the first time the agency has financed a video game, and the move is part of its efforts to expand into supporting all of the Scandinavian country's homegrown audiovisual arts. Funcom is based in Norway, Switzerland, and America.

Dreamfall will share the Longest Journey's setting--twin parallel, 23rd-century worlds devoted to science and magic, respectively. However, the sequel will contain many new story elements, including a new heroine whose dreams uncover a conspiracy to destroy the two worlds. To help her decipher these dreams, the heroine must track down April Ryan, the Longest Journey's protagonist.

As always, GameSpot will have more information on Dreamfall as its development progresses.