Though the debate will likely continue to rage about Michael Jackson’s bizarre life and behavior, few can argue his lasting legacy in music and pervasiveness in pop culture, including videogames.
Jackson died at 50 yesterday following a coma brought on by a heart attack. He was reported to have a new game title in the works for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2 and Wii this year, developed and published by MJJ Productions.
With the future of the virtual Michael Jackson up in the air, Game|Life takes a look at his previous videogame appearances to remember the King of Pop.
The singer’s first videogame, Michael Jackson’s Moonwalker, was developed by Sega for the arcades, Genesis, and Master System in 1990. The story followed the plot of the Moonwalker movie, and starred Jackson using music and dance powers to save kidnapped children. The game featured chiptune versions of music from the Moonwalker film as well as Jackson’s album Thriller.
A decade later, Jackson appeared in the rhythm games Space Channel 5 and Space Channel 5: Part 2 for the Dreamcast and PlayStation 2, starring as “Space Michael.” He had a more significant role in Part 2, where he uses his musical talents to take on a singing robot.
The pop star also was an unlockable character in the multi-platform title Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2. Watch him as he takes on fictional Hawaiian heavyweight Mama Tau.
And finally, if you can’t get your hands on the aforementioned games, you can always make a Michael Jackson Mii, where he can live on in your Wii.
