Dogmatic

Gamers can stay connected with The Sopranos this fall with a video-game version of HBO’s crime family.

This Sopranos features the likenesses and voices of stars James Gandolfini (Tony), Michael Imperioli (Christopher), Steven Van Zandt (Silvio) and Tony Sirico (Paulie). “The key thing was (series creator) David Chase’s interest in … the ability to participate in an evolving art form,” says Carmi Zlotnik, executive vice president of new media programming at HBO.

Due in October, the game (from THQ, for the Microsoft Xbox 360 and Sony PlayStation 2, rated Mature for ages 17 and older) is timed to fill the gap in new episodes on HBO. The current sequence ends June 4; episodes are expected to resume in January. In the game, players take the role of a mafia soldier and the illegitimate son of Sal “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero. As a mob war brews between rival families in Philadelphia and New Jersey, they must earn money on collections, protect their turf through intimidation and gain admiration in the family to advance within the organization. Says THQ’s Steve Dauterman: “It’s contemporary as opposed to (Electronic Arts’) The Godfather and (Vivendi Universal’s upcoming) Scarface, which are more of the previous generation of crime-family games.”

…Now if only someone would release an action-figure set based on all the characters. That would be a sure fire hit!