Terrain: Battle of the Flags re-imagines the competitive gaming experience in the real world
Belgian distributor Primitives has acquired sales rights to a German format that takes gaming into real life, with the show set to debut on public broadcaster ZDF and YouTube later this year.
Terrain: Battle of the Flags is an adventure-reality show that re-imagines the experience of competitive gaming in the real world.
The show has been created by German YouTuber Torge Oelrich (aka Freshtorge) and developed in collaboration with Belgian producer Roses Are Blue to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his YouTube channel.
The format blends an expansive outdoor game world with strategy, technological innovation and immersive visual storytelling, focusing on 10 high-profile content creators divided into two teams of five.
The teams compete over several days in a purpose-built game environment set against the dramatic backdrop of the Scottish Highlands, with a mission to capture the opposing teams’ flags while defending their own.
The 10 x 25-minute original will launch on ZDFneo in the autumn, with the first three episodes premiering simultaneously on its streaming service, followed a day later by their debut on YouTube.
Primitives has taken worldwide format rights, excluding German-speaking Europe. It will launch the format to international buyers in the run-up to Mipcom in Cannes this October.
Contestants self-shoot their experience and wear specially developed third-person camera systems integrated into bespoke vests to create a viewing perspective inspired by the look and feel of video games.
Companion content from the ZDFneo show is also being produced for a standalone YouTube channel, alongside ‘reaction programming’ via ZDF’s Twitch channel.
Thorsten Haas, head of development entertainment at ZDF, said the show combined “several elements we are keen to explore” including creator-driven storytelling, new production techniques and a multiplatform approach.
“Having the creators film much of the action themselves creates a level of authenticity and immediacy that is particularly exciting for younger audiences.”
Ina Eck, founding managing director of Roses Are Blue Germany, added that the show aims to “create new entertainment IP that translates the logic, pace and visual language of gaming into the real world.”
She added: “At its heart are creators who understand gaming instinctively. They recognise systems immediately, test their limits and discover strategies we could never have scripted.”
Simone de Pruyssenaere de la Woestyne, managing director of Primitives, described Terrain: Battle of the Flags as “a natural fit for today’s digital audiences.”
The show joins an expanding Primitives’ slate, which already includes The Mole, 99 To Beat, The Ultimate Celebrity Car Park Showdown and The Expedition. The latter, also created by Roses are Blue, recently landed its first international adaptation with France Televisions.
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