Game on for action star Jet Li


Jet Li's likeness, voice and even his moves will be incorporated into the game

By Ravi Hiranand
CNN

HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- Sony's newest videogame hero might look familiar to gamers: It's movie star Jet Li.

Sony Computer Entertainment America announced on Wednesday that the actor would star in "Rise to Honor", an action game for its PlayStation 2 console styled on the Hong Kong action movies where Li made his name.

The game's plot follows Li, the bodyguard of assassinated crime boss Chiang as he fights his way from Hong Kong to San Francisco find his daughter and bring her safely home.

Along with his looks, Li's voice will also be recorded and he will be motion-captured to accurately recreate his moves in the game.

"The motion-capture system allows for extremely realistic movements, and, in addition, we were able to use a lot of actions in the game that we can't normally put on film," said Li.

Corey Yuen, who has collaborated with Li to choreograph fights in films such as The One and Lethal Weapon 4, will also be on hand to choreograph fight scenes in the game, the company said from its Foster City, California headquarters.

Jet Li isn't the first actor to star in a video game.

Electronic Arts recently announced a deal for current 007 Pierce Brosnan to lend his voice and likeness to the company's latest James Bond game.

Capcom's PlayStation 2 game Onimusha featured Japanese heartthrob Takeshi Kaneshiro, while the sequel, released earlier this year, became the first game to feature a deceased actor by using the likeness of the late Yusaku Matsuda.

Matsuda, a popular Japanese actor, died shortly after his Western film debut alongside Michael Douglas in Black Rain.

"Rise to Honor" is scheduled to be released in late-2003.