ALL THE INFORMATION IS ON THE… HEADSET?

TASKMASTER VR IS COMING IN 2024, PUBLISHED BY SCALLYWAG ARCADE, A DRAW & CODE STUDIO

LONDON, UK – November 29, 2023 – Step up and get tasking under the judgement of the almighty Taskmaster and his assistant Little Alex Horne in the upcoming virtual reality game, Taskmaster VR. Published by Scallywag Arcade, a Draw & Code studio, Taskmaster VR is set to launch in 2024 for Meta Quest 2 and 3.

 

Made in partnership with Avalon, the production company behind the hit show, Taskmaster VR will give everyone the chance to test themselves against the whims of the Taskmaster and his menagerie of challenging and extraordinary tasks from the comfort of their own homes.

 

Are you ready to think laterally as you smash up watermelons, make the Taskmaster a lovely sandwich and have the most chaotic bath VR has ever seen?

 

Watch the Taskmaster VR trailer here.

Wishlist on Steam here.

 

“The world of Taskmaster is perfect for VR” said Niall Taylor, Head of Games at Scallywag Arcade. “Combining the hilarity of the show with the freedom of virtual reality gives players an immersive (and slightly mad) experience”.

 

Alex Horne, the show’s creator, and Taskmaster’s Assistant said: “Genuinely, this is extraordinary, brilliant and very fun. Also, I’ve always wanted to be a contestant on Taskmaster so this is great for me as a VR user, except that I will also have my virtual self watching my attempts and undermining my confidence so I may well regret the whole venture after I’ve had a go”.

 

Greg Davies, the Taskmaster said: “The team have done an incredible job and the game is a really exciting addition to the Taskmaster world.  On a personal note, the creation of a virtual reality Taskmaster takes me ever closer to my ultimate goal of working without even leaving my sofa”.

 

Jon Thoday, executive producer of Taskmaster, added: “We are delighted to be working with Scallywag Arcade to expand Taskmaster to the gaming world and see the creative mind of Alex Horne and his team played out in virtual reality”.

 

Taskmaster VR is set to offer fans and gamers an immersive opportunity to engage with their favourite show and its stars in an entirely new way. The TV sensation’s mastermind Alex Horne and magnificent host Greg Davies will be with the player every step of the way in this fully voice acted experience.

 

Combining the creativity of Taskmaster with cutting-edge virtual reality technology, players will step into the shoes of an intrepid contestant and let loose in the Taskmaster House and studio in their attempt to claim Greg’s glistening golden head trophy and call themselves a Taskmaster Champion.

 

From the lab to the caravan to the garden, you’ll have the opportunity to completely immerse yourself in the iconic house and become part of the show while encountering some familiar faces along the way.

 

Expect laughter, creativity, and fun for all ages. Whether you’re a die-hard Taskmaster enthusiast or new to the concept, this VR game is sure to entertain and amuse. And remember, all of the information is on the Task. Your time starts now.

 

For more information and to wishlist head to https://scallywag.drawandcode.com/taskmaster/

For press enquiries, please contact the team at scallywag@bastion.co.uk.

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About Scallywag Arcade

Scallywag Arcade is a new indie game studio that lives and breathes video games. The studio has emerged from VR and AR veterans Draw & Code and it is helmed by industry veterans who mastered their craft at Warner Bros, PlayStation, Aardman, Just Add Water and Merge Games amongst others. Scallywag Arcade mix a life-long passion for creative play with our day-to-day experimental antics to create games with a unique vibe that our players will remember forever. www.scallywagarcade.com

About Draw & Code

Draw & Code are immersive and experiential content specialists. The UK-based studio has an international footprint, having been working with games technology such as VR (virtual reality) for over a decade, completing over 150 projects along the way. Previous clients include Google, Sony, Warner Bros, Mercedes-Benz, Liverpool FC, Red Bull, Chelsea FC and the BBC. www.drawandcode.com

 

About Taskmaster

  • Taskmaster is a BAFTA winning and International Emmy nominated comedy entertainment show originally created by Alex Horne. Greg Davies stars as the all-powerful “Taskmaster” who, with the help of his loyal assistant Horne, sets out to test the wiles, wit and wisdom of five comedians through a series of strange and surreal challenges in what is the most hard-fought and ridiculous comedy entertainment format on TV.

 

  • 159 episodes have been produced in the UK so far, as part of a landmark six season deal with Channel 4 in 2020, which has recently been renewed for a further six series by the broadcaster following nine record-breaking series on UKTV’s Dave.

 

  • The show enjoyed its best performance on record with its Channel 4 launch which reached 3.9 million consolidated views after the first episode, winning the majority share of young viewers 16 – 34’s and making it the best-performing new entertainment show of the year (Broadcast, 2020). Watched by a broad multi-generational audience, it was Channel 4’s youngest skewing series last year. In terms of audience share of young viewers (16-34) it is in the top three in the coveted 9pm slot, with Gogglebox and Derry Girls. Taskmaster is also hugely popular on All 4, where it is available for free and, since 2021, the average views per episode [0-7Days, O+O] have grown for the title with each series. Since the programme’s initial launch in 2015 on UKTV’s Dave, Taskmaster’s audience has grown by 80% from series one to series nine.

 

  • Taskmaster was crowned Best Comedy Entertainment Show at the National Comedy Awards 2022 and 2023, Best Comedy Entertainment at the BAFTAs 2020 and won Best Entertainment Programme at the Broadcast Awards 2018, having previously received two more nominations for the Broadcast Awards and recently picking up its third BAFTA nomination for the 2023 ceremony. It has also been nominated for the Bruce Forsyth Entertainment Award at the NTA’s 2021 and 2022, Best Comedy Entertainment at Rose d’Or 2023, Studio Entertainment at Rose d’Or 2021, Best Entertainment Programme at the RTS Awards, Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, the Broadcast Digital Awards, Edinburgh TV Award, the TV Choice Awards, and Best Returning Format in the International Format Awards 2020.

 

  • The original Taskmaster programme has been sold to 94 countries and aired on The CW in the U.S. in 2020.

 

  • Over 61 seasons and 560 episodes have been commissioned outside the UK with local versions now in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Nordics, Croatia and Portugal where it ranked first for most watched entertainment programs on its channel RTP 1.  Taskmaster Australia launched on Channel 10 where it became the channel’s top new show of the year and received a nomination for Most Outstanding Comedy at the Logies, produced by Avalon Television with Kevin&Co and featuring Tom Gleeson as the Taskmaster with Tom Cashman as the Taskmaster’s Assistant, and Taskmaster New Zealand has received funding for a fourth season from New Zealand On Air to play on TVNZ and TVNZ+ in 2023. The first season of Le Maitre du Jeu for Bell Media, which aired in Canada in September 2022, increased Noovo’s performance in the Thursday time slot by 50%, while the UK original won Canada’s film and TV Rockie Awards 2023 for best Comedy and Variety show.

 

  • The format has seen huge success in Europe, with the Swedish version reaching ratings of over a 50% market share in a primetime weekend slot on SVT and now in its seventh series. Norway’s original version of Taskmaster, Kongen Befaler, won the Norwegian TV Academy Award (Gullruten) for Best Entertainment Show in 2022, where an eighth season is in production for Discovery. Finland’s version of Taskmaster, Suurmestari, won Game Show of the Year at the Venla Gaala awards, with a fourth series ordered by MTV, and Stormester, Denmark’s Taskmaster, which is now in its seventh series, won Best Game Show at the 2022 Vindere Awards, with TV2 commissioning a ‘Champion of Champions’ series for 2023.

 

  • The Taskmaster YouTube channel has seen huge success internationally, reaching over 8.6 billion impressions since it first launched in October 2019, with just over 600 million views and over 1.3 million subscribers, of which over a third are from North America. The channel has had over 138 million hours’ worth of content viewed with 52% of those hours from North America (72 million hours watched). The show has grown significantly in popularity with American audiences and over the last year there have been a total of 92 million views.

 

  • The Taskmaster book ‘200 Extraordinary Tasks for Ordinary People’ was published in 2018, while a second book ‘Bring Me The Head of the Taskmaster’ was published in September 2021 and combined they have sold 180,000 copies to date. Both books featured as Sunday Times Bestsellers at launch. The Swedish version of the book has sold 108,000 copies to date.

 

  •  A Taskmaster boardgame was released in Autumn 2019 and entirely sold out a week after it went on sale. It has sold over 250,000 copies to date along with an expansion pack. A second game, Taskmaster The Secret Series Game was released in 2022. Taskmaster The Card Game was released in September 2022 and has sold over 70,000 copies to date. All the games are available to buy from the official Taskmaster shop, www.TaskmasterStore.com.

 

  • Taskmaster Education takes elements of the show and uses them to inspire, engage and teach children and young people. Tasks can be adapted to meet a near infinite range of teacher objectives, whether curriculum-based or more focused on social and emotional development. Taskmaster Club launched in September 2023, offering schools across the country the opportunity to host after school clubs that bring Little Alex Horne and the silly joy of Taskmaster into their classrooms. Over 800 schools in the UK have registered to date on taskmastereducation.com.

 

  • Taskmaster is working with Homeless Link; the national membership charity for frontline homelessness services, creating a virtual Taskmaster at Home event with all the money raised going to homeless charities across the UK. Having raised over £125,000, more information on the virtual event can be found here.

 

  • The launch of series 13 also saw the unveiling of the brand new Taskmaster App; a show companion where viewers can watch the show on TV and score along at home, taking on the role of the mighty Taskmaster themselves. The app also features the Taskmaster Academy with quizzes from every series of the show, group and solo tasking games, and a Jukebox featuring all of the music from the show.

 

 

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