Celebrity Tie-in

Overview

Sometimes, games are produced with the involvement of a celebrity without being based on any particular existing property, such as a movie or TV show that the celebrity appeared in. For example, Shaq-Fu is a fighting game that prominently features the likeness of former NBA star Shaquille O'Neal. Shaq-Fu is a game that exists primarily because O'Neal's name is attached.

This is different from games that merely feature celebrities, rather than directly relying on them to sell the game. Afro Samurai features the voice work of Samuel L. Jackson, but sells itself on being an action game starring a character that happens to be voiced by Jackson. Similarly, although it stars the latest actor to play James Bond, 007: Blood Stone is a game about James Bond, not about Daniel Craig. This also applies to games where characters have been designed to look like their voice actors; The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay is not a celebrity tie-in just because Riddick looks like Vin Diesel.