Theme Park was one of the most imaginative and enjoyable gaming experiences to emerge from the previous decade, and whether you believe that then Bullfrog head or his young protégé Demis Hassibis (Republic) was behind its greatness, the fact remains that it was a massive success, spawning several sequels and imitators, and generally enhancing the simulation genre beyond recognition thanks to its originality and sense of fun. Now firmly entrenched at influential developer Lionhead, Monsieur Molyneux appears to be returning to this creative root once again, dabbling in the light-hearted fun stuff, whilst the intellectual side of him is amply catered for by the next Black and White title. The Movies is the name of this latest opus, and as you've probably already heard, or deduced from my introduction, it's basically a Sim Movie Industry.

Strangely, unlike Lionhead's previous games, won't be bringing this latest title to shelves, with fellow giant instead choosing to pick up this potential hit. Excitingly, The Movies places players in charge of their own Hollywood studio, commencing in the silent era of the 1920s and progressing through the present, and on to the future of the business. As studio head you'll of course be placed in charge of all the most fun stuff; selecting which films to make, how, and whom with - as well as taking care of the business itself.

As the original press release enthuses, players can manage the money, egos, tears & tantrums on their way to living the Hollywood dream, and it is in this winning formula - which taps into such a rich seam of possibilities, that surely can't fail. There's a touch of everything that is popular culture in this game premise: Hollywood, celebrity, glamour, wealth, voyeurism (reality-TV fashion), and of course our current preoccupation with games like The and their off-shoots. This is something Adrian Moore of Lionhead seems to have noted, too: "The actors and directors are very customisable - they can be put in different outfits, be given plastic surgery, and have makeup applied. As their career progresses their biographies change, reflecting their movie triumphs and failures. They form relationships, and each have their own history of behaviour in terms of getting caught in the press being drunk, picking fights, or hitting on the opposite sex."

Indeed, one has to ask the question: how can Molyneux and his team fail? I'm only disappointed I didn't think of it myself.

Of course, like all the best ideas, The Movies is based on the simplest of concepts, but it is in the diversity of options and activities at the player's disposal that the title with thrive or fall by the wayside. The game commences in the Twenties in a dusty lot, from which the player must construct and re-use sets, introduce new technologies (from the advent of colour to CGI), hire and fire staff, actors, and the like, progressing all the way to 2020 and movie mogul status. Players will be able re-make their favourite pictures or commission daring new projects, giving the green-light to scripts or ordering a re-write as their judgement sees fit. As game head Moore suggests, "The game can really be divided into 3 main areas - designing your movie studio, forging the careers of movie stars, and making movies. It is possible to focus on any of those areas that most appeal to you, and spend less time on the others."

Both art house and blockbuster style movies, across all genres, will be available for the player, who has the final say which will make or break the film, and from what we can gather taking the flops with the hits will be part of the game's dynamic. Movie's will need help to get off the ground at the Box Office too, and as such players will have to decide how much to spend marketing their picture across Posters, Magazines, Cinema, Radio, Television, Video, DVD, and the Internet, and in what manner. Finally, and perhaps most excitingly, players will be able to submit their movie creations to the web for community perusal, or even email their short flicks to friends. All of which sounds a little like Microsoft's Movie Maker - though will hopefully be an awful lot better in reality. What's more, this feature will not be merely tacked on to the rest of the simulation, it will actually be an integral part of the fun, according to Lionhead's Moore once again: "Throw some actors into some costumes, put them on sets, pick some scenes for them to act out and watch them go. The end results can be fascinating and hilarious - it is possible once the movie is made to add your own voice and text and music, really personalising each movie you make." The developers have also confirmed that after the game's launch the tools used to create the movie scenes will actually be made available for players to create their own masterpieces (which are generally between 30 seconds and 2 minutes in length, though can last as long as the player desires).

On top of all this free-form Sims-esque action, The Movies will also offer a degree of structure, if required by the player (a Story mode, versus the Sandbox mode), and as such "Different characters [will] approach you, offering you challenges, such as a mobster asking you to cast his (talentless) wife in a movie. If you accept, he may repay you with having a word with the taxman and getting you off paying tax for a year, in return for suffering the terrible acting abilities of his girl. If you don't accept his offer, he won't be happy and may never approach you again."

The Movies is being created for the PC, Xbox, and - and what's more console versions will not just be ports, the developer is quick to assert, "The Movies will take advantage of each console's strengths... we are not talking about ports; every version is done by a different team." Which is encouraging certainly. The game is due out this year, and should certainly turn a few heads. We'll bring you more as we get it.

By Luke Guttridge