In 1999, David Bowie appeared in the PC/Sega Dreamcast video game Omikron: The Nomad Soul, a game developed by Heavy Rain developer Quantic Dream.
Bowie not only lent his face and voice-work to the game---as both the singer in fictional band The Dreamers and as a strange, digital character Boz (pictured above)---he also wrote the soundtrack. Many of the songs in the Omikron OST also appear, in altered form, on his 1999 album Hours.
In an interview with Gamecenter in 1999, Bowie described Boz "as being a kind of digital patchwork quilt, made up of all sorts of shifting patterns, fleeting thoughts, and fractured memories — someone who would slip in and out of focus, one moment drifting and world-weary, the next absolutely concise and direct."
Here's the soundtrack:
And here's some game footage showing Bowie in digital action:
And some Dreamers concerts from the game:
Quantic Dream paid tribute to David Bowie on Twitter today with some concept art from the game:
Rest in peace... https://t.co/o4mbsBWEkjpic.twitter.com/XkSmN4kqYy
— Quantic Dream Games (@qdream_ru) January 11, 2016
Omikron: The Nomad Soul got mixed reviews when it came out. IGN wrote that the game was "a pretty solid attempt at combining a multitude of gaming genres into one huge world" giving it an 8.5 out of 10. The review also noted that the music was "is incredible, and fills most of the game with a selection of driving but ambient electronica".
Gamespot was less enthusiastic, grumbling that "Ultimately, Omikron's interesting plot and good graphics won't save you from its misguided design." The Gamespot reviewer was equally nonplussed with the score, which the publication said "lacks variety and matches the city's nondescript futuristic appearance with similarly forgettable techno."
Regardless, this was David Bowie's mark on video games, and certainly one of the more unique appearances of a high profile celebrity in video games at the time---and still to this day.
David Bowie passed away today after a tough fight against cancer. He was just 69 years old.
