Fantasy Author Brandon Sanderson Considers Granting CD Projekt Free Rights to Mistborn Series

Published: October 5, 2018 8:38 PM /

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In light of The Witcher author Andrzej Sapkowski suing CD Projekt for more money, fantasy author Brandon Sanderson commented that he would "seriously consider giving CD Projekt Red the rights to my books for free."

Brandon Sanderson is a famous fantasy author who completed Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time series; his main claim to fame is perhaps the books in his Cosmere universe, such as Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive. The Cosmere is a universe that many of his books share together, and as you read some of his different series' you'll gradually find connections and similar characters throughout - that's all optional, but connecting all the pieces together can be quite fun.

After hearing the news about Andrzej Sapkowski and CD Projekt, Brandon Sanderson's Reddit comment sparked a storm yesterday pertaining to his Mistborn series:

I read this thread last night at about 3:00 and came REALLY close to posting, "Dear CD Projekt. You can have the MIstborn rights, if you want them."
Mistborn is a series of books within the Cosmere. One big focus of this series is the magic: Allomancy, Feruchemy, and Hemalurgy. It's somewhat extensive, so for the purpose of keeping it simple, the main magic system of the books is Allomancy, where characters - called Allomancers - consume different types of metals to gain magical abilities.

Most characters in the series can only use one metal; for example, consuming and "burning" pewter grants enhanced strength, endurance, and speed. Burning steel lets an Allomancer push on any source of nearby metal, such as shooting coins at the speed of a bullet. The eponymous Mistborn, however, is a person who can use all metals and become extremely powerful.

Sanderson does have some history with video games. In 2011, Brandon Sanderson teamed up with Chair Entertainment and wrote a novel within mobile game Infinity Blade's universe: Infinity Blade: Awakening, after working with them on the lore some and set it between Infinity Blade 1 and 2. He followed that up with a sequel called Infinity Blade: Redemption, which was set between Infinity Blade 2 and 3. Then there's the Mistborn Adventure Game, a tabletop RPG with several expansions. Publisher Little Orbit was at one point developing a video game called Mistborn: Birthright, but a year ago that project was canceled with rights returned to Sanderson. Sanderson's The Stormlight Archives did have a game come from it: the short VR title The Way of Kings: Escape the Shattered Plains

thewayofkings2
A chasmfiend from The Way of Kings: Escape the Shattered Plains

I reached out to Brandon Sanderson on Reddit. The first point he said was important:

...his kind of blew up bigger than I'd intended from a throw-away comment buried deep in a comment thread on Reddit. I don't want to imply that I have any connection to CDPR, and I'm not trying to guilt them into looking at my work or anything.
He told me that "in today's market, a really great adaption of a book is one of the most valuable things a writer can achieve." Look at the success of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series or George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire and you'll know what he means. He also told me that he dreams of getting a "really good adaption of my books done." (Note that The Stormlight Archives VR title is more of an experience than a fully-fledged game - the title can be completed in less than an hour as well.)

He went on:

These two things are worth way more than the money. Yes, if it came down to it, I'd give away Mistborn rights for free in a heartbeat to get a quality adaptation. (I can only offer Mistborn because those are the only video game rights I have retained right now.) In fact, I've had conversations with game studio heads, and the money paid to the author is never a stopping point in these conversations--for either side.
As far as what kind of game he'd want a Mistborn series game to be? He told me he "envisioned Mistborn as an open-world, 3rd person action adventure game." It would feature, much like the books, a focus on "mobility mechanics and political intrigue of a mystery that involves both criminal society and high society."

For now, don't expect any sort of Mistborn game any time soon. But, Sanderson's willingness gives us a little hope that we might see this excellent franchise in video game form.


Quick Take

Brandon Sanderson is my favorite author. I'm not even going to hide it. The possibility of a Mistborn series game (though there's an unofficial Mistborn Minecraft mod) would just be awesome, and I hope that if CD Projekt doesn't take the offer, someone else will. Brandon Sanderson has always come off as extremely humble and hard-working, so I know for a fact he would want a game to be more about how fun it is rather than how much money can be made off of it. Keep it up, Brandon!

Would you play a Mistborn game? What other fantasy books would you like to see have a game adaption? Let us know in the comments below!

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austin
| Staff Writer

Austin cut his teeth writing various  fan-fiction stories on the RuneScape forums when he was in elementary school. Later on, he developed a deep love for… More about Austin