Campaign to preserve Macclesfield-made video game featuring the band Gorillaz
Internet sleuths have become fascinated with an 13-year-old video game made in Macclesfield.
Escape to Plastic Beach was the name of three pieces of software by Macclesfield company Matmi.
The developers teamed up with the rock band Gorillaz to make three small video games based around the Damon Albarn-led rock band's third album Plastic Beach
The 2010 project consisted of two flash games you could play on your internet browser that was free to play online, which were adverts for a paid game on the Apple app store.
Unfortunately, the game is no longer available to play on computers, phones or iPads.
But that hasn't stopped a passionate community of fans to contact the local company to try and reupload the game for everyone to play.
Matmi, who use new media for promotional and educational purposes, is founded by Macclesfield resident Jeff Coghlan who co-designed Escape to Plastic Beach.
"With our first tweet this year, somehow we've managed to get #returntoplasticbeach and the #gorillaz trending around the world," he said.
"We rarely use Twitter. We were promoting JNR CHEF - a Macclesfield kids cooking app - when someone reached out to us about a game we'd made in 2010.
"It is a nice dream and to go along for the ride with the fanbase [to try and get it revived]. It is really unlikely the record company would invest the money required to bring something back when there isn't any music to be released with it. Unless they saw the opportunity on the return of the investment.
"But with the fanbase now talking about crowdfunding, who knows anything is possible. And reality is what you make it.
"I saw there was a load of passion and emotion and thought I needed to give something back. And the more I gave back, the more appreciative they were. I didn't realise how much of a buzz it would cause."
The 3D action adventure game was released in three parts across February to July 2010.
Fans of the band had been piecing together available screenshots and videos of the game, before Jeff responded to them and fans began their own hashtag to get the band to notice the campaign.
TV shows, music, games, movies and more that has been lost to time is known as lost media. And what we know about the game so far is being updated on the Lost Media Wiki by the fans who have helped the game go viral around the world 13 years later, despite the fact that nobody can play it.
"The Twitter user @obsess__possess came up with the hashtag #returntoplasticbeach," added Jeff.
"Half an hour later it was trending across the world from Chile, the US, to Saudi Arabia. It was the top trending topic in the US over the whole of last weekend.
"It had a charm because it was silly and funny. It used the Gorillaz graphics, obviously a lot of fun in there and great music.
"Obviously for us working with someone like the Gorillaz and Jamie Hewlett which is a legend in the industry was very nice.
"This campaign and interacting with he fans took me on a nostalgic journey really, we are coming up to 25 years in business and it was nice to look back.
"I have got 100 hard drives with no labels on, and it could be on there.
"For me to find it, it needs the community to make their voice heard and show it is worth it. [And of course, seek approval from the band.]
"I knew of the lost media community before this but I didn't know it was such a big thing. I am absolutely flabbergasted it is so big."
After the lost media community sent countless emails and tweets, Twitter user piggie @phase2murdoc was the first user Jeff responded to about the game.
"From the get-go, fans were devastated when they realised both the app and the web game were gone forever", they said.
"Never have I seen a more passionate group of people desperate to find remnants of a decade-old game, which inspired my own kind of research.
"This is how I inevitably came across Matmi. I turned on push notifications for their Twitter and took a chance when the time was right.
"It's amazing how quickly this whole thing blew up in just a few days.
"I genuinely can't stop thinking about how cool it would be if it was ever re-released. Pretty much everyone has been thinking the same for years, and getting closer than we have ever been is truly a rewarding feeling.
"I would love for it be playable, especially to those who never got to (myself included). I'm just so thankful to have been apart of it all in the first place."
Matmi employs eight people in Macclesfield.
The local firm's first office was in Bollington, but they are now based in-between The Fountain and RedWillow on Park Green in Macclesfield town centre.
Matmi are also the same company as Courthouse Collective, who sell trendy prints of Macclesfield landmarks.
Macclesfield: You can watch a video of the sought-after game in-action at the top of this article. If you want to help the game's campaign to be revived, simply use the hashtag #returntoplasticbeach on Twitter.
See Also: Ever-evolving Macclesfield company Matmi celebrate 20th anniversary
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