Secret Level is the latest animated anthology series from Tim Miller and Blur Studios. Their previous project, Love, Death & Robots, took classic science fiction and fantasy stories from well-regarded genre writers, as well as a host of exciting new talent, and turned those into a collection of fascinating and clever animated shorts. This new show does something similar, but rather than raiding the library, it draws its inspiration from video games.
We got to see four episodes; the first inspired by the recently released Space Marine Two video game. It’s a coda of sorts to that game, detailing what happens next to Captain Titus. It’s a cracking opener to the series, richly animated and dark, heavy with atmospheric grimness. Though produced by Blur Studios, we were strongly reminded of a similar Space Marine animated short, Astartes. (Which is frequently held as the gold standard for this sort of thing). Voice actor Clive Standen reprises his role as Titus, bringing a unique gravitas to the role.
The future of the world of Warhammer 40,000 really does seem to be animated (especially when you consider that The Tithes, a more budget-conscious show produced in-house by the rights owners, Games Workshop, was very good). Games Workshop have a starter set ready for you should the episode inspire you to paint models.
Still, the animation is breathtaking and atmospheric. The story does everything it can with Space Marines, who being mutant super-soldiers, aren’t exactly easy to relate to. This is interesting because the next episode is all about a robot that you really want to succeed.
Xan is a story inspired by Unreal Tournament, a first-person arena shooter game. In the original game, Xan is the last-level boss fight, and Secret Level has seen fit to give this humble robot killing machine a proper kick-ass origin story. It’s a well-framed tale that feels reminiscent of Gladiator in places. It’s the story of a humble mining robot who just wants his freedom in the face of total oppression. It’s also delightfully violent, superbly paced, and tightly acted, and it almost perfectly evokes the atmosphere of the original game. Brilliant stuff.
The next one is a bit of a strange fish, as it’s inspired by a video game called Concord, a first-person hero-shooter game that got cancelled two weeks after its launch. STARBURST never played or reviewed the original game, but if it was anything like this short, it’s a real shame it got pulled. The Concord episode is an origin story of sorts for the world, and it’s Firefly / Guardians of The Galaxy / Cowboy Bepop-style fun. You know the drill: a rag-tag bunch of aliens (featuring some amazing voice actors, including Laura Bailey), getting up to less than legal shenanigans, fighting corporate interests in the name of the little guy. Had Sony spent the budget of developing the video game on turning this short into a full animated series franchise, we’re sure that we’d all be swimming Concord merchandise, spin-off novels and cosplay homages. It’s fun, and the world needs more sci-fi fun.
Our last sampling of the series is from the world of Dungeons and Dragons, which is currently enjoying its 50th anniversary and a new edition. The world of D&D is vast, and there have been a great many video games based on it. This short focuses on The Forgotten Realms, one of D&D’s core settings, and introduces us to a whole new team of adventurers and some of the prettiest renditions of The Forgotten Realms we’ve ever seen. The script was written by award-winning fantasy author Brook Bolander, and they really seem to grok what makes D&D work; the adventure feels like something Elminster himself, Ed Greenwood, would cook up. It’s a nice mix of fantasy, horror, terrible choices and bravery against impossible odds; everything that makes for a great game of D&D.
From what we’ve seen so far, Secret Level is not only a clever name for an anthology of short stories based around video games, but it’s also the theme; each of these stories adds a little bit of stories to an established world, working as a clever little easter egg for fans. Sort of the way secret levels do in video games. This is a gorgeous-looking, genre-savvy, cutting-edge show.
SECRET LEVEL comes to Prime Video on December 10th
