Just as Netflix’s live-action Resident Evil series finds itself flung unceremoniously onto the ‘disappointment’ pile, news arrives of another video game being adapted for television – this time in the form of Obsidian’s inch-high garden adventure Grounded.
Released into early access back in July 2020, Grounded adapts the familiar gathering-and-crafting survival formula into a rollicking family friendly adventure inspired by the likes of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and A Bug’s Life. Here, players are miniaturised and sent on a conspiracy laden escapade around their now-towering backyard, forced to fend off giant insects and other creatures as they explore, scavenge, and plot their escape.
According to Deadline, Grounded’s new television adaptation will follow the same basic premise, telling the story of four friends who, the summer before high school, find their plans to elevate their social standing upended after discovering shrinking technology that makes them two inches tall. “Now the four shrunken friends must learn to survive in a towering backyard that’s a jungle full of enormous predators,” explains Deadline, “and hiding a vast corporate conspiracy threatening their entire town.”
Star Wars: Clone Wars writer Brent Friedman (who’s also working on the new Earthworm Jim series) will adapt Grounded for TV, and Brien Goodrich, who served as cinematics director on Halo 4 and 5, is attached to direct. The project is a collaboration between Obsidian, Xbox, Waterproof Studios/SC Productions, Kinetic Media, and Bardel Entertainment.