Game Talk – Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock

The 11th Doctor, Matt Smith, talks to eu.playstation.com about acting in video games and why he'd like to play Amy Pond.

Matt Smith has played the 11th Doctor, a roving Time Lord, in the BBC's hugely popular TV series, Doctor Who, since 2010. Now, in Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock on PlayStation 3, you'll be zipping through wormholes that link the Middle Ages with a near-future London in an adventure full of all the humour and excitement of the TV show.

Here, Matt explains how he managed to park the TARDIS inside PS3 and turn a little corner of PlayStation Store into the Doctor's home planet, Gallifrey.

How did acting in a video game compare to other work you've done?

I enjoyed working on the game. The people I worked with were very thorough, very detailed and very nice. It's a bit like doing Automated Dialogue Recording for a television project, where you re-record some lines after filming. It's a technique I've used before and one that I enjoy.

What did you enjoy most about conveying the Doctor in video game form?

Doing the motion capture was really interesting. It's something I've always been intrigued by and wanted to learn about; you get to add the voice and see it all come to fruition. Seeing yourself as a computerised character is one of those rare moments that only happens when you're involved in a show like Doctor Who.

What were the most challenging parts of the role in digital form?

You've got to make the voiceover and the character on screen match somehow. Obviously you're not moving as you speak and so you've got to apply your voice to the movements of a motion captured character, which can take a couple of attempts sometimes. But it's a rewarding challenge.

If you could swap places with any other Doctor Who character, which one would it be and why?

Amy Pond. So I could experience what it's like to have ginger hair and be Scottish for a day.

Where would you land the TARDIS to mark the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who, which is coming up in November 2013?

I would land it in the middle of the Wembley football pitch just after England's victory in the 1966 World Cup final and shake Sir Geoff Hurst's hand for scoring his famous hat-trick. Then I'd leap forward to Euro 2012 and just park the TARDIS right in front of the England goal in our first match so that our opponents, France, couldn't score.

Which PlayStation games rank among your favourites?

Resident Evil was my favourite game of all time, on the original PlayStation. I absolutely loved it. Also the FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer series - all of the football games are incredibly playable, I find. But Resident Evil was always the game for me.

Can you reveal any spoilers about the new series of Doctor Who for eu.playstation.com?

Absolutely not. My lips are sealed!

While you wait for Series 7 of Doctor Who to air, why not check out Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock on PS3 and see Matt Smith and his companion in action? It's available to download from PlayStation Store now.