Popular British esports host and personality Frankie Ward has been transformed into a virtual character for an upcoming strategy game.
She will appear in PC title Humankind, which is due for release on PC, Mac and Stadia on August 17th 2021, developed by Amplitude Studios and published by Sega. It’s been compared to games like Civilization and will allow players to develop cities and interact with other regions.
Frankie Ward’s in-game character is sassy, features her trademark charisma and challenges the player to beat her in the Humankind closed beta.
“Oh, you think you can beat me?” she quips in the below trailer. “Posture all you like – I’ve seen worms with more impressive empires!”
Frankie also added on Twitter: “[This is] one of the most exciting things to EVER happen to me. (Can’t wait to crush your empires, guys!)”
Frankie Ward recorded voice lines with developer Amplitude, which also did some 3D modelling of her face.
She told Esports News UK she recorded some 400 lines for the game:
Oh it was awesome. We recorded 400 lines so I got to unleash my inner diva, and she's a posher sounding (than me) nightmare
— Frankie (@FrankieWard) June 14, 2021
Players will also be able to make their own custom avatars in the full version of Humankind, though they can only select from options and won’t be able to upload their face or voice lines to the game.
It’s not the first time Frankie has worked on a Sega strategy game. She’s also helped to promote upcoming title Total War: Warhammer 3, which is set to launch later this year.
Elsewhere, Frankie Ward is also hosting Versus, a new show from Ubisoft’s gTV bringing together a roster of UK Twitch and YouTube stars to compete with one another for gaming glory.
Related reading: Frankie Ward eyes more Dota 2 work: ‘I’d love to do The International, I feel like it’d show that I’m seen as one of the best at what I do’
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
