Watching The Watchers

Even before Sergei Lukyanenko’s films hit the big screen, fans of his Watch books were getting together – in the virtual world.

Web sites sprouted where Others could seek one another out. And hunt each other. 

Some 20,000 people take part in the online and cellphone, text-messaging-based (SMS) role-playing game (dozorsms.ru). Registration is free and one develops and equips an alter-ego by battling opponents successfully or by using real money to purchase accoutrements like a virtual home. Players split into Darks and Lights and there is even the Inquisition – an arbitration body of six people (who happen to work in construction marketing in real life) that resolves disputes between the two sides. 

The game’s players – wizards and sorcerers – also meet in real life from time to time. In Moscow, they meet at a little restaurant near VDNKh, owned by one of the players, and also in the central Moscow district of Chistiye Prudy every Friday from 6-7 pm. 

In another Internet-based game (dzzzr.ru), Others across Russia compete in real-life quests about their city, following a trail of cryptic clues from one strange place to another, seeking to finish the Watch-inspired race first. 

There is also a PC-based role-playing game after the books and the movies (nival.com/nightwatch).

Even more interesting has been the effect of the movies and the books on popular culture. In the film, the forces of the Light work for Gorsvet (City Light), which is a real company that oversees the lighting of Russia’s cities. In the movie, the Lights move about in bright yellow trucks, just like the ones that the real Gorsvet uses. So all across Russia, some people now greet Gorsvet’s bright green ZiL trucks with cries of “Smash the vampires!”

More enthusiastic types even try to lure Gorsvet workers out of their vans with “Come out of the Gloom!” so as to get photographed with them.