Ubisoft new brawler Spartacus Legends is based on the Starz TV show and features the likeness and voice talent of actor Liam McIntyre who plays the title character on the TV series.
The game publisher announced that the Kung Fu Factory-developed Spartacus Legends will be the first third-party free-to-play game on Microsoft's free-to-play pilot program on XBLA, following Ascend: New Gods and Happy Wars.
Spartacus Legends will also be available for free on the PlayStation Network when it release in the first quarter of 2013. The game will allow players an inside look at the life of a gladiator, from practicing in the training area to battles in the arena.
According to a summary of the game:
"Featuring thousands of ruthless weapon combinations and a robust skill system, Spartacus Legends delivers a variety of tools for gamers to customize their gladiators and dismember their foes. Gamers will be able to fight as Spartacus, Crixus or one of their own created gladiators as they battle with friends offline or in online multiplayer to join the ranks on the worldwide leaderboards."
"Spartacus " is a television series that is broadcast on the Starz cable channel and is inspired by the historical figure of Spartacus, a Thracian gladiator who from 73 to 71 BC led a major slave uprising against the Roman Republic.
The first season was titled "Spartacus: Blood and Sand," and featured actor Andy Whitfield as the lead, but the actor was diagnosed with early-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma and was replaces by McIntyre before the third season. Whitfield died on Sept. 11, 2011.
The third and final season of the history-inspired drama, "War of the Damned," will air in January 2013.
Watch the Spartacus Legends announcment trailer below...