Italy’s deposed prince to launch video game with Europe’s ousted royals

He’s made headlines selling pasta on the streets of Los Angeles, produced a handful of movies, and captured the hearts of millions of viewers as he sashayed his way through Italy’s version of Strictly Come Dancing.

Now Prince Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy, the 52-year-old grandson of the country’s last king, has joined forces with seven other royal families in developing a novel video game that will share their heritage with a new generation who has never heard of them.

Prince Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy wants new generations to know about his family and history.Credit: Instagram

The game, which is titled The RoyaLand, is being developed with deposed royal heirs from Albania, Bulgaria, France, Yugoslavia, Russia’s Romanov family and Germany’s Mecklenburg dynasty, as well as the ruling monarchs of Lesotho in Southern Africa.

“My idea was to create a game that could blend the allure of royalty and the thrill of gaming, involving other royal families,” Prince Emanuele Filiberto told The Telegraph in an exclusive interview.

“I think it’s a win-win situation for both players and for royals.”

The prince has not yet approached the British royal family but said he had discussed the proposal with Prince Albert of Monaco, where Emanuele Filiberto lives with his family.

Backed by artificial intelligence, the video game is being produced with Milan-based Neosperience and is expected to be released late next year.

The game’s promotional material includes a lifelike avatar of the prince and invites players to interact with royal families in a “collaborative experience” where they battle their rivals for supremacy to fortify their virtual kingdoms.

Digital animation of Emanuele Filiberto on The RoyaLand YouTube channel promoting the game.

“It’s not only a complex game where players have to own their own land, but increase their power, wealth and territory, and also [rise through] the hierarchy of nobility to become the king or queen of RoyaLand and keep this title,” the prince said, without a hint of irony.

Princess Victoria, an Italian commoner who married Grand Duke George from Russia’s Romanov family, and who is also a cousin of Emanuele Filiberto, described the video game as “cutting edge”.

Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy attends a mass presided by Pope Francis on December 15.Credit: AP

“It’s a new way of approaching history,” the princess told The Telegraph by telephone. “The younger generation spends a lot of their time on social media, and video games can be quite shallow. But this will be about learning and will be fun.”

Born in Geneva, the boyish-looking Emanuele Filiberto grew up in exile and has made no secret about the challenges of defining his role since the monarchy was rejected by Italians in a nationwide referendum in 1946.

Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy and his bride, Clotilde Courau, in Rome after their wedding ceremony in 2003. Credit: EPA

Once he was allowed to enter Italy, following the overturning of a constitutional ban, the prince became a household name with his win on Italy’s top-rating Dancing with the Stars. He has also spoken previously about his desire to enter politics, aspiring to become prime minister.

But he is adamant that The RoyaLand game has nothing to do with legitimising the Savoy name or advancing any aspiration to re-establish the monarchy.

“It’s not a game that will bring me back,” he said. “It’s about trying to pass on a history, a culture and values to a young generation.”

Last year, the prince announced that he would renounce his claim to the country’s throne in favour of his daughter, Vittoria, a 20-year-old model with more than 100,000 Instagram followers.

He previously described her as “the rock ′n’ roll princess”, and the prince’s late father, Vittorio Emanuele, had changed an ancient custom called the Salic Law, which stipulated that the royal line could only pass to male heirs.

Prince Emanuele Filberto of Savoy (front) in Melbourne in 2002. Credit: Simon Schluter

But in his latest interview, Emanuele Filiberto stressed he wanted his eldest daughter to “concentrate on creating her life, not the life of her name”.

While focused on his business interests, the prince has not given up his family’s bitter legal battle to recover the Savoy royal jewels, estimated to be worth €300 million ($500 million), held in the Bank of Italy in Rome.

Marina Doria and Vittorio Emanuele, parents of Emmanuel Filiberto, in 2003. The Savoy family once hoped to restore the monarchy.Credit: AP

“It’s now more than 70 or 80 years since we have had a monarchy in Italy. At a certain point, they should say, ‘OK, let’s make peace with the House of Savoy’ and move forward and think about the heritage and the history and the values that this family brought to Italy,” the prince said. “We unified Italy.”

The Savoy family once held onto the hope of restoring the monarchy, drawing inspiration from Spain, where the king returned after the death of military dictator Franco in 1975. During their recent visit to Italy, Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia were greeted with enthusiastic cries of “Long live the king!” in Naples, a city that had been under Spanish rule for two centuries.

Emanuele Filiberto said he welcomed the Italian response.

The Telegraph

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