This Indian boy just won Microsoft Xbox contest linked to Bugs Bunny, LeBron James

This Indian boy just made everyone proud with this massive gaming achievement. He actually won and stood first in a gaming competition. The competition had its roots in American basketball star LeBron James and his son Dom starrer Space Jam: A New Legacy, which released in the US last month. The movie involves LeBron and Dom getting trapped in digital space by a rogue AI and the duo teaming up with Bugs Bunny and his squad for a basketball game against the AI. But even before the movie was released, that is, back in December 2020, Microsoft partnered with the Space Jam: A New Legacy team to turn the movie into an Xbox game. To turn the Space Jam: A New Legacy into an Xbox game, Microsoft, Bugs Bunny and LeBron asked fans to create an arcade-style video game inspired by the movie.

The competition caught the attention of a 15-year-old Indian Bugs Bunny fan. what is more, he brainstormed and sent his idea for the competition and actually ended up winning the competition. This was out of the hundreds of entries that Microsoft received from fans across the country.

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Narayan Karthikeyan who hails from Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, outlined his idea for the story for Microsoft Xbox's game and the various power-ups that would help the player progress from one level to the next while achieving different objectives and winning bonus abilities along the way. As a result, Karthikeyan became the only Indian to win this global competition, both as a part of the youth category as well as overall.

“I’ve been a pop-culture enthusiast and Bugs Bunny has always been one of my favourite characters,” he says, “I’m a big fan of the original Space Jam movie, which used to air a lot on television when I was growing up...I’ve always loved seeing how characters in games and their storylines are built out. Some of the greatest stories are told in games,” said Karthikeyan as Microsoft reported in its blog post.

Apart from getting his idea turned into an arcade-style game, Karthikeyan also got his name in the official game credits. In addition to this, Narayan’s competition prizes include a Microsoft Xbox One S console with his name on it, two wireless controllers and an annual subscription to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. He has also received an exclusive Space Jam: A New Legacy movie merchandise pack, VIP Nike Space Jam: A New Legacy kit, and signed memorabilia from LeBron James. In addition to this, Karthikeyan got a hometown screening of the new film and a virtual coding workshop for Narayan and up to 50 participants from his local community.

As far as the final game is concerned, Microsoft Xbox and Warner Bros blended the ideas of Karthikeyan and Ricky, an adult-competition winner from the US. Space Jam: A New Legacy – The Game launched globally on July 1 exclusively to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate Perks for a limited time. The Space Jam: A New Legacy film is expected to come to India soon.