Harrison Ford making Facebook game

Hollywood superstar and ear ring advocate Harrison Ford has temporarily traded his day job for that of a game developer.

The man behind Indiana Jones and Han Solo has teamed up with new LA-based studio Talkie on forthcoming Facebook game Ecotopia.

According to The Hollywood Reporter it's a free-to-play city-building game that "integrates cinematic storytelling and requires players to perform real-world green initiatives to earn virtual points for in-game advancement".

Ford got involved in his capacity as vice chairman of Conservation International – a US NGO that campaigns on environmental issues.

"I'm excited to be involved with Ecotopia because I see it as a great way to engage millions of people in our fight to protect our planet by taking action online and in our daily lives," explained Ford.

"As we work to address the most fundamental issues facing humanity, I think Ecotopia will help get people involved in a way that is fun, educational, and meaningful."

Judging by comments from Talkie boss Larry Bond, Ford hasn't exactly jumped into the programmer's seat and started tapping in lines of code, but he did have a part to play in devising the original concept.

"The idea was a byproduct of the passion that both [Talkie founder] Chris [Swain] and I share for the environment along with a conversation that I had with Harrison shortly after he returned from a UN meeting on climate change in Nagoya, Japan last fall," said Bond.

"Harrison explained the crisis that our planet was facing on the loss of biodiversity. That was the catalyst to create a game that was not only really entertaining, but also have a profound impact on our world."

"We allow players to enter their real world green acts - such as composting - and get in-game credit," added Swain, ellaborating on the concept.

"That means if you car pool you get Sustainability Points, Money Savings, and Power Savings that you can spend to get further in the game world. You get a low number of points for doing a real world act, but we give you a big bonus if you also upload a picture of yourself doing it. Then you get the real points if your friends verify that you did it. This is a system we call 'social proofing.'"

Ecotopia will be available to play on Facebook in the Spring, and on "additional online platforms" later this year.