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Midway
to Do 3 Unreal Games
PC
(Press
Release)
CHICAGO
– JUNE 28, 2004 - Midway Games Inc. (NYSE: MWY), a leading developer
and publisher of interactive entertainment software, today announced a
multi-year, multi-product agreement with Epic Games to publish three new
videogames based on the popular Unreal® franchise. The agreement marks
Midway's entrance into the premium PC games sector with a property that
has sold more than seven million units worldwide and generated nearly
$200 million in revenue at retail since the introduction of Unreal
Tournament in 1999.
Under
terms of the agreement, Midway obtains worldwide publishing rights for
the three Unreal titles from Epic, including Unreal Championship® 2, an
Xbox® exclusive title scheduled to ship in 2005, and two future
installments of Unreal Tournament® on PC and upcoming next generation
consoles. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Only
Korean PC rights were excluded from the deal.
"This
relationship with Epic further bolsters the strength of our portfolio of
top-rated games and allows us to leverage the marketing capabilities of
our organization to take the Unreal franchise to an even broader
audience of gamers," said David Zucker, president and chief
executive officer of Midway. "It immediately establishes Midway as
a leader in the PC games sector. Additionally, Unreal Championship 2,
scheduled for introduction in February, should further extend Midway's
growing track record for distributing top quality games. We are
delighted that Epic chose Midway over other publishers and we look
forward to working closely with the Epic team to carefully manage this
valuable franchise."
"Midway
gets it. They hit right at the heart of gamers. Not only did they create
many classics including Defender, NFL Blitz and Mortal Kombat, but
they're making great new games such as Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy,
The Suffering, NBA Ballers, NARC and Area 51. They make awesome games
and don't apologize for it, so we think games like Unreal Tournament
will fit in perfectly here," said Mark Rein, vice president and
co-founder, Epic Games. "In our opinion Midway is doing the
industry's best marketing and promotional campaigns and they will
contribute strongly to the ongoing success of the Unreal
franchise."
Scheduled
to arrive exclusively for Xbox in February 2005, Unreal Championship 2
brings a whole new level of intensity to the series as gamers are
blessed with superhuman agility that arms them for battle against deadly
characters or readies them for hand-to-hand melee combat. Taking the
battle online and around the world, Unreal Championship 2 pits players
against each other in an eight-person Xbox Live!™ multiplayer
challenge where only the strong survive. Built from the ground up for
the Xbox, Unreal Championship 2 features all new gameplay elements,
including a deep melee combat system that seamlessly blends in with the
ranged weapon combat the series is known for, a full story-driven
single-player mode, dozens of all new maps, new game modes and an
arsenal of new weaponry. Additional information can be obtained through
the Unreal Championship 2 web site at www.unrealchampionship2.com.
About
Epic Games
Epic
Games Inc, based in Raleigh, NC and established in 1991, is a developer
of cutting-edge computer and video games. The company is best known as
the creator of hit PC 3D action games Unreal and Unreal Tournament, both
award-winning blockbuster hits having each sold more than one million
copies. Games created with the Unreal Engine include: 2002 Console Game
of the Year winner, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell™ (on PC and console
platforms) from Ubi Soft; PC Gamer's 2000 Game of the Year, Deus Ex from
Ion Storm/Eidos; America's Army: Operations, from the United States
Army, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (PC) from Electronic
Arts - and many others. Prior to their 3D success, Epic Games was well
known for the hit shareware games Jill of the Jungle, Jazz Jackrabbit
and Epic Pinball. Additional information can be obtained through Epic's
Web site at www.epicgames.com
About
Midway
Midway
Games Inc. (www.midway.com) is a leading developer, publisher and
marketer of interactive entertainment software. Midway videogames are
available for play on all major videogame platforms including the
PlayStation® 2 computer entertainment system, Xbox® video game system
from Microsoft, and Nintendo GameCube™ and Game Boy® Advance.