Complete first season of episodic games to hit retail stores this fall

SAN RAFAEL, CA, April 4, 2008 – As part of a continuing effort to extend episodic gaming to new audiences and platforms, Telltale is officially announcing that Sam & Max Season One will be coming to  Wii™. This collection of the first six Sam & Max episodes will introduce a brand new audience to the popular and critically-acclaimed game series. Sam & Max for Wii is expected to ship to retail stores worldwide this fall, thanks to a partnership between Telltale and JoWooD/DreamCatcher.

Sam & Max’s journey to the Wii console has been fueled by fan excitement. Just before the episodic series’ PC debut, fans launched an email campaign clamoring for a Wii version of the series. Continuous rumors and rampant speculation online led to developer and publisher enthusiasm for the title. With Telltale now focusing on console development in addition to PC, the company can finally bring Sam & Max to Wii in response to this overwhelming demand.

The Sam & Max episodes let players guide the Freelance Police through a series of bizarre—and often sidesplitting—mysteries. Sam & Max Season One has already experienced enormous success, both as an episodic series available for download through Telltale’s website and other services, and at retail. Honors include Adventure Game of the Year from GameSpy and IGN, and inclusion on Games for Windows’ list of Top 10 Games in 2007.

The Wii console is a perfect fit for the Sam & Max games. The series’ story-driven gameplay and episodic structure has often been favorably compared to TV sitcoms. The new Wii version will present Sam & Max in a format that can be enjoyed from the comfort of the living room, either alone or with a group of friends—a setting perfectly suited for this kind of experience. The game’s easy-to-use interface is ideal for a broad consumer audience.

Sam & Max first hit the indie comic scene in 1987, courtesy of franchise creator Steve Purcell. In the twenty years since, they have appeared in an animated TV series, an Eisner-winning webcomic, and numerous video games. The success of the Sam & Max episodic series has fueled a renaissance for the franchise. Telltale recently released a special 20th Anniversary Edition of the complete Sam & Max comic collection, Surfin’ the Highway, after nearly a decade out of print, and a DVD box set of the 1997 animated series has just been published by Shout Factory. Both are available in Telltale’s online store (www.telltalegames.com/store), along with other Sam & Max merchandise.

Sam & Max Season One for Wii will be published by Dreamcatcher/The Adventure Company in North America, and by JoWooD in Europe. In addition to English language, the game will be fully localized in French and German, and subtitled in Italian and Spanish. All versions are expected to ship during the fall 2008 season.

About Sam & Max

Sam is a six-foot dog in a baggy suit sporting a trombone-sized .44 hand-cannon. Max is a three foot “rabbity thing” with a saw blade grin and the impulsive nature of the average piranha. Together they patrol the sticky streets of a fantastical New York City, righting wrongs, pummeling perps, and ridding the urban landscape of the shifty legions of “self-propelled gutter trash” that litter their streets. Sam & Max have appeared in comics, video games, an animated TV series coming soon to DVD, and an Eisner award-winning webcomic.

SEGA’s newest Sonic title is set to combine amazing next gen capabilities with classic Sonic 2D gameplay!

LONDON & SAN FRANCISCO (April 3, 2008) – SEGA® of America and SEGA of Europe Ltd., today announced that everyone’s favourite hedgehog will be breaking new ground yet maintaining his roots, in the upcoming title, Sonic Unleashed™. Developed by renowned studio Sonic Team, the latest installment in the multi-million selling franchise, will take players on an unforgettable high-speed journey around the globe in a way never before experienced in the world of Sonic. The game is set for release later this year and will be available for the Xbox 360™ videogame and entertainment system from Microsoft, PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Wii™ home video game system from Nintendo and PLAYSTATION®2.

Sonic Unleashed is built on a powerful new “Hedgehog Engine”, which introduces seamless 3D to classic 2D camera transitions, whilst delivering a rich and expansive world with multiple paths to choose from. Under development for three years, the Hedgehog Engine produces a visually rich next generation look and feel with elements of classic Sonic gameplay mechanics. The Hedgehog engine will help re-define the gameplay experience for Sonic fans and newcomers to the franchise alike.

“By combining rich and vibrant scenery with dynamic viewpoints Sonic Unleashed will provide an immersive 3D experience whilst keeping alive the 2D gameplay elements and fantastic worlds that Sonic fans know and love” commented Gary Knight, European Marketing Director for SEGA Europe. “In addition to this classic Sonic gaming experience, when darkness sets in Sonic Unleashed players will be able to experience a completely new way to play as Sonic… making this his most exciting adventure yet!”

Having been broken apart by the evil Dr Eggman, it’s down to Sonic to put the pieces of the world back together again by retrieving the power of the chaos emeralds. In doing so, Sonic will find himself in a race against time and faced with an unusual situation that will challenge him in ways never before seen. By completing a wide variety of action-packed stages, spanning the seven broken continents of the world, gamers will need to unleash Sonic’s amazing abilities to save the world, and himself!

The opportunity to engage in Sonic in different ways during the day and night time levels brings a completely original way of playing to the Sonic franchise, in addition to running at high speeds in classic Sonic style, combat fighting will become possible. Super quick Sonic’s speed skills will be highlighted by four new modes, whilst the all new combat, movement and functional abilities will offer depth and variety to the game. As the sun sets in Sonic Unleashed, a different type of adventure will awaken in Sonic’s newest quest….

NINJA GAIDEN Dragon Sword brings the authentic Ninja experience to Nintendo DS^TM for the first time.

London, UK – April 3, 2008 – Today Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest video game publishers, announced a distribution agreement to release Tecmo’s NINJA GAIDEN Dragon Sword to all EMEA territories. Already a critically acclaimed game in the US and Japan, NINJA GAIDEN Dragon Sword will hit European shelves in June 2008.

NINJA GAIDEN: Dragon Sword is the latest iteration in the series and the first to be made for Nintendo DS™ handheld system, featuring gorgeous rendered backgrounds, a new exciting story and the traditional fast-paced action that the franchise is known for. Taking perfect advantage of the Nintendo DS with intuitive stylus gameplay, Ryu Hayabusa’s combat moves are mapped onto the DS touchscreen and directional buttons which allows him to run, jump, attack and cast Ninpo. Certain move combinations will enable Ryu to perform fatal special attacks such as the Izuna Drop and Cicada Slash which are some of Ryu’s signature moves.

NINJA GAIDEN: Dragon Sword is developed by Executive Producer Tomonobu Itagaki and the Team NINJA development studio.