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North American publishing agreements for Conflict: Desert Storm and The Italian Job Announced

(4/8/02) SCi Entertainment Group Plc (SEG), one of Europe’s leading publishers of computer games, today announces the signing of North American publishing agreements with Take Two Interactive (“Take Two”) for its eagerly awaited game Conflict: Desert Storm and for the PC version of the number one Playstation hit The Italian Job.

Based on the 1991 Gulf War, Conflict: Desert Storm is a squad based action game, where the player takes control of an elite Special Air Service or Delta Force Unit, ordered behind enemy lines to infiltrate enemy territory and neutralise key targets. Cameron Spence, an ex-member of 22 Special Air Service (SAS), is advising SCi on the logistics and realism of the product. The game will be launched on Sony Playstation 2, Microsoft Xbox, Nintendo GameCube and PC formats.

The Italian Job, based on the classic film starring Michael Caine, was released on Sony Playstation in October 2001. It was an immediate success, charting at number one in the Playstation charts for four weeks and remaining in the Top 20 ever since. The PC version of The Italian Job will be released to the retail market in the UK and in Europe on 12th April 2002. Take Two signed the US rights to the Playstation version of The Italian Job in February 2002.

The agreements grant exclusive North American publishing rights to Take Two in return for guaranteed income, further royalties depending on the success of the game and a substantial marketing commitment. In order to maximise the effectiveness of this marketing expenditure Conflict: Desert Storm will be simultaneously launched Worldwide on Sony Playstation 2, Microsoft X-Box and PC in early September 2002, and launched on Gamecube a few months later.

Take Two, which is one of North America’s leading games publishers, will be responsible for publishing and marketing the product in North America. Through its hugely successful titles, Grand Theft Auto 3 and State of Emergency, Take Two has held the number one position in the United States Playstation charts for every week of 2002. Grand Theft Auto 3 was the most successful Playstation 2 title in the United States in 2001 selling nearly 2 million units.

SCi (SEG) was founded in 1988 and is one of the leading games publishers in Europe. It has produced titles for Playstation, PS2, Nintendo 64, GameBoy Color, GameBoy Advance and PC including the hit games Carmageddon, Thunderbirds and The Italian Job. The group has one of the fullest pipelines in European gaming with titles like Gumball 3000, The Great Escape and Futurama set for release over the coming 24 months. SCi was first listed on AIM in 1996 followed by a successful move to the official list in March 2000.

Jane Cavanagh, Chief Executive of SCi commented:

“We are very pleased to continue our relationship with Take Two. The phenomenal success with Playstation 2 titles since 2002 proves that Take Two is one of the most dynamic companies in the American market. Anticipation for Conflict: Desert storm is very high. We believe that this agreement gives us the basis for a very exciting worldwide release. This agreement will form an important component of our results in the 2002 financial year.”