Media Molecule signs exclusive deal with Sony Computer Entertainment Europe
2006June 1st
Media Molecule an exciting new independent studio, is delighted to announce that it has entered into an exclusive relationship with Sony Computer Entertainment Europe to create an original and innovative game for PlayStation®3.
The company was founded in January this year by Alex Evans, Mark Healey, Dave Smith and Kareem Ettouney. All four have impressive track records inthe games industry with titles, such as Dungeon Keeper, Theme Park, Black& White, Live for Speed and Fable. The team have most recently completedthe cult hit Rag Doll Kung Fu, which was the first third party title to beavailable through Steam, and went on to be nominated for two Develop awards.
In announcing the deal Mark Healey, Creative Director at Media Moleculesaid, “Working together on Rag Doll convinced us that a focussed andefficient team had the ability to deliver exciting and innovative content. The ambition for Media Molecule is to take that a step further and prove that asmall (20 plus) and passionate team can deliver a world class, triple A, nextgeneration product. Sometimes the very unwieldiness of a massive teamrenders it much less efficient.
”The team’s ethos clearly impressed Sony Computer Entertainment Europe(SCEE), one of the world’s biggest publishers, and to this end have contracted Media Molecule to create an original game for PlayStation®3. Alex Evans, Technical Director explained, “SCEE have proven to be theperfect partner for us. They immediately understood both our ambition for the game as well as our development style.“ Alex added “I think it is fantastic thata massive company like Sony has the vision to see that a smaller outfit cancreate a world class game. Even after 6 months of working together, we’re beginning to create something very special for PS3.”
Michael Denny, Vice President, Sony Computer Entertainment Worldwide Studios (Europe) responded “We were immediately struck by MediaMolecule’s ambitions for what a next-gen title could be. Innovation is the key to our shared vision and everyone here at SCEE is highly impressed by MediaMolecule’s ability to deliver on that vision. We’re excited to have extended our partnership on an exclusive basis and look forward to presenting the gamepublicly in due course.”
For further information on Media Molecule please visit http://www.mediamolecule.com
About Media Molecule
Media Molecule is based in Guildford, UK and was founded in January 2006.The company’s founders have worked at some of Britain’s most innovative, successful and respected developers Bullfrog, Lionhead and Criterion Games.The company is currently working on its first game, an original title, which hasbeen signed exclusively to Sony Computer Entertainment Europe forPlayStation®3.
About Sony Computer Entertainment
Sony Computer Entertainment Europe (SCEE), based in London, is responsiblefor the distribution, marketing and sales of PlayStation®2 and PSP®(PlayStation®Portable) software and hardware in 104 territories acrossEurope, the Middle East, Africa and Oceania. SCEE also develops,publishes, markets and distributes entertainment software for theseformats, and manages the third party licensing programs for the platformsin these territories. Between its European debut on 24th November 2000 andthe end of March 2006, over 38 million PlayStation 2 consoles have beenshipped across the SCEE territories, over 103 million worldwide, making itone of the most successful consumer electronic products in history.Between its European debut on 1st September 2005 and the end of March2006, over 5 million PSP systems have been shipped across the SCEEterritories, with over 17 million shipped worldwide since its Japanese launch in December 2004.More information about PlayStation products can be found atwww.playstation.com and http://www.yourpsp.com or visit the Virtual PressOffice at http://www.scee.presscentre.com.PlayStation, PSP and the PlayStation logo are registered trademarks ofSony Computer Entertainment Inc. UMD (Universal Media Disc) is a trademarkof Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks are the propertyof their respective owners.
Download this press release (119 kB PDF)