BioWare Licenses Unreal® Engine 3
Company to license technology from Epic Games for future title
EDMONTON, Alberta, Canada - September 16, 2004 –
BioWare Corp. and Epic Games today announced a licensure agreement, whereby BioWare will license Epic's Unreal® Engine 3 for use in an upcoming title.
The agreement marks the first time the two companies have collaborated, combining the talents of the premier RPG developer with the premier next-generation engine technology creators. A BioWare development team is already hard at work on the Unreal Engine 3-powered game, an as-yet unannounced title which features BioWare's third new intellectual property.
"We're very happy to license Epic's advanced Unreal Engine 3 technology," said Dr. Ray Muzyka, Joint CEO of BioWare Corp. "One of our development teams will now focus on using Unreal Engine 3 to help us create a great gaming experience in a timely manner. The Unreal Engine has powered some of our favorite games, and we're looking forward to upholding the great history of this engine with an awesome game from BioWare". Dr. Greg Zeschuk, Joint CEO of BioWare Corp. added, "Meanwhile, BioWare will continue to independently develop our own cutting-edge engine technology for future titles!"
We're thrilled that BioWare has chosen to work with Unreal Engine 3." said Tim Sweeney, CEO and Founder of Epic Games Inc. "BioWare's decision reinforces that Unreal Engine 3 is not only a next generation, multi-genre game engine, but also that it can work well for all developers, from small teams to world-class, technologically-savvy companies like BioWare." Mark Rein, Vice President of Epic, added, "BioWare has made some of the best games of all time and we can't wait to see what amazing things they're going to do with Unreal Engine 3!"
About Epic
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 1 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), Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow, and Rainbow Six 3 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, 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 BioWare
BioWare Corp. is an electronic entertainment company that develops computer and console games. BioWare’s developers are currently hard at work on the action-RPG Jade Empire™, a BioWare-created intellectual property to be published by Microsoft for the Xbox (www.jade-empire.com). Also in development is a new RPG titled Dragon Age, which is being developed for the PC. Plus, a third new intellectual property is in development for the console. Star Wars:® Knights of the Old Republic™, published by LucasArts and released July 18, 2003 for the Xbox and November 18, 2003 for PC, is currently enjoying critical praise and great commercial success with its opening weekend launch ending with Microsoft proclaiming the title as the fastest selling Xbox game in history. Neverwinter Nights™: Hordes of the Underdark™, the second official expansion for the critically acclaimed PC role-playing game Neverwinter Nights, published by Atari, was released on December 2, 2003, and has enjoyed critical success. Previously published projects include: the award-winning Neverwinter Nights™, the genre-defining Baldur’s Gate™ roleplaying game series for the PC, MDK™2 for Dreamcast and PC, MDK™2: Armageddon for PlayStation®2 and Shattered Steel™. BioWare information can be found online at www.bioware.com.
All copyright and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.