HOYLE, DELL MAGAZINES AND WEBSTER'S TEAM UP TO BRING CROSSWORDS INTO THE 21ST CENTURY

DELL MAGAZINES CROSSWORDS CD-ROM OFFERS THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE COLLECTION OF CROSSWORDS AVAILABLE.

BELLEVUE, Wash. (April 12, 2001) - Sierra(tm) today announced the release of Dell Magazines Crosswords, the latest addition to the best-selling Hoyle(r) game series for the PC. Building on the success and popularity of Hoyle and Dell Magazines, Dell Magazines Crosswords is a 21st century approach for the lover of crossword puzzles. For expert and novice puzzlers alike, Dell Magazines Crosswords offers variety, challenge and fun for the whole family.

Crossword wizards will be challenged by Dell Magazines Crosswords' combination of 1,200 crossword puzzles from the 2001 release, Hoyle Word Games, as well as a fresh new assortment of puzzles from the authority in crossword puzzles, Dell Magazines. Also included are Webster's New World(tm) College Dictionary definitions for quick reference when stumped on the meaning of a word.

"Dell Magazines Crosswords offers the most comprehensive collection of crosswords in one package, an easy-to-use interface, and the attention to rules and fun that are synonymous with Hoyle games," said Paula Bynan, director of marketing for Sierra. "You simply can't go wrong when you combine the expertise and familiarity of Hoyle, Dell Magazines and Webster's."

Dell Magazines Crosswords Features: 

* Players can go head to head with friends, and even create their own character face to use during game play. 

* Wordsmiths can select their skill level - easy, medium, hard, or choose to let the computer mix and match the difficulty level. 

* When stumped, players can let the computer solve a letter, a word or the entire puzzle. 

* The mistake alert option notifies players when an error has been made. The game offers hints for tricky words, as well as options to save and play later. 

* The puzzle timer is a fun challenge for players and useful for keeping track of statistics. 

* Puzzles can be played alone or with others on the same computer.

Dell Magazines Crosswords is available for Windows(r) 95/98/2000/Me and Macintosh for a suggested retail price of $19.99 at local software retailers, by visiting www.hoylegames.com, or by calling 800-757-7707.

ABOUT SIERRA 

Sierra On-Line, Inc. http://www.sierra.com, a subsidiary of Vivendi Universal Publishing and part of the Vivendi Universal Games division, is one of the original developers and largest worldwide publishers of interactive entertainment and productivity software. Sierra is renowned for releasing critically acclaimed and award winning titles that represent a wide variety of computer entertainment on both next generation console and PC platforms.

ABOUT VIVENDI UNIVERSAL GAMES 

Vivendi Universal Games (VUG) is a division of Vivendi Universal Publishing, a world leader in mass-market multimedia communications. A leading publisher of online, PC and console-based interactive content, VUG's portfolio of entertainment software brands includes Blizzard Entertainment(tm), Flipside.com(tm), Sierra(tm) and Universal Interactive Studios. Games are one of parent company Vivendi Universal's key content areas, along with movies, music and other publishing activities. Vivendi Universal aims to be the world's preferred creator and provider of personalized information, entertainment and services to consumers everywhere, and across all distribution platforms.

MEDIA CONTACT: 

Janelle Watts, (425) 649-9800, ext. 5205 janelle.watts@sierra.com

All puzzles copyright (c) 2001 Dell Magazines. Hoyle is a registered trademark of Brown & Bigelow, Inc. in the United States and other countries. Webster's New World is a registered trademark of Hungry Minds, Inc.

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