MIDWAY UNVEILS NEW GAME LINEUP AT
THE ELECTRONIC ENTERTAINMENT EXPO (E3) 2003
Reinvented Sports Product Line
and One-of-a-Kind Entertainment Titles Lead Charge for Midway
LOS ANGELES – May 12, 2003 (E3 Booth
# 800, South Hall) – Midway Games Inc. (NYSE: MWY), a leading software industry
publisher and developer, announced today its videogame lineup for
next-generation game systems at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) at the
Los Angeles Convention Center, May 14-16, 2003.
Midway Entertainment Titles
ESPIONAGE
ESPionage challenges players to use
their most powerful weapon – their mind – as they try to master the first
action/stealth game to integrate traditional weapons combat with extensive Psi
(psychic) mind powers. Combating a terrorist movement set to overthrow world
order, gamers take on the persona of an elite American Psi-Operative who fights
using telekinesis (lifting and throwing objects), pyrokinesis (controlling
fire), remote viewing (going “out-of-body” to plan attacks), mind drain
(draining Psi energy from enemies), aura view (“seeing” elements that aren’t
visible in the real world) and mind control (taking control of enemies) to fight
against an army of programmed terrorist super soldiers that will stop at nothing
to reach their goal. As players strategically navigate eight huge, immersive
levels within four distinct compounds, they encounter multiple ways to solve
missions, which greatly adds to the replay value. ESPionage is scheduled to ship
in fall 2003 for the PlayStation2 computer entertainment system, Xbox and
Nintendo GameCube™.
THE SUFFERING
Midway captures the disturbing and
terrifying nature of the horror genre with The Suffering, a compelling
third-person action/adventure game set in the mature and gritty world of a
maximum-security prison. Unleashing the horror throughout nine levels, The
Suffering features dynamic lighting that illuminates frightening visions of
horror-filled exploration and frantic combat sequences. In the dark world of The
Suffering, creatures attack from the shadows and emerge from jail cells,
chambers, the ground and trees, surprising the player in the most disturbing
ways possible. As Torque, the main character, players encounter a cast of
uniquely hardened criminals, prison guards and grotesque apparitions. Depending
on how they play the game, players will arrive at three distinct endings for a
unique gaming experience. In addition, Stan Winston, renowned creature designer,
enhanced The Suffering’s horror-filled experience by creating the disturbing
character artwork featured in the game.
The Suffering is scheduled to ship
Halloween 2003 for the PlayStation2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube™. For more
information visit
www.thesuffering.midway.com .
SPYHUNTER 2
SpyHunter is back in the ultimate
thrill ride with SpyHunter 2, combining high-speed combat, global espionage, and
mission-based gameplay. Gamers take the helm of the world’s most powerful
counterintelligence combat vehicle, the completely redesigned G-8155 Interceptor
complete with new transformations including the sleek snowmobile and 4-wheel
drive off-road vehicle. Within a compelling story of global intrigue and
international espionage, the gamer’s mission is to uncover Nostra’s sinister
plans for world domination and discover the secrets of a mysterious female
agent. In addition, the gameplay includes upgradeable offensive and defensive
weaponry, as players fend off enemy vehicles throughout massive levels set
across enormous regions. The excitement also continues with the latest version
of the Interceptor’s online computer, Leonie 2.0, designed to aid in
mission-critical tactics and information. SpyHunter 2 is scheduled to ship in
fall 2003 for the PlayStation2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube™. For more
information visit www.spyhunter2.midway.com
FREAKY FLYERS
Freaky Flyers drops players into the
cockpit with the most unique and engaging cast of characters to ever explore,
adventure, stunt-fly and dogfight in the videogame skies. Intertwining stories
and engaging aerial combat add to the excitement throughout completely open and
interactive 3-D world environments. Increasing the intensity is multiplayer
action that allows gamers to battle head-to-head in aerial racing combat. Freaky
Flyers quickly lures players in with an intriguing, humorous storyline that
includes 13 engaging characters and a hilarious soundtrack featuring eight
original songs. In addition, players can travel with more than a dozen unique
and alluring characters such as the true-blue American hero, Johnny Turbine; the
pinnacle of German discipline, Traci Torpedoes; or the spicy bandita from south
of the border, Cactus Rose. Freaky Flyers is scheduled to ship in August 2003
for the PlayStation2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube™.
ROADKILL
Fighting for survival in a
post-apocalyptic world destroyed by a plague and ruled by gangs, players unleash
havoc in more than 30 vehicles with weapons such as machine guns, guided
missiles and grenade launchers. Assuming the role of the mercenary, players must
build a gang following as they battle rival gangs, city guards and anyone else
that gets in the way. RoadKill drops players into instantaneous battle with 30
core missions and numerous side missions. The missions place the player into the
three cities of Hell County – Lava Falls, Blister Canyon and Paradise City.
RoadKill’s dynamic reputation system determines how the world reacts to the way
players perform missions, kill and maim citizens, destroy enemy vehicles and
build alliances with the gangs of Hell County. RoadKill is scheduled to ship in
fall 2003 for the PlayStation2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube™. For more
information visit
www.roadkill.midway.com .
Midway Sports
NFL BLITZ PRO
The new direction of NFL Blitz was
designed with the sports fan in mind and is based on feedback from both hardcore
and casual sports enthusiasts. Nationwide focus testing of sports videogamers
produced a clear message: gamers applaud Midway Sports trademark arcade-style
gameplay and intense action but also want to experience their favorite teams,
players, and stadiums in an authentic professional sports context. Midway Sports
answered the call by taking NFL Blitz in a new direction.
Officially licensed by NFL
Properties and PLAYERS INC, NFL Blitz Pro will showcase authentic 11-on-11
gameplay with real NFL teams, players and stadiums, while still providing the
well-known Midway Sports “edge.” With a solid reputation for delivering the best
multiplayer sports games, NFL Blitz Pro continues this Midway Sports tradition
with superlative new online play for the Playstation 2, including a unique
tournament system, leaderboards, fast head-to-head matchups, downloadable roster
updates and up-to-the minute real-time weather effects – everything from snow in
Buffalo to sunshine in Miami – to enhance the realistic experience. Along with
the advent of the 11-on-11 gameplay format comes the first-ever Blitz-style
running game that includes traditional moves such as handoffs, pitches,
reverses, and up-the-gut runs, as well as more aggressive trick plays that the
pros have yet to attempt. Midway also signed an exclusive deal with Terrell
Owens, Pro Bowl wide receiver of the San Francisco 49ers, to appear on the
package cover, in advertising materials, and to design plays and provide audio
capture for the game. NFL Blitz Pro is scheduled to ship in summer 2003 for the
PlayStation2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube™.
NHL HITZ PRO
NHL Hitz has been reinvented,
without leaving behind the edginess that has made Midway Sports the leader and
only year-on-year successful publisher of extreme-style league-licensed sports
videogames. Officially licensed by the NHL and the NHLPA and featuring real NHL
teams and athletes, NHL Hitz Pro retains the well-known Midway Sports “edge,”
but with a new emphasis on realistic NHL features, and will showcase 5-on-5
gameplay, game rules and penalties, and for the first time, live online
head-to-head gameplay on Playstation 2. NHL Hitz Pro also includes NHL
legitimate, 23-man player rosters that bring together pro players and authentic
team lines with real offensive and defensive team formations in precise
correlation with each NHL team. Alongside the other exciting additional content
that hockey fans will adore, new context-sensitive plays such as wraparounds
will set a new benchmark for sports games. Midway has signed an exclusive deal
with Nicklas Lidstrom, star defenseman of the Detroit Red Wings, to appear on
the packaging and cover art for the game, and he also brings his big hits to
NHL Hitz Pro’s DVD section. Regarded as one of the top defensemen in the NHL,
Lidstrom is a four-time finalist and recipient of the coveted Norris Trophy and
member of the 2003 Western Conference All-Star team, leading all players in fan
votes. NHL Hitz Pro is scheduled to ship in fall 2003 for the PlayStation2,
Xbox and Nintendo GameCube™.
Midway Sports Asylum Titles
NBA BALLERS
Officially licensed by the NBA and
NBA Legends, NBA Ballers is the only basketball videogame to deliver the pure
essence of basketball by highlighting the excitement and intensity of the
one-on-one confrontation, set within the alluring fantasy lifestyle of the NBA
superstars. Featuring online play for the PlayStation2, 60 current and 24
all-time player legends, NBA Ballers takes the game out of the arenas and into
some of the most lavish NBA player fantasy “cribs” for an up-close and personal
one-on-one experience. Gamers no longer have to debate who is the best NBA
player of all time – now the greatest ballers can be matched up in elaborate
settings; holding it down at some of the finest private courts in the league.
NBA Ballers features current NBA stars such as Tracy McGrady, Chris Webber and
Kobe Bryant, and NBA Legends including George Gervin, Magic Johnson and Wilt
Chamberlain. NBA Ballers’ online capabilities for the PlayStation2 enable
gamers to take on the world in online tournaments and ladder challenges.
By focusing on the one-on-one
matchups, Midway Sports Asylum is able to build each and every NBA baller and
legend with his specific skill set in mind. Shaq will bang in the paint, Larry
Bird will be raining three-pointers and Iverson will be breaking ankles with his
killer cross-over. With more then 5,000 polygons per player and facial
motion-capture technology, no basketball videogame has ever given the gamer more
realistic looking players. NBA Ballers is scheduled to ship fall 2003 for the
PlayStation2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube™.
FREESTYLE METALX
Freestyle MetalX™ unleashes anarchy,
giving gamers the freedom to do what they want, when they want, in a
one-of-a-kind freestyle motocross game that features the best physics, a
seemingly unlimited stunt system and truly daring sub-games that rebel against
the establishment. Riding it hard, fast and anywhere, Freestyle MetalX is a
totally unique offering that caters to the action sport and mass-market gamer
with diverse, lawless freestyle motocross mayhem. Gamers and motocross fanatics
can “be sick all over” as they experience firsthand the extreme thrills and
spills of the first true freestyle motocross videogame. Featuring expansive
worlds, eight insane game modes and sub-games, Freestyle MetalX lets players
cancan and rodeo their way through vast environments as they interact with and
trick-off everything from swimming pools to skyscrapers. Freestyle MetalX also
features nine of the sickest riders pulling endless eye-popping tricks in
stunning open environments. Pro rider legends include: Clifford “The Flyin’
Hawaiian” Adoptonte, Jeff Tilton, Nate “Destroyer” Adams, Jeremy “Twitch”
Stenberg, Trevor Vines, “Mad” Mike Jones, Kris “The Rock” Rourke, Doug Parsons
and Ronnie “Kung Fu” Faisst. Freestyle MetalX is scheduled to ship June 2003 for
the PlayStation2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube™.
Game Boy Advance Titles
MORTAL KOMBAT: TOURNAMENT EDITION
(Game Boy Advance)
From the best-selling Mortal Kombat
franchise, Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition delivers exclusive videogame action
to the Game Boy Advance with multi-link play, more warriors and “karnage.”
Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition features new bloodthirsty partnership
opportunities that allow up to four players to battle head-to-head in
tournaments, as well as wager in-game currency, which enables players to place
bets on the outcome of linked battles, mini-games and other secret fighting
challenges. Also added to the game are two forms of “currency” – available in
red (new and exclusive to Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition) and gold – to wager
with combatants, unlock or purchase hidden characters, backgrounds and other
features in the “krypt.” Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition is scheduled to ship
for the Game Boy Advance in summer 2003.
STATIC SHOCK (Game Boy Advance)
Static Shock, the highly rated,
supercharged Kids’ WB cartoon series, sky-surfs to the Game Boy Advance. Join
the hip action adventures of Virgil Hawkins as he transforms into the
electromagnetic teenage superhero, Static. Gamers try to defeat the super
villains, such as Hotstreak and The Breed, with Static’s superpowers as they
sky-surf, generate force fields, and throw bolts of lightning. With characters
and environments straight from the hit cartoon series, gamers will explore vast,
larger-than-life levels. Static Shock is scheduled to ship for the Game Boy
Advance in fall 2003.
SUPER DUPER SUMOS (Game Boy
Advance)
Super Duper Sumos, Nickelodeon’s
highly rated cartoon series and the UK’s number one kids import, brings giant
buttocks to Game Boy Advance for the first time. In this fast-paced action
adventure, three 18-year-old sumos travel to the modern world with ancient
powers to help defend the innocent and assist in battling the evil Ms. Mister
and her cohorts. Supersized heroes in a normal-sized world, the sumos use their
special powers – “Gluteus Maximus,” “Honorable Thunderball” and the “Sumo
Squeeze” – to double in size and destructiveness in order to fight evil. Gamers
can choose to play as Boomer, Defender of Peace; Kimo, Defender of Honor; or
Mamoo, Defender of Truth. Stomping through stores, Super Duper Sumos is
scheduled to ship for Game Boy Advance in fall 2003.
JUSTICE LEAGUE (Game Boy Advance)
Based on the hit Cartoon Network
animated series and DC Comics’ famous super hero team, Justice League brings a
new hard-to-beat, “Super Powered” force to the Game Boy Advance. Super villains
have unleashed a triple threat for global domination and it’s up to the greatest
super heroes of all time, the Justice League, to save the world from danger.
Justice League provides gamers with an interactive, episodic adventure that
simulates the stylistic, animated appeal of the popular series with a new,
distinct, dynamic look and feel. Justice League is scheduled to ship for the
Game Boy Advance in fall 2003.
OZZY & DRIX (Game Boy Advance)
The Kids’ WB hit cartoon series,
Ozzy & Drix, comes to life on the Game Boy Advance. Gamers embark on a totally
contagious, infectious, gross-out adventure with the popular cartoon characters
based on the major motion picture Osmosis Jones. Ozzy, a white blood cell “cop,”
and Drix, his over-the-counter cold pill sidekick, battle infections within the
body of Hector Cruz, an average teenager. They’re “private eyes” ready to wipe
out anything that threatens Hector’s health and happiness, such as the common
cold, otherwise known as the “Phlegm-alanche.” Ozzy & Drix spend their days and
nights guiding the “City of Hector” through the dangers, trials and tribulations
of adolescence. Catch the fever, as Ozzy & Drix is scheduled to ship for the
Game Boy Advance in fall 2003.
Midway Games Inc. is a leading
developer, publisher and marketer of interactive entertainment software. Midway
videogames are available for play on all major videogame platforms including the
PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, XboxTM, Nintendo GameCubeTM and
Game Boy® Advance.
For more information about Midway
Games visit www.midway.com
MIDWAY, MIDWAY SPORTS ASSYLUM,
BLITZ, SPY HUNTER, MORTAL KOMBAT and ESPIONAGE are trademarks of Midway
Amusement Games, LLC.
FREESTYLE: METALX, THE SUFFERING,
HITZ, FREAKY FLYERS and ROADKILL are trademarks of Midway Home Entertainment
Inc.
2003 NFL Properties LLC. Team
names and logos are trademarks of the teams indicated. All other (NFL-related
marks) are trademarks of the National Football League. Officially licensed
product of PLAYERS INC. The PLAYERS INC logo is a registered trademark of the
NFL players. www.nflplayers.com 2003 PLAYERS INC. Used by permission.
Distributed under license by Midway Home Entertainment Inc.
The NBA and individual NBA member
team identifications used on or in this product are trademarks, copyrighted
designs and other forms of intellectual property of NBA Properties, Inc. and the
respective NBA member teams and may not be used in whole or part, without the
prior written consent of NBA Properties, Inc. 2003 NBA Properties, Inc. All
rights reserved. Distributed and licensed by Midway Home Entertainment Inc.
NHL and the NHL Shield are
registered trademarks of the National Hockey League. All NHL logos and marks and
team logos and marks depicted herein are the property of the NHL and the
respective teams and may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of
NHL Enterprises, L.P.(c) 2003 NHL. All rights reserved. National Hockey League
Player’s Association, NHLPA and NHLPA Logo are trademarks of the NHLPA and are
used, under license, by Midway Home Entertainment Inc. NHLPA. Officially
Licensed Product of the National Hockey League Players’ Association.
STATIC SHOCK and all related
characters and elements are trademarks of DC Comics. Milestone Media, Inc.
Distributed under license by Midway Home Entertainment Inc.
OZZY & DRIX, characters, names and
all related indicia are trademarks of and Warner Bros.
JUSTICE LEAGUE and all related
characters and elements are trademarks of and DC Comics.
SUPER DUPER SUMOS 2003 DIC
Entertainment Corp. Software 2003 Midway Home Entertainment Inc. All Rights
reserved. SUPER DUPER SUMOS, and all related characters, names and indicia are
trademarks of and 2003 DIC Entertainment Corp. Distributed under license by
Midway Home Entertainment Inc.
“PlayStation” and the “PS” Family
logo are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Xbox is a
trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.
Nintendo GameCube and Game Boy Advance are trademarks of Nintendo. 2001
Nintendo. All other trademarks are the property of their respective companies.
This press release contains
forward-looking statements concerning future business conditions and the outlook
for Midway Games Inc. (the "Company") based on currently available information
that involve risks and uncertainties. The Company’s actual results could differ
materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements as a result
of these risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, the financial
strength of the interactive entertainment industry, dependence on new product
introductions and the ability to maintain the scheduling of such introductions,
technological changes, dependence on major platform manufacturers and other
risks more fully described under "Item 1. Business – Risk Factors" in the
Company’s current Annual Report on Form 10-K and the other filings made by the
Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
