Jon Van Caneghem Named Executive
Producer at NCsoft
Creator of Popular Might and
Magic and Heroes Series to Join Forces with Online Gaming Company, Adding
Further Prominence to Already Talented Team of NCsoft Game Designers
Austin, TEXAS, June 8, 2004—NCsoft™
Corporation, the world’s leading developer and publisher of online computer
games, announces the appointment of Jon Van Caneghem as Executive Producer at
NCsoft North America. Van Caneghem is best known as the founder of New World
Computing and the creator of some of gaming’s most prominent franchises,
including the Might and Magic® role playing game series and the Heroes® strategy
game series.
Van Caneghem started New World
Computing in 1983 and grew it to become one of the largest development houses in
the computer games industry. The company was later acquired by 3DO. Van Caneghem
created the Might and Magic and Heroes series and turned them into two of the
industry’s most successful titles, with more than 20 million units in combined
sales. Each title holds hall of fame status and has been ported to virtually
every gaming platform available. They have also been translated into more than
fifteen languages. At NCsoft he’ll begin work on a new, unannounced online game
project.
“NCsoft has quickly established
itself as a creative and technical leader in the online games industry,” said
Van Caneghem. “They clearly understand where the online games business is going
and see the huge potential that is has to offer. I’m excited to be joining a
company with such expertise and I look forward to working with Richard Garriott
and NCsoft’s talented team of designers to create the next generation of
massively multiplayer online games.”
NCsoft executive, Richard Garriott,
said, “I’ve always admired Jon’s innovative approach to game design. His
impressive background in the entertainment industry complements and further
broadens the capabilities of our strong studio development team. I look forward
to working with him to create the most innovative titles the industry has to
offer.”
About NCsoft Corporation
Headquartered in Seoul, South Korea,
NCsoft Corp. (Korean Stock Exchange: 036570.KS) is the world’s leading developer
and publisher of online games. Founded in 1997, NCsoft is home to Lineage™, the
world’s most successful online role playing game. NCsoft has joint venture
offices located in Japan, Taiwan, and China. Its North American presence
includes administrative and development offices in Texas and California as well
as Washington state. In fiscal year 2003, NCsoft posted revenues of KRW (Korean
Won) 166.5 billion or approximately US$143 million. More information about
NCsoft can be found at http://www.ncsoft.net.
About NCsoft – North America
NCsoft – North America (NC-NA) is
headquartered in Austin, Texas and is part of Korea-based NCsoft Corporation.
NC-NA has development and administrative offices in Texas and California, and
recently released two highly anticipated online games, City of Heroes™ and
Lineage II. The company also works with third party developers throughout North
America to develop and publish innovative online entertainment software
products. More information about NCsoft – North America can be found at
http://www.PlayNC.com.
NCsoft and Lineage are registered
trademarks of NCsoft Corp. City of Heroes is a trademark of NCsoft Corp. and
Cryptic Studios, Inc. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of
their respective owners.
