Press Release

EPIC GAMES PURCHASES REALITY ENGINE™ AND HIRES CHIEF ARCHITECT AND PRIMARY DEVELOPER, TIM JOHNSON
RALEIGH, May 11th, 2005 – Epic Games, one of the world’s leading
developers of cutting-edge computer and video games and the pioneer of
the award-winning Unreal® Engine, today announced that it has
completed the purchase of the Reality Engine™ from Artificial Studios
and hired its founder, and lead engine programmer, Tim Johnson. Tim
will join the Unreal Engine 3 development team effective immediately
and be part of Epic’s presence at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in
Los Angeles, California next week.
Epic
has purchased the Reality Engine outright, including intellectual
property rights, trademarks, and copyrights. Epic does not intend to
continue sales, development, or support of the Reality Engine, but will
review its technologies for inclusion into Unreal Engine 3. Developers
who had purchased Reality Engine licenses prior to this sale will be
offered upgrades to Unreal Engine 3 at significantly discounted prices
and should contact licensing@epicgames.com for more details.
Unreal
Engine 3 provides a pathway to both PC and next generation console
development, as demonstrated by the recent announcement that major game
developer Silicon Knights will use Unreal Engine 3 exclusively for its
next generation games. Other recently announced licensees include
Bioware, the console game developer of the year, and renowned publisher
Midway, which has acquired a studio-wide license.
“I
am thrilled about joining the team at Epic Games” said Tim Johnson.
“I’m a long-time fan of the Unreal games and technology, and I am proud
to be joining a company I consider to be a world leader in both game
development and next generation middleware.”
“We’re very excited to have Tim Johnson join Epic Games,” said Epic
founder and CEO, Tim Sweeney. “He brings six years of engine
development experience to the Unreal Engine 3 development team, and
he’s already brimming with ideas on how to improve our technology. Tim
is a great fit for Epic – he clearly understands all sides of the
licensing business, from engineering to customer support to business
development. He will have a huge positive impact on our company and our
engine licensees.”
About Unreal Engine 3
The
award-winning Unreal Engine is known for cutting-edge graphics and a
best-of-breed toolset. Unreal Engine 3 is expected to maintain
those features while adding massive world support, multi-processor
support, next-generation console optimizations, and one of the most
mature tool pipelines in the industry. Unreal Engine 3’s new toolset is
designed specifically to accelerate developers' productivity for
ultra-complex, next-generation content. Additional information on
Unreal Engine can be obtained at www.unrealtechnology.com.
About Epic Games
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 one million copies. Epic is also responsible for the Unreal
Engine, which is the underlying technology for a wide range of games
including, 2002 Console Game of the Year winner, Tom Clancy’s Splinter
Cell ™ 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, and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (PC) from Electronic
Arts. Additional information can be obtained through Epic's Web site at
www.epicgames.com.
Unreal
is a registered trademark of Epic Games Inc. Reality Engine is a
trademark of Epic Games Inc. All other trademarks are the property of
their respective companies.
For More Information Contact:
Nicola Kirby
Little Brown Dog for Epic Games
+44 (0) 1372 818 776
kirby@littlebrowndoggy.com
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