Encore Signs Publishing Agreement with
Lost Toys
Battle Engine Aquila, a unique mech land
and air combat game, to be released this holiday season for PCs
Los Angeles, CA – August 20, 2003 – Encore, a
majority-owned subsidiary of Navarre Corporation (NASDAQ: NAVR), today announced
that it has signed an exclusive North American agreement with UK-based Lost Toys
to publish the PC version of Battle Engine Aquila, a mech combat game with land
and air engagement. Under this agreement, Encore is managing sales, distribution
and marketing for the game, while Lost Toys is delivering the content. Terms of
the agreement were not disclosed.
Battle Engine Aquila is scheduled for release
in PC CD-ROM format to major retail outlets nationwide this holiday season for
approximately $40.
Said Michael Bell, Encore’s CEO, "Encore is
focused on building its publishing program, in which we apply our sales,
marketing and PR expertise to third-party-developed games. We already have a
number of strong partners in this program – including JoWooD, Victory
Simulations, Conspiracy Entertainment and Prolific Publishing – and other
agreements are in the works. We’re excited that Lost Toys has joined this
program."
Added Jeremy Longley, Director at Lost Toys
Limited, "Encore is the perfect partner to bring the PC version of Battle Engine
Aquila to the North American market. We are delighted by the company’s focus and
enthusiasm, and are confident that they can achieve the sales success this game
deserves."
Shooter Puts Players at the Helm of Advanced
War Machine
Battle Engine Aquila is a fierce and frenetic
shooter that puts players at the helm of the most advanced war machine ever
created. Tasked with protecting a world from hostile rebel forces, players
employ an impressive arsenal of pulse cannons, micro missiles, spread bombs and
more to prevail in the game’s continuously evolving war zone.
The battle begins on the planet Allium, where
rising sea levels have resulted in a significant reduction in habitable land and
rising tensions
between two major planetary factions. As the
game’s central character
Hawk Winter, players are thrust into this
rapidly escalating conflict as the pilot of the most powerful weapon in the war.
To win the conflict, players can take advantage of the game’s key features:
-
Ability to attack enemies by ground or air
-
A huge selection of powerful weaponry,
including guns, missiles, cannons, bombs, lasers, grenades and torpedoes -
Modifiable weapon load outs, selectable
wingmen and a host of allied troop, tank, air and sea craft support -
More than 40 missions in a branching
storyline with multiple endings -
"EVO" versions of every mission, which are
significantly harder and present new challenges, such as enemy forces with
more entrenched positions or greater numbers of enemy forces -
Several modes of play, including
Single-Player, Co-Op Mode (two players team up to battle missions together),
Skirmish Mode (pitting two players and their entire armies against each other)
and Versus Mode (one-on-one fights between two Battle Engines in deadly
arenas). Multi-player modes are two player, split-screen, on a single PC. -
Optimized to take advantage of the latest
graphics cards
About Encore
Encore, a majority-owned subsidiary of Navarre Corporation (NASDAQ: NAVR), is a
leading interactive publisher in the PC CD-ROM and videogame markets. The
company will release close to a dozen new entertainment titles in the coming
months through licensing or publishing agreements with Marvel (DaredevilT),
JoWooD Productions (Silent Storm, AquaNox 2: Revelation, Cold Zero and Chaser
among others), Victory Simulations (Redline: Xtreme Air Racing 2), Conspiracy
Entertainment (Rally Championship) and Prolific Publishing (Marine Aquarium
2.0). The company also offers PC titles or compilations in nearly every major
software category from business and productivity to education and kids,
including brand names such as Sesame StreetT, Advantage and SafeworldT.
Encore products are sold in thousands of
retail outlets nationwide, and in major international markets. For more
information on Encore and Navarre Corporation, visit
www.encoreusa.com
and
www.navarre.com.
About Lost Toys
Lost Toys is a leading game developer based in Guildford, UK. Formed in 1999,
the company’s three founder members share between them more than 25 years of
game development expertise in the making of Number One hits. For more
information visit
www.losttoys.com.