SHONEN JUMP’s NARUTO Coming To North America!

SHONEN JUMP’s NARUTO Coming To
North America!

D3Publisher of America & TOMY
Corporation Announce Co-Publishing Agreement For Nintendo GameCube™ & Game
Boy®Advance Four Games To Be Released Based on Mega Hit Ninja Series

LOS ANGELES – Oct. 17, 2005 –
D3Publisher of America, Inc. (D3PA), a publisher and developer of interactive
entertainment software, today announced a North American co-publishing agreement
with TOMY Corporation for video games based on VIZ Media’s hit anime series –
SHONEN JUMP’s NARUTO. The agreement calls for the release of four games: one
title each for the Nintendo GameCube™ and Game Boy® Advance in early 2006, and
in the second half of 2006.

Featured exclusively in the monthly
SHONEN JUMP Magazine, NARUTO adventures by creator Masashi Kishimoto are read by
over 750,000 readers in the US. NARUTO stories are also available in graphic
novels from VIZ Media at bookstores and retailers nationwide. NARUTO recently
debuted on Cartoon Network in the US and YTV in Canada, achieving phenomenal
launch ratings with Kids 6-11 and Tweens 9-14. In Japan, since publication began
in 1999 in Weekly Shonen Jump, and based on the manga’s popularity, the anime
made its debut on TV TOKYO in 2002. Since then, NARUTO has become one of the
most popular animated shows achieving immense success as a TV title as well as a
licensed property for toys, trading card games and video games.

"The co-publishing agreement with
TOMY represents an excellent opportunity for D3PA to leverage a superb property
in SHONEN JUMP’s NARUTO," commented Yoji Takenaka, executive vice president and
COO for D3PA. "The success of NARUTO in Japan has eclipsed the Dragonball Z
franchise, so we are looking forward to these releases in North America and the
prospect of working with VIZ Media and TOMY."

NARUTO takes place in a world where
ninja hold the ultimate power. Infused with the spirit of a once fearsome
Nine-Tailed Fox, Naruto Uzumaki is a ninja-in-training who is learning the art
of Ninjutsu with his classmates Sakura and Sasuke. The trio studies under the
instruction of their teacher, Kakashi, who helps the group face dangerous and
daunting tests and challenges. Through their adventures, the young ninjas learn
the importance of friendship, teamwork, loyalty, hard work, creativity,
ingenuity, and right versus wrong.

"We already knew we had a potential
hit on our hands based on our experience with NARUTO in Japan" said Isamu
Takahashi, Managing Director & Chief International Operating officer of TOMY
Company, Ltd. "However, we needed to translate not only the games, but the
compelling qualities of the NARUTO property. We met with many publishers in the
U.S. and were impressed by D3Publisher of America’s knowledge of interactive
entertainment, awareness and enthusiasm for TOMY’s Naruto titles and the
enthusiasm with which they pursued the arrangement. We are confident that along
with VIZ Media and Nintendo, the partnership with D3PA will recreate in North
America the phenomenal success NARUTO enjoyed in Japan." A smash-hit when
originally released in Japan, TOMY and D3PA will release several of the popular
titles in 2006 including: NARUTO: Clash of Ninja (Gekito Ninja Taisen)
and NARUTO: Clash of Ninja 2: (Gekito Ninja Taisen 2) for the Nintendo
GameCube™ and NARUTO: Ninja Council (Saikyuo Ninja Daikesshu) and an
additional title for Game Boy® Advance.