Migration of Mainstream Development House to Casual Publisher Creates New Chapter in Gaming History
DALLAS, TX – January 24, 2007 – MumboJumbo™, a leading developer of premium casual games, today announced it has acquired Ritual Entertainment, a veteran game development studio with expertise in game design and artistic quality. In addition to the strategic importance of the deal, which strengthens MumboJumbo’s ability to deliver the best games to the casual gaming audience, the acquisition further solidifies the company’s presence as one of the largest casual game studios in the industry.
“MumboJumbo established the casual games category at retail, and the purchase of Ritual Entertainment is consistent with our strategy to bring high-quality casual game content to the major platforms,” said Ron Dimant, who left his post as chief executive officer of Ritual Entertainment in 2001 to found MumboJumbo. “The combination of Ritual’s high-end, multi-platform expertise and our own industry-leading publishing model will set the bar for quality and sophistication in casual games and create a major industry powerhouse. The casual games market is beginning to mature as evidenced by an increase in consumer expectations. Ultimately, the companies providing the best content will win, which is why we are investing so heavily in the development of technology and original IP.”
“The disciplined structure of high end game development requires an in depth understanding of sophisticated tools and design techniques,” said Robert Atkins of Ritual Entertainment. “Ritual’s expertise in these areas complements MumboJumbo’s mass market approach to casual game development and gives us a true competitive advantage.”
With over 30 employees and more than 10 years in the games industry, Ritual Entertainment has contributed and developed several mainstream, hit titles on all platforms including "25 To Life," "Delta Force - Black Hawk Down," "Counter Strike," "Painkiller," "Quake 4," and the "SiN" franchise of games, among others. In recent months, MumboJumbo has brought the popular "LUXOR(TM)" franchise and other top-selling titles such as "Super Collapse" and "7 Wonders of the Ancient World" to numerous platforms including Nintendo DS(TM) and PSP(R)(PlayStation(R)Portable) system handheld. The acquisition of Ritual marks the most significant instance in casual gaming history of a mainstream game development house migrating to a casual game publisher.
About MumboJumbo™
Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, MumboJumbo LLC(TM) is a worldwide publisher, developer and mass marketer of premium casual games for PCs and game consoles including those manufactured by Nintendo, Sony Computer Entertainment and Microsoft Corporation. MumboJumbo games are downloadable at its website as well as key game portals operated by RealNetworks(TM), Microsoft, Yahoo! and Big Fish, or purchased at retail through mass merchants, computer retailers and specialty outlets. MumboJumbo owns and operates three studios located in Dallas and Los Angeles, and publishes and distributes software through its subsidiaries in North America and the United Kingdom, as well as regional distributors worldwide. For more information please visit our website at www.mumbojumbo.com
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