Essential Reality's New
P5 Controller Technology to Enhance Lionhead's Popular
``Black & White'' Video Game
Essential
Reality, LLC today announced that it has executed a
letter of intent with Lionhead Studios, one of the
world's leading computer game developers, granting
Essential Reality the right to fully integrate its new
P5(TM) technology into Lionhead's popular PC games,
"Black & White" and "Black &
White: Creature Isle." In addition to enabling
"Black & White" to work with the P5(TM)
controller, the two companies are planning a number of
co-promotion and joint-marketing initiatives to promote
the P5(TM) enhanced versions of the games.
"`Black
& White' is the perfect gaming platform to
demonstrate the power and technical
achievement of our new P5(TM) technology," said
Martin Currie, VP of Business Development. "Players
will be able to directly control the characters and
action of `Black & White' with intuitive movements of
their hand and fingers. `Black & White' has sold over
1.8 million units and has a large and active user base.
Enhancing the game with our P5(TM) technology will bring
a whole new level of interactivity and enjoyment to the
hard core `Black & White' fan base."
"In
the unique world of `Black & White,' the cursor is
shaped as a life-like hand. Adding real-time hand, finger
and wrist movements to the game using the new P5(TM)
controller will undoubtedly further enhance the illusion
of reality and popularity of `Black & White,'"
said Peter Molyneux, managing director of Lionhead.
"The P5(TM) will add a whole new level of excitement
to the `Black & White' gaming experience."
The
P5(TM) is particularly well suited for gamers because the
majority of today's games have a 3D user interface.
Action games, RPGs, first-person shooters, adventure
games and sports games will all be enhanced by the
ability to move easily and intuitively in 3D space.
The
P5(TM) uses Essential Reality's proprietary bend sensor
and tracking technologies to enable full interaction with
a 3D environment. Fully USB compliant, the first
generation P5(TM) is designed for compatibility with the
Microsoft Windows 98, Windows ME and MS 2000 operating
systems. Additionally, Essential Reality expects that the
P5(TM) will be compatible with the Microsoft XP, MAC OSX
and OSIX operating systems, as well as the PlayStation2
and Microsoft Xbox game consoles.
About
"Black & White"
"Black & White,"
published by Electronic Arts, sets players in the role of
a god, ruling over lands populated with villages of
potential worshippers. Players must first win the belief
of villagers by impressing them with miracles and godly
acts. Later they will provide him with a personal pet --
an emotional creature that has a life of its own but
wants more than anything to please its master. The player
may rule as a benevolent or malevolent god. Whichever
path he chooses affects his creature, his subjects and
even the landscape of his kingdom. "Black &
White" won major gaming awards, including Best
Original Game and Best of Show at E3, the major trade
show of the interactive game industry.
About Lionhead Studios (www.lionhead.com)
Lionhead Studios was founded in
1997 by game designer Peter Molyneux, whose previous
titles (including "Populous,"
"Syndicate," "Magic Carpet,"
"Theme Park," "Dungeon Keeper") all
received much critical acclaim for their innovative
gameplay features and are now regarded as PC classics.
The company has a staff of 107 and is based in Guildford,
Surrey, England. "Black & White" is
Lionhead's first release.
About Essential Reality (www.essentialreality.com)
Essential Reality, LLC
("Essential Reality" or the
"Company") was founded with the goal of
becoming a leader in the design, development and
integration of revolutionary tracking and sensory
technologies that can be used to provide the ultimate
interface between man and machine. The Company plans on
realizing this vision through multiple product offerings
that primarily apply tracking and sensory technologies
for different end-user applications that ultimately have
diverse vertical market applications as well. With its
initial product family -- the P5(TM) -- the Company is
focusing on developing, manufacturing and distributing
next-generation 3D peripherals for the PC/Mac and console
gaming and professional user communities. The Company
anticipates that the P5(TM) will revolutionize the way
humans interact with computers and game consoles.
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