SEGA of America, Inc. and SEGA Europe Ltd. today revealed details of MadWorld, the highly anticipated, third-person action game made exclusively for Nintendo's Wii system. The two creative forces behind MadWorld, gaming icons Atsushi Inaba and Shigenori Nishikawa, deliver a game with highly stylized black and white graphics, over-the-top violence and visceral action, while incorporating a layer of unexpected, irreverent comedy that makes the experience unlike any other. MadWorld exemplifies SEGA's strategic approach to developing games specifically for the Wii, especially hardcore gamers that have been clamoring for additional mature Wii titles.
In MadWorld, Varrigan City is under siege by a terrorist group simply known as "The Organizers." They have isolated its citizens from the rest of the world, and have turned the city into a bizarre and twisted game show environment called "Death Watch." In this game of survival, all the citizens have become reluctant contestants and they are pitted against unknown enemies in the ultimate battle of life or death, where only the strongest will prevail.
"MadWorld pushes the envelope with its extreme content but takes a step away from the dark and serious nature of most mature games," said Sean Ratcliffe, Vice President of Marketing, SEGA of America, Inc. "It is exactly the kind of game, and the kind of thinking, that has made SEGA one of the strongest third-party publishers on Nintendo platforms."
"We are very excited that the talented PlatinumGames team is bringing this much-anticipated game exclusively to the Wii," says Mr. Steve Singer, Vice President of Licensing for Nintendo of America. "MadWorld brings to the Wii its own unique and artistic style to our diverse portfolio of games, and we look forward to seeing more of what the team has to offer."
As Jack, players make their way through the various levels and environments in Varrigan City, crafting clever traps and using various weapons - chainsaws, street signs, and daggers, to name a few - to destroy enemies who threaten their lives. The Wii Remote and Nunchuk are used in a variety of motions that mimic the action on screen. Lively sports commentators call out moves as players execute them, and darkly comical finishing moves add a level of irreverence that contributes to the game's unique tone. Along with the exaggerated characters, upbeat pace and bloody visuals that define "Death Watch," a variety of crazed mini-games called "Blood Bath Challenges" are scattered among the levels, giving players a chance to upgrade weapons and increase overall scores.
MadWorld is scheduled for release in Q1 2009 exclusively for Wii. For more information regarding the partnership between SEGA and PlatinumGames, please go to
www.sega.com/platinumgames.
