Simutronics Corp. and MindFuse Games today announced a new global licensing agreement for MindFuse's upcoming MMOG, Gatheryn, which will be developed using the Simutronics HeroEngine. The collaborative, time-saving features of the HeroEngine allow MindFuse to develop the unique feature set of the advanced-casual MMOG, and the studio plans on launching the game as soon as the first half of 2009.

"By licensing the HeroEngine, we can focus our technology development and engineering team on the various unique social, personalization and online community features that the Gatheryn player will experience," said Joseph Walters, Lead Designer and Chief Executive Officer of MindFuse Games. "The engine enables our team to spend time creating the experience instead of recreating the already-proven type of server side MMOG technology that Simutronics has built so effectively."

Gatheryn will be the first game on the market created with this technology.

Said Simutronics Chief Executive Office and HeroEngine Chief Designer David Whatley, "We are thrilled to be working with MindFuse. By licensing our HeroEngine platform they are able to share the technology cost with other developers all over the world, getting a better platform at lower cost."

"Server side development is providing significant advantages pre-launch and we expect this to continue once Gatheryn is open to gamers," said Ira Rothken co-founder of MindFuse. "We will be able to constantly add to and enhance the player experience in an efficient and rapid cycle. New games, environments and experiences will be added continuously rather than forcing players to wait months and even years between expansions."

Added Neil Harris, Executive Vice President of Simutronics, "Our flexible licensing options made it possible for an independent developer like MindFuse to use top-of-the-line technology. HeroEngine is within the reach of most professional development teams."

For more information on Gatheryn, please visit http://www.mindfusegames.com

For more information on Simutronics and the HeroEngine, please visit http://www.heroengine.com

Gatheryn is a trademark and service mark of MindFuse Incorporated.

About MindFuse

Founded in 2006, and based in Berkeley, California, MindFuse is an entertainment software company focused on creating and delivering high-quality, digital entertainment to core, casual and mainstream users. MindFuse's CEO is Joseph Walters, a founding partner of Skunk Studios and most recently a senior engineer at Shockwave. Other members of the team include renowned artist James Zhang and game industry veteran investors, Matthew Le Merle and Ira Rothken. MindFuse is currently developing its first title, Gatheryn, an advanced-casual MMOG slated for release during the first half of 2009.

About Simutronics

Simutronics Corp. is the leading creator of advanced technology platform for developers in the multi-billion dollar global market for massively multiplayer online (MMO) games. Its HeroEngine platform provides a complete technology solution for MMO developers, which takes years off time to market by providing a streamlined creative pipeline and a complete toolset in an integrated turnkey solution. More information on HeroEngine is available at www.heroengine.com. Corporate information is online at www.play.net/corporate. Simutronics has offices in St. Charles, MO and Gaithersburg, MD.

About HeroEngine

HeroEngine is the integrated, collaborative, and realtime platform for full life-cycle development, deployment, and maintenance of massively multiplayer online (MMO) games and virtual worlds that reduces time to market, lowers costs, and allows creative teams to focus on what they do best. HeroEngine's collaborative development model, rapid prototyping environment, natural world building tools, end-to-end content pipeline, and integrated versioned asset system are built and optimized for the needs of large-scale geographically-distributed MMO and virtual world development teams. Licensees include Electronic Arts' BioWare studio, ZeniMax Online, and many more around the world. More information is available at www.heroengine.com.

About Gatheryn

Gatheryn welcomes players into a world where steam powers everything from vehicles to mechanical monkeys, and mystery enshrouds a romantic landscape reminiscent of Charles Dickens' Victorian London. Gamers will recognize some of the most beloved casual titles of all time, including puzzle and action games. Playing these games not only advances the story, but players earn in-game gold that can be used to buy accessories, personal pets, clothes, apartment decorations, vehicles and more. Gatheryn is scheduled for release in 2009.
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