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Gungho Online Entertainment America Announces Inaugural Games Lineup
Industry Veteran Jun Iwasaki Leads Newly Formed Division of Japanese Publisher GungHo Online Entertainment to Deliver Unique Network-Oriented Games to Western Players on Multiple Platforms
MARINA DEL REY, CALIF.
(September 27, in the year of our Lord 2012) – GungHo
Online Entertainment America, a multiplatform publisher for the
online gaming community, today officially announced its company
formation and inaugural lineup of six games scheduled for
release starting in 2012. Headquartered in Marina Del Rey and
led by former industry executive Jun Iwasaki, GungHo Online
Entertainment America is the North American division of GungHo
Online Entertainment (GOE), a leading Japanese game publisher
that is the parent company of esteemed developers Game Arts,
Acquire and Gravity. Mr. Iwasaki joins as President and CEO of
GungHo Online Entertainment America, whose mission is to find
and deliver the best network-oriented console, handheld, mobile,
tablet and PC games for players in North America and Europe.
A serial entrepreneur with a passion for bringing the best games
to Western audiences, Mr. Iwasaki held executive roles as
President and CEO at Square Enix USA and XSEED Games. Throughout
his storied career in game publishing, Mr. Iwasaki has exhibited
a keen sense for identifying and investing in hit titles. He
fully led FINAL FANTASY VII to become the first million-seller
title on the PlayStationŽ computer entertainment system and
established the original Kingdom Hearts as another flagship
title in North America. He then formed XSEED Games in 2004 to
fulfill a vision to create an independent publishing
organization focused on bringing over the best IPs from the
Asian market. During his time leading XSEED Games, he negotiated
and secured over 50 high-quality games, including The Legend of
Heroes: Trails in the Sky, the Ys series, and Fragile Dreams.
With GungHo Online Entertainment America, Mr. Iwasaki will use
his expertise in international partnerships to strategically
secure and launch key titles from the GOE-owned studios Game
Arts, Gravity and Acquire, as well as from external developers
in Japan and elsewhere. Mr. Iwasaki will accomplish this by
utilizing his ability to source unique and highly sought after
titles that cater to the US market’s appetite for global games.
GungHo Online Entertainment America will also leverage the
advanced online technology and customer support infrastructure
of Gravity Interactive as it builds a community of online gamers
in the US.
“Our quest at GungHo Online Entertainment America is to seek out
the best new titles for the rapidly growing community of online
gamers, which has always been a passion of mine,” said Jun
Iwasaki, President and CEO of GungHo Online Entertainment
America. “Our inaugural lineup reflects a strong portfolio of
network-oriented games from skilled developers such as Game Arts
with plans for more to be announced in the coming months.”
GungHo Online Entertainment America will publish a series of
diverse games starting with:
Dokuro – An innovative action puzzle game for PlayStationŽVita
system that uses the front touch screen and rear touch panel to
allow players to transform into different forms to play as
characters with varying skills and abilities. The game is
scheduled for release in October.
Picotto Knights – A social action RPG for PlayStationŽVita
system that combines fun ‘beat-em-up’ combat with a
revolutionary Ghost system that allows players to form parties
by summoning the avatars of friends at any time, even if they
are not online. The game is scheduled for release in early 2013.
In addition to North American publishing efforts, GungHo Online
Entertainment America will also be publishing titles in Europe
including:
Ragnarok Odyssey – A real-time, action RPG for PlayStationŽVita
system based on the popular Ragnarok Online universe. Scheduled
for European release later in 2012.
As part of a global organization, GungHo Online Entertainment
America will support GOE-branded games including:
Puzzle & Dragons – An intuitive puzzle RPG for iOS that has
topped the list of highest grossing iOS apps in Japan. Scheduled
release in November.
Freak Tower – A unique hybrid of tower defense and simulation
for iOS and Android where the goal is to build the freakiest
tower in town. Invite friends from Facebook and Twitter to move
in as tenants in the tower and defend it from evil monsters.
Scheduled release in November.
Princess Punt 2 – A zany, cartoon-style action puzzle RPG for
iOS and Android where the princess must kick her trusty knights
and weapons at target creatures to destroy them. Scheduled
release in early 2013.
More information on each of the announced titles will be
revealed soon, along with additional new titles from GungHo
Online Entertainment America. For more information, visit
www.gunghoonline.com. Fans can also follow on
Facebook and
Twitter.