38 Studios licenses Unreal Engine 3

38 Studios announced that it has licensed Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3 for use in the company's upcoming MMO.

The company recently announced that it had also licensed the BigWorld Technology Suite for its backend, server-side capabilities.

"38 Studios is uniquely positioned to deliver an unparalleled Online Entertainment Experience," said CEO and president Brett Close.

"Epic's Unreal Engine 3 is best-of-breed, empowering developers with superior content creation tools, extensive middleware integration, and exceptional visual quality and rendering.

"Epic gets what it takes to make great games, and its Unreal Engine 3 toolset will allow our development team to prototype efficiently and achieve the signature visual quality and excellence we are striving for."

38 Studios - founded by baseball player Curt Shilling, and named after his jersey number - previously announced that it was working with artist Todd McFarlane and author R.A. Salvatore on the creative vision for its new IP.

The IP will encompass multiple media forms including a massively multiplayer online game that is currently scheduled for release in late 2010.

"8 Studios is comprised of some of the industry's top technological and creative minds, and we look forward to seeing what they do with our engine," said Jay Wilbur, vice president of Epic Games.