GameSpy API

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – March 2, 2011 – During the 2011 Game Developers Conference, held in San Francisco, CA, GameSpy Technology, the leader in connected game services, will showcase several of the year’s biggest video game hits that make use of the company’s cross-platform services and tools for online games. Some of the biggest games of 2011 are “Powered By GameSpy,” including EA’s Crysis 2 and Bulletstorm, THQ’s Homefront and indie sensation Dungeon Defenders from Trendy Entertainment.

“It’s our mission to help developers bring rich online features – from flexible online commerce to deep stats tracking -- to their games, whether they are working on blockbuster console titles or indie hits,” said Todd Northcutt, VP of GameSpy Technology. “The online experience for more than one thousand games has been powered by GameSpy Technology over the past decade; we’re excited to see how our online gaming services will be used by developers large and small to write the success stories of the next decade.”

Trendy Entertainment’s Dungeon Defenders is an amazing hybrid of action, adventure, role-playing and tower defense gameplay, taking advantage of multiple elements of GameSpy Technology’s cross-platform online services, including cross-platform multiplayer matchmaking and deep player data tracking. Trendy was among the first studios to take advantage of GameSpy Open, GameSpy’s newly announced initiative to make all of its services available to start-up and independent developers for free. The Open initiative is an important element of an ongoing effort by GameSpy Technology to broaden the field of game development to include up-and-coming startups and independent teams. Trendy Entertainment will demo Dungeon Defenders in GameSpy Technology’s booth during GDC (914 in Moscone Center South Hall), running a simultaneous co-op game on PlayStation 3, PC, iOS and Android-powered tablets.

EA is bringing gamers two huge multi-platform shooters in early 2011, Crysis 2, from Crytek, and Bulletstorm, from gaming powerhouse Epic Games and People Can Fly. Crysis 2 takes advantage of GameSpy Technology’s Direct2Game commerce service, allowing Crytek to make post-release game content quickly and easily available to their consumer base on the PC via an API driven storefront integrated into both the game and the title’s official Web site. Over-the-top action explosion Bulletstorm uses GameSpy’s deep Player Metrics and Rankings services to track vast amounts of game stats on the PlayStation 3, which is crucial for both immediate in-game feedback of a player’s hyperkinetic performance as well as point tracking leader boards in and out of the game. Bulletstorm was released February 22, 2011, while Crysis 2 arrives in late March.

THQ’s Homefront brings combat to America’s shores in this chilling first person, near-future invasion scenario. Like Bulletstorm, Homefront is helping their players monitor their performance in game with GameSpy’s deep stat-tracking services, including the game-to-web features that THQ has successfully integrated into their other hit franchises, WWE Smackdown vs. RAW and UFC Undisputed. This multiplatform title will be released on PC, PlayStation 3, and other platforms in early March.

To learn more about GameSpy’s services for online games and to sign up to begin using them immediately, head to http://www.poweredbygamespy.com

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About IGN Entertainment

IGN Entertainment, a unit of News Corporation, is the leading Internet media and services provider focused on the video game and entertainment enthusiast markets. Collectively, IGN's properties reached more than 45 million unique users worldwide November 2010, according to Internet audience measurement firm comScore Media Metrix. IGN's network of video game-related properties (IGN.com, GameSpy, FilePlanet, TeamXbox, Direct2Drive and others) is one of the Web's leading video game information destinations.  IGN also owns the leading men’s lifestyle website AskMen.com and provides technology for online game play in video games.  IGN is headquartered in San Francisco, with offices across North America, Europe and Australia. 

About GameSpy Technology

A division of IGN Entertainment, GameSpy Technology is the leading provider of online services to video game developers. Founded in 1997, GameSpy has provided its connected gaming technology to the best-selling, most innovative games in the industry. Its various services—social, cloud, commerce, data and mutliplayer—are designed to make games more fun by helping players share their experiences. GameSpy’s technology is accessible on every gaming platform and has been utilized by more than 1000 titles to date, including landmark games like Rockstar Games’ Red Dead Redemption, Nintendo’s Mario Kart Wii, and Crytek’s Crysis franchise.

Contact Information

Kristen Sharbaugh

IGN Entertainment, Inc.

415.896.3450

ksharbaugh@ign.com

Chris Kramer

fortyseven communications

408.338.7191

kramer@fortyseven.com