Major League Baseball 2K9
Well, we know who's on the box, at least: Tim Lincecum of the San Francisco Giants.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
New York, NY – November 11, 2008 – 2K Sports, the sports publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), announced today that National League Cy Young Award winner, Tim Lincecum of the San Francisco Giants, will be featured as the cover athlete and spokesman for next year's highly anticipated baseball video game, Major League Baseball® 2K9. Lincecum led Major League Baseball with 265 strikeouts during the 2008 season and set a new team record in the process. He has quickly become a fan favorite and established himself as one of the most thrilling young pitchers to watch in baseball today.
“Winning the Cy Young Award is truly an amazing honor, and now having the opportunity to be on the cover of Major League Baseball 2K9 is another dream come true and an absolutely surreal experience,” said Tim Lincecum, MLB All-Star pitcher for the San Francisco Giants. “Whenever I’m hanging out at home or traveling on the road, you can find me playing video games, and I’m definitely the best gamer in the clubhouse by far. I’m incredibly stoked that 2K Sports picked me to represent Major League Baseball 2K9, and I look forward to lending my baseball knowledge to the development process.”
While attending the University of Washington, Lincecum won the coveted Golden Spikes Award which is given to the nation’s top college baseball player. He was drafted 10th overall by the San Francisco Giants in 2006. Known to fans as “The Franchise” and “The Freak”, Lincecum was named to the National League All-Star team this past season while putting up astonishing numbers and leading the Majors™ with a remarkable 265 strikeouts. Lincecum also led the National League in other key pitching categories including win percentage (18-5, .783), opponent’s batting average (.221), and strikeouts per nine innings (10.51), along with ranking second in earned run average (2.62). For all of his historic accomplishments, Lincecum won the Players’ Choice Award as the National League Outstanding Pitcher this season, along with the National League Pitcher of the Year Award from Sporting News. Both awards were voted on by his peers. More significantly, Lincecum today was named the National League Cy Young Award winner, given annually to the top pitcher in both the American League and the National League, and voted on by members of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.
"Tim is a special player and has the best stuff in baseball. We couldn’t have selected a more naturally talented and exciting player to represent Major League Baseball 2K9 next season, and given that he’s an avid gamer, it will be a lot of fun working together," said Greg Thomas, senior vice president of sports development for 2K. "Visual Concepts has taken over the development of our Major League Baseball title, and we look forward to continuing to provide fans with the most authentic and high quality gameplay experience that we bring to all of our sports titles."
Major League Baseball 2K9 is being developed by Visual Concepts, a 2K Sports studio, and is not yet rated by the ESRB. Major League Baseball 2K9 will be available in early 2009 for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PLAYSTATION®3 and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment systems, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, and Wii™ home video game system from Nintendo. For more information, please visit www.2ksports.com.
About Take-Two Interactive Software
Headquartered in New York City, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a global developer, marketer, distributor and publisher of interactive entertainment software games for the PC, PLAYSTATION®3 and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment systems, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, Xbox 360® and Xbox® video game and entertainment systems from Microsoft, Wii™, Nintendo GameCube™, Nintendo DS™ and Game Boy® Advance. The Company publishes and develops products through its wholly owned labels Rockstar Games, 2K Games, 2K Sports and 2K Play; and distributes software, hardware and accessories in North America through its Jack of All Games subsidiary. Take-Two's common stock is publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol TTWO. For more corporate and product information please visit our website at www.take2games.com.
Major League Baseball trademarks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball Properties, Inc. Visit the official Major League Baseball website at MLB.com © MLBPA-Official Licensee, Major League Baseball Players Association. Visit www.MLBPLAYERS.com, the Players Choice on the web.
Microsoft, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox LIVE, and the Xbox logos are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies and are used under license from Microsoft.
“PlayStation”, “PLAYSTATION”, “PS” Family logo and “PSP” are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. PSP® system – Memory Stick Duo™ may be required (sold separately).
Wii and the Wii logo are trademarks of Nintendo.
All trademarks and copyrights contained herein are the property of their respective holders.
Important Legal Information
This press release may contain forward-looking statements made in reliance upon the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The statements contained herein which are not historical facts are considered forward-looking statements under federal securities laws. Such forward-looking statements are based on the current beliefs of our management as well as assumptions made by and information currently available to them. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Actual results may vary significantly from these forward-looking statements based on a variety of factors. These risks and uncertainties include the matters relating to the Special Committee's investigation of the Company's stock option grants and the restatement of our consolidated financial statements. The investigation and conclusions of the Special Committee may result in claims and proceedings relating to such matters, including previously disclosed stockholder and derivative litigation and actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission and/or other governmental agencies and negative tax or other implications for the Company resulting from any accounting adjustments or other factors. In addition, further risks and uncertainties associated with the Company’s recently concluded process to evaluate its strategic alternatives include the risk that the future trading price of our common stock is likely to be volatile and could be subject to wide price fluctuations; and the risk that stockholder litigation in connection with the Company’s process to evaluate its strategic alternatives (including stockholder litigation relating to Electronic Arts Inc.'s tender offer to acquire the Company's outstanding shares that expired on August 18, 2008) or otherwise, may result in significant costs of defense, indemnification and liability. Other important factors are described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended October 31, 2007, in the section entitled "Risk Factors," as updated in the Company's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended July 31, 2008, in the section entitled "Risk Factors," and can be accessed at www.take2games.com. All forward-looking statements are qualified by these cautionary statements and apply only as of the date they are made. This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or invitation to purchase any securities or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities.
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CONTACT:
Bryan Lam Chase
2K Sports Access Communications for 2K Sports
(415) 507-7677 (415) 844-6289
bryan.lam@2ksports.com chase@accesspr.com
Meg Maise
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc.
(646) 536-2932
meg.maise@take2games.com