VU Games signs six-game deal with Radical Entertainment

Following the success of Radical Entertainment's The Simpsons: Hit & Run over the Christmas period, Vivendi Universal Games has signed a six-game deal with the developer, including a purchase option.

The deal cements the relationship between Vivendi and Vancouver-based Radical, which as well as the 1.8 million unit Simpsons title, also turned out another one of the publishers biggest games of 2003, namely movie license The Hulk.

Under the terms of the deal, VU Games will not only have exclusive rights to the next six titles from Radical - set to be based on both new and existing franchises - but will also have a royalty-free license to Radical's game development technologies.

Interestingly, the deal also includes an option for Vivendi to purchase Radical during the course of the contract - which may simply be the publisher hedging its bets, or may be a sign that VU Games is keen to bolster its internal development capacity.

Radical currently employs over 200 people at its offices in Vancouver, Canada, and its contribution to Vivendi's release schedule over the coming years is expected to be significant.

"We are looking forward to focusing our development efforts with VU Games, as we've had tremendous success working with them over the past few years," enthused Radical chairman and CEO Ian Wilkinson. "Our team is very excited about today's announcement and the new titles in development."