Activision and ABC Entertainment Group Announce Exclusive Wipeout In The Zone, Coming This Summer on Kinect for Xbox 360

SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) and ABC Entertainment Group today announced that Wipeout In the Zone is coming this summer to Kinect™, controller-free games and entertainment, for Xbox 360®.  Based on the ABC hit show Wipeout, Wipeout In the Zone will be the latest release in this hit video game franchise and will have players running, ducking, dodging and wiping out using Kinect for Xbox 360's full-motion capabilities right in their own living room.

"The ABC hit show Wipeout continues to thrill a growing fan base of viewers with hilarious new obstacles. Everyone who watches the show wishes they could try the obstacle course – and now this is their chance!" said David Oxford, Activision Publishing. "The show is all about absurd movement and well-timed balance, so it's a perfect fit for a Kinect game."

Wipeout In the Zone features over thirty outrageous obstacles that will test players' limits in more ridiculous ways than ever. Players can try to run the entire course in one shot, conquering one challenge after another, such as leaping over a pool of water using the infamous "Big Balls" and maneuvering their players to avoid being pummeled by the "Smack Wall Sweeper." Once again featuring the talents and hilarious commentary of the show's hosts, John Anderson, John Henson and co-host Jill Wagner, Wipeout In the Zone will bring hours upon hours of fun and laughter for the entire family.

"We are thrilled to be continuing our successful relationship with ABC and Activision," said David Goldberg, Chairman of Endemol North America. "Not only is this new 'Wipeout' game filled with even more humor, spills and thrills, but now the entire family can play interactively with the new full motions capabilities. This game introduces a new level of excitement for Wipeout fans of all ages to play."

Wipeout In The Zone will be Kinect ready for the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, and available on retail shelves this summer in conjunction with the premier of Wipeout's summer season on ABC.

"Wipeout" executive producers are Matt Kunitz ("Fear Factor") and Scott Larsen. Shye Sutherland, Kevin Wehrenberg, Trice Barto and J. Rupert Thompson are co-executive producers. The series is produced by Endemol USA. David Goldberg is the chairman of Endemol North America.

This game is not yet rated by the ESRB. For more information, please visit www.activision.com.

About ABC Entertainment Group

ABC Television Network provides broadcast programming to more than 220 affiliated stations across the U.S. The Network encompasses ABC News, which is responsible for news programming on television and other digital platforms; ABC Entertainment Group, a partnership between ABC Studios and ABC Entertainment responsible for the network's primetime and late-night entertainment programming; ABC Daytime, producer of the network's successful cache of daytime programming; as well as ABC Kids, the Network's children's programming platform. ABC's multiplatform business initiative includes the Interactive Emmy Award-winning broadband player on ABC.com

About Endemol USA

Endemol USA is a leading producer of television and digital programming specializing in unscripted and scripted genres for network and cable television. The company produces the hit shows "Wipeout," "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," "Deal or No Deal," and "Big Brother." Endemol USA is a division of the Endemol Group, a leading international content developer, producer and distributor of television and online programming. The company, headquartered in the Netherlands and the UK, has subsidiaries and joint ventures in 26 countries, including the major European markets, the U.S., South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Australia. Endemol is owned by a consortium consisting of Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, Mediaset Group and Cyrte Group. For more information, please visit www.endemolusa.tv. Endemol is a privately held company.

About Activision Publishing, Inc.

Headquartered in Santa Monica, California, Activision Publishing, Inc. is a leading worldwide developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment and leisure products.

Activision Publishing maintains operations in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, Spain, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, Australia, Russia, Japan, South Korea, China and the region of Taiwan. More information about Activision and its products can be found on the company's website, www.activision.com. 

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Statements: Information in this press release that involves Activision Publishing's expectations, plans, intentions or strategies regarding the future are forward-looking statements that are not facts and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Activision Publishing generally uses words such as "outlook," "will," "could," "would," "might," "remains," "to be," "plans," "believes," "may," "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "estimate," future," "plan," "positioned," "potential," "project," "remain," "scheduled," "set to," "subject to," "upcoming" and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause Activision Publishing's actual future results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements set forth in this release include, but are not limited to, sales levels of Activision Publishing's titles, shifts in consumer spending trends, the impact of the current macroeconomic environment, the seasonal and cyclical nature of the interactive game market, Activision Publishing's ability to predict consumer preferences among competing hardware platforms, declines in software pricing, product returns and price protection, product delays, retail acceptance of Activision Publishing's products, adoption rate and availability of new hardware (including peripherals) and related software, industry competition, rapid changes in technology, industry standards and consumer preferences, protection of proprietary rights, litigation against Activision Publishing, maintenance of relationships with key personnel, customers, licensees, licensors, vendors and third-party developers, counterparty risks relating to customers, licensees, licensors and manufacturers, domestic and international economic, financial and political conditions and policies, foreign exchange rates and tax rates, integration of recent acquisitions and the identification of suitable future acquisition opportunities, and the other factors identified in the risk factors section of Activision Blizzard's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this release are based upon information available to Activision Publishing and Activision Blizzard as of the date of this release, and neither Activision Publishing nor Activision Blizzard assumes any obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements believed to be true when made may ultimately prove to be incorrect. These statements are not guarantees of the future performance of Activision Publishing or Activision Blizzard and are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, some of which are beyond its control and may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations.

©2011 Activision Publishing, Inc. Activision is a registered trademark of Activision Publishing, Inc. 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. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners. All other trademarks and trade names are the properties of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

SOURCE Activision Publishing, Inc.