MTV Networks Entertainment Group Launches 345 Games: New Video Game Division to Develop Gaming Related Products Based on COMEDY CENTRAL® and Spike TV Franchises

NEW YORK, April 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- MTV Networks Entertainment Group (MTVNE), a division of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is launching 345 Games, a new video gaming arm of COMEDY CENTRAL and Spike TV, it was announced today by Dan Yang, senior vice president, strategy and business development,  MTVNE and general manager, 345 Games. The new gaming unit will develop products based on the Entertainment Group's franchises and brands and be fully supported on-air, off-air and online.  The first two titles to be released under this new label will be from COMEDY CENTRAL's hit animated show "Ugly Americans" and Spike TV's successful multi-platform series "Deadliest Warrior," which has already spawned the video game "Deadliest Warrior: The Game" and has sold nearly 400,000 downloads to date since its launch on both Xbox 360 and PlayStation.

"COMEDY CENTRAL and Spike TV squarely target the video game audience.  Our 'Deadliest Warrior' gaming franchise exploded out of the gate last season," said Yang.  "With the launch of 345 Games, we are tapping into the passionate fan base of both COMEDY CENTRAL and Spike and creating an enhanced interactive experience based on our hit shows and brands."

345 Games will work in close collaboration with the networks' creative talent and will be supported by the networks' marketing, digital and publicity departments.  The gaming division also plans to partner with independent developers who are passionate about the product and the COMEDY CENTRAL and Spike brands.

This summer, 345 Games will be releasing two new titles – the mid-July launch of Spike TV's "Deadliest Warrior: Legends" and the August launch of COMEDY CENTRAL's "Ugly Americans: Apocalypsegeddon."

Building on the wildly successful Spike TV show and warrior-based fighting video game franchise, "Deadliest Warrior: Legends" will reach beyond weapons and armor and put gamers back on the battlefield with the most legendary warriors in history.  This version will feature new heroic warriors, new fighting options, a more precise projectile system, more arenas and a new campaign mode.  Players are armed with signature weaponry and combat skills unique to each warrior.  As players complete challenges and destroy rivals, they will unlock new weapons, enhance their fighting skills and encounter the brutal realities of gritty, true-to-life combat.  "Deadliest Warrior: Legends" will be available for Xbox LIVE Arcade and PlayStation Network for a retail price of $10.

In conjunction with COMEDY CENTRAL's season two launch of its hit animated series "Ugly Americans," 345 Games will release "Ugly Americans: Apocalypsegeddon."  Uniting the spirit and humor of the animated horror-comedy series with addictive game play, the four player co-op side scroller shooter game will feature an exclusive script written by the show writers and creators – including a new character unique to the game and custom voiceovers from the show's actors.  Players will hit the streets to clean up the chaos and prevent the impending apocalypse by resolving case files and fighting otherworldly citizens.  "Ugly Americans: Apocalypsegeddon" will be available for Xbox LIVE Arcade and PlayStation Network for a retail price of $10.

COMEDY CENTRAL, the only all-comedy network, currently is seen in more than 95 million homes nationwide.  COMEDY CENTRAL is owned by, and is a registered trademark of, Comedy Partners, a wholly-owned division of Viacom Inc.'s (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B) MTV Networks.  COMEDY CENTRAL's Internet address is www.comedycentral.com.  For up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs visit Press Central, COMEDY CENTRAL's press Web site at www.comedycentral.com/press.

Spike TV is available in 99.4 million homes and is a division of MTV Networks.  A unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), MTV Networks is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Spike TV's Internet address is www.spike.com and for up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs, visit Spike TV's press site at http://www.spike.com/press.   Follow us on Twitter @spiketvpr for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.

SOURCE COMEDY CENTRAL Corporate Communications