We were totally right! XLGAMES and Take-Two Announce Civilization Online!
Remember when Take-Two Interactive and XLGAMES signed a deal to make a game for the Korean market based on a hot American game property?
Remember when we thought it would be a Civilization game?
We were right! Read about it below! While this isn’t strictly a ArcheAge-related news article, we thought it would interest readers because XLGAMES is involved.
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. : Expands Online Initiatives in Asia
10/25/2012| 08:05am US/Eastern
2K Games to bring successful Civilization franchise to region as a massively multiplayer online game
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO) today announced the development of a massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) based on its successful Civilization franchise. Through a previously announced partnership with renowned South Korean-based studio XLGAMES and under the leadership of its CEO and MMOG design luminary, Jake Song,Civilization Online (working title) is being designed from the ground up as an entirely new online-only entertainment experience for the Asian market.
Civilization series creator, Firaxis Games, and XLGAMES have been lending their respective expertise and vision to developing Civilization Online. Mr. Song is highly regarded for his integral role in creating the popular Korean MMORPG, Lineage, which has attracted 43 million players. For this project, he is leading a team of more than 100 people in Seoul, making it one of the most ambitious online game development initiatives taking place in South Korea. Firaxis Games is widely known for its long and distinguished history with Civilization, its leading strategy franchise, which has sold-in more than 11-million units worldwide, and includes the critically acclaimed and commercially successful releases ofSid Meier’s Civilization V and Civilization V: Gods and Kings. Earlier this month, Firaxis Games launched XCOM: Enemy Unknown, which has received excellent reviews from consumers and the media.
“Making our intellectual property available to delight consumers wherever they are is an important component of our long-term growth strategy,” said Strauss Zelnick, Chairman and CEO of Take-Two. “Our online and mobile social projects in Asia are enabling Take-Two to further broaden its global footprint and captivate audiences across a myriad of screens, platforms and business models. If successful, these projects will enhance our core business with revenue and profit streams that are higher margin and more stable over time.”
“Over the last four years, we have been focused on creating an ambitious portfolio of online and social games with some of the most revered companies in Asia such as Tencent in China, Nexon Korea Corporation and XLGAMES in Korea, GREE and CyberAgent in Japan,” added Hubert Larenaudie, president of Take-Two Asia. “The consumer response for NBA 2K All Stars and NBA 2K Online has been very encouraging. With the upcoming releases of Pro Baseball 2K and Civilization Online, Take-Two is uniquely positioned to delight gamers throughout Asia.”
“2K is committed to supporting the growing Asian market by bringing our best IP and strongest franchises to the most popular online platforms in each territory,” concluded David Ismailer, chief operating officer of 2K, a wholly owned label of Take-Two. “Civilization Online is an example of how 2K can leverage its successful franchises, beyond sports, to create entirely new experiences in genres that resonate with customers in this region.”
The announcement of Civilization Online, underscores Take-Two’s strategic approach to delivering interactive entertainment experiences for Asia through a series of partnerships with local, best-in-class companies that leverage their development capabilities, strong distribution channels and intimate knowledge of regional consumers. Over the past several months, Take-Two has been actively working on several online and mobile social projects in Asia, including:
- NBA 2K Online - free-to-play NBA simulation from 2K Sports on the Tencent Games portal in China that launched commercially on October 24. NBA 2K Online is being co-developed by Tencent and Visual Concepts in Shanghai. The online game service builds on 2K Sports’ award-winning basketball simulation franchise in an exciting MMOG format, matching an engaging NBA 2K simulation gameplay with entirely new RPG activities, such as character personalization, quests and achievements.
- NBA 2K All-Stars - free-to-play, official NBA mobile social game that is currently available on GREE’s social networking platform in Japan. The title, developed by CyberAgent, has attracted more than 300K users in less than 60 days**. 2K is also partnering with GREE to develop mobile social games based upon its Civilization and Pirates! franchises.
- Pro Baseball 2K - an online baseball simulation game created by 2K Sports in partnership with Nexon for Korea. Currently in development with Nexon and 2K’s team in Seoul, the game will utilize the engine from 2K Sports’ popular console baseball series. Due for open beta release during spring 2013, Pro Baseball 2K will deliver the high-quality presentation and simulation gameplay that 2K Sports is known for, featuring authentic and true-to-life representations of the professional players of the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO).
About Take-Two Interactive Software
Headquartered in New York City, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a leading developer, marketer and publisher of interactive entertainment for consumers around the globe. The Company develops and publishes products through its two wholly-owned labels Rockstar Games and 2K, which publishes its titles under the 2K Games, 2K Sports and 2K Play brands. Our products are designed for console systems, handheld gaming systems and personal computers, including smartphones and tablets, and are delivered through physical retail, digital download, online platforms and cloud streaming services. The Company’s common stock is publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol TTWO. For more corporate and product information please visit our website at http://www.take2games.com.
About 2K
Founded in 2005, 2K develops and publishes interactive entertainment for console systems, handheld gaming systems and personal computers, including smartphones and tablets through its three divisions: 2K Games, 2K Sports, and 2K Play that are delivered through physical retail, digital download, online platforms and cloud streaming services. 2K publishes titles in today’s most popular gaming genres, including first-person shooters, action, role-playing, real-time strategy, sports, casual, and family entertainment. The 2K label has some of the most talented development studios in the world today, including Firaxis Games, Visual Concepts, Irrational Games, 2K Marin, 2K Australia, 2K Czech, Cat Daddy Games, and 2K China. 2K has achieved many key industry milestones, including launching the 2007 Game of the Year - BioShock®; publishing the critically acclaimed Borderlands® franchise;continuing the award-winning Sid Meier’sCivilization® series; delivering the #1 rated and #1 selling basketball franchise with NBA® 2K*; and breaking new ground in the family entertainment market with its multi-million unit selling hit Carnival Games. 2K is headquartered in Novato, California and is a wholly owned label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO). For more information, please visitwww.2K.com.
*According to 2008 – 2012 Gamerankings.com and The NPD Group estimates of U.S. retail video game sales through September 2012.
**Based on internal estimates.
About Firaxis Games
Firaxis Games? is one of the world’s premier game development studios, and home of legendary designer Sid Meier. Firaxis has developed some of the most successful and award-winning computer and video games on the market today including: Sid Meier’s Civilization® Revolution? for console, iPhone®, iPod touch®, iPad® and Nintendo DS, 2005 PC Game of the Year – Sid Meier’s Civilization IV®, the expansions Civilization IV: Warlords®, Civilization IV: Beyond The Sword?, and Civilization IV: Colonization?, the blockbuster Sid Meier’s Civilization® III series, Sid Meier’s Pirates!® (PC, Xbox® and PSP®), Sid Meier’s SimGolf? and Sid Meier’s Railroads!?. Firaxis legacy titles include the Sid Meier’s Civil War Series!? (Gettysburg!, Antietam!, and South Mountain), and the Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri® series. In 2005, Firaxis Games was acquired by Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., joining its 2K publishing label. The company has just released Sid Meier’s Civilization® V for the PC to great critical acclaim, as well as Sid Meier’s Civilization World ?, for the Facebook platform.
All trademarks and copyrights contained herein are the property of their respective holders.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
The statements contained herein which are not historical facts are considered forward-looking statements under federal securities laws and may be identified by words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “potential,” “predicts,” “projects,” “seeks,” “will,” or words of similar meaning and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the outlook for the Company’s future business and financial performance. 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, which are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. Actual outcomes and results may vary materially from these forward-looking statements based on a variety of risks and uncertainties including: our dependence on key management and product development personnel, our dependence on our Grand Theft Auto products and our ability to develop other hit titles for current generation platforms, the timely release and significant market acceptance of our games, the ability to maintain acceptable pricing levels on our games, our ability to raise capital if needed and risks associated with international operations. Other important factors and information are contained in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2012, in the section entitled “Risk Factors,” and the Company’s other periodic filings with the SEC, which 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. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Source: http://www.4-traders.com/
XLGAMES + T2 Interactive = Civilization MMO?
Do you guys remember that announcement a while back of a partnership between XLGAMES and Take-Two Interactive? The whole point of the deal was for XLGAMES to develop and MMO based on one of T2′s intellectual properties. Speculation run rampant as to what exactly the game was going to be.
Now we know.
According to Chinese and South Korean news portals, XLGAMES newest project is a Civilization MMO!
ArcheAge fans shouldn’t get their panties in a bunch over this, since XLGAMES is forming an entirely new development group to tackle this project. No one on the ArcheAge team is being repurposed, and our favorite MMO will continue its march towards perfection untouched.
Sources, in case you were curious:
http://game.donews.com/news/201107/545525.shtm
http://game.21cn.com/online/global/2011/07/20/8664008.shtml
PAX Prime 2011 keynote speaker, exhibitors, and concerts announced.
If you don’t already have a PAX Prime day or weekend pass, you might want to avoid reading the rest of this article, because it will probably make you a bit envious of those of us who do. Then again, you’ll get to see everything that’s at PAX for yourself through our lens, so don’t worry too much. 
PAX Prime 2011′s keynote speaker, major exhibitors, and concert performers have been announced in an email blast sent out this afternoon. Here’s the scoop: David Jaffe is doing the keynote speech, 2K Games, Activision, Bioware, Capcom, NCsoft and Turbine will all be exhibiting (we’ll bug 2K about its cooperative efforts with XLGAMES), and a bunch of videogame music powerhouses will perform on stage at night after the convention closes (unfortunately the Protomen aren’t on the list).
If you’re going to PAX, leave a comment!
The full press release can be read after the break…
MCV Interviews Take-Two’s CEO
A few days ago gaming industry news site MCV put up an interview with Strauss Zelnick, Take-Two Interactive’s CEO. After a joint project between Take-Two and XLGAMES was announced a week or two ago, many people in the ArcheAge fan community see the North American company as an obvious choice to publish their favorite MMO.
The entire interview is interesting, but here’s the paragraphs that are most important to ArcheAge fans:
Take-Two has been really active in digital, how much does it account for your business now?
Our digital content accounted for about nine per cent of our revenue during FY 2011, led by offerings for Red Dead Redemption, Borderlands and Sid Meier’s Civilization V.Over the long-term, we expect digital revenue to increase as a per cent of our overall revenue; that said, it will naturally vary based on our release schedule and the success of our titles.
One of the most exciting areas of interactive entertainment is online gaming, including MMO and social gaming. Asia’s MMO market represents about $8.7bn. To that end, we’ve undertaken strategic initiatives to deliver triple-A experiences through online platforms.
These include 2K Games’ planned summer release of Civilization World for Facebook, 2K Sports’ partnership with Tencent to develop an online basketball game based on our NBA 2K franchise in Asia, 2K Sports’ partnership with Nexon to develop an online baseball simulation in South Korea; and 2K Games’ partnership with XLGAMES to create an MMO based on one of our franchises for the Asian market.
These initiatives are all examples of how we are pursuing emerging opportunities by leading with our content while minimising our financial risk. We’re very encouraged by the prospects for these projects. Over time, if we get it right, we ought to be able to deliver significant revenues and profit for Take-Two, and we will continue to pursue these and other online initiatives at the same time as we execute on our core strategy of delivering triple-A games for consoles.
Source: http://www.mcvuk.com/features/946/INTERVIEW-Strauss-Zelnick
Off-topic: so how are you guys liking this E3′s craziness? 
Take-Two Interactive + XLGAMES = Another MMO
So here’s the scoop: Take-Two Interactive (2K Games), the publisher of all of Rockstar Games’ titles (GTA, RDR, LA Noire, etc.), has teamed up with XLGAMES to create an MMO based on one of T2′s intellectual properties. It could be a Duke Nukem, Bioshock, or Grand Theft Auto MMO, or it could be something else entirely! No one knows for sure what game the two companies will produce, but it’ll probably be pretty awesome.
Oh, and before you get upset that XLGAMES is working on multiple MMOs at once, know this: every good studio has multiple teams in place to work on multiple projects simultaneously. This new project won’t “steal” time or money from ArcheAge.
Here’s the full press release:
2K, a wholly owned publishing label of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. (NASDAQ: TTWO), today announced a partnership with XLGAMES, Inc. to develop and publish a massively multiplayer online game for the Asian market based upon one of 2K Games’ top-selling franchise. XLGAMES, Inc. was founded and is currently led by Jake Song, one of the most recognized figures in the online gaming industry in Korea. Mr. Song was also a co-founder of Nexon, as well as the acclaimed creator of the popular Lineage franchise and The Kingdom of Winds.
“One of 2K’s key long-term initiatives is to bring our groundbreaking, triple-A entertainment experiences to broader audiences through emerging online platforms and markets,” said Christoph Hartmann, president of 2K. “Our partnership with XLGAMES underscores our ongoing commitment to expanding 2K’s presence in online gaming and the Asian market by leveraging our creative expertise with companies that are proven leaders in the region. With the addition of the XLGAMES partnership, we have now announced three exciting projects to develop online games in Asia.”
“This is a great partnership between XLGAMES and 2K,” added Mr. Song. “We have already been working together for a year on the game, and I can tell you this is one of the most exciting projects that I’ve ever undertaken. I cannot wait to launch this collaboration, which illustrates our shared development talent and passion to create cutting-edge entertainment experiences.”
Hubert Larenaudie, president of Take-Two Asia concluded, “In all my years in the Asian gaming industry, I have never met a game creator with Jake’s experience and caliber. I have no doubt that he will deliver another stellar title for the Asian market.”
About Take-Two Interactive Software
Headquartered in New York City, Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a global developer, marketer and publisher of interactive entertainment software games for the PC, PlayStation®3 and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment systems, PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system, Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, Wii?, Nintendo DS?, iPhone®, iPod® touch and iPad?. The Company publishes and develops products through its wholly owned labels Rockstar Games and 2K, which publishes its titles under 2K Games, 2K Sports and 2K Play. The Company’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.
About XLGAMES
XLGAMES was founded in 2003 by the iconic Korean developer Jake Song (Korean name – Song Jae Kyung), the developer of ‘Lineage’ and ‘The Kingdom of the Winds’. XLGAMES is now developing the Next-generation Blockbuster MMORPG ArcheAge, which aims to be a game where players can pioneer and evolve their own world with their free will. ArcheAge, currently in the beta test phase, is already signed for distribution in China with Tencent, Japan with GameOn, and Taiwan, HongKong, Macao with GigaMedia. ArcheAge first introduced its signature features through G-Star, the largest game show in Korea, in 2010. For more information, please visit www.xlgames.com/en
All trademarks and copyrights contained herein are the property of their respective holders.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
The statements contained herein which are not historical facts are considered forward-looking statements under federal securities laws and may be identified by words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “potential,” “predicts,” “projects,” “seeks,” “will,” or words of similar meaning and include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the outlook for the Company’s future business and financial performance. 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, which are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks and changes in circumstances that are difficult to predict. Actual outcomes and results may vary materially from these forward-looking statements based on a variety of risks and uncertainties including: our dependence on key management and product development personnel, our dependence on our Grand Theft Auto products and our ability to develop other hit titles for current generation platforms, the timely release and significant market acceptance of our games, the ability to maintain acceptable pricing levels on our games, our ability to raise capital if needed and risks associated with international operations. Other important factors and information are contained in the Company’s Transition Report on Form 10-KT for the five month transition period ended March 31, 2010, in the section entitled “Risk Factors,” and the Company’s other periodic filings with the SEC, which 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. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Sources: