MINNEAPOLIS, Dec. 11 -- Navarre Corporation and Encore, its majority-owned subsidiary today announced that Encore's Nintendo Game Boy® Advance version of Marvel's Daredevil(TM) has gone gold. The game is anticipated on store shelves in conjunction with the February 2003 premiere of the highly anticipated New Regency/ 20th Century Fox/Marvel Studios Daredevil movie starring Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner. The "E" rated game -- which incorporates many elements of the feature film including its characters, costumes, and Hell's Kitchen, New York setting -- will retail for approximately $30.
Said Eric Paulson, President and CEO of Navarre, "The momentum for Daredevil has been building, and anticipation is high both for the movie and the videogame. We believe that Daredevil for Nintendo Game Boy Advance will appeal not only to gamers, Daredevil fans and comic book enthusiasts, but also to those who are excited about the movie."
Added Russ Brown, Executive Vice President, Consumer Products, Promotions & Media Sales at Marvel Enterprises, Inc., "The legacy of the comic books, the upcoming film, super-star status for Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner, and a strong videogame all combine to make Daredevil a very strong brand. We are eagerly anticipating the movie premiere and videogame launch in February."
Daredevil Battles the Kingpin(TM) in New York's Hell's Kitchen
New York's crime gangs have escalated their activities to intolerable levels, and Daredevil is out to stop them. In this action-filled sidescroller, players get to be Daredevil as he fights his way through the underbelly of New York's Hell's Kitchen to defeat these criminals and their boss, the Kingpin. Daredevil will run, jump, fight and perform acrobatic maneuvers as he battles with the Kingpin, Elektra(TM), Bullseye(TM), and the Sewer King(TM), as well as ninjas and mafia thugs.
A unique feature of the game will be "Radar Sense," which will allow Daredevil to see invisible enemies and find hidden items. The game will also feature 23 levels; gritty New York settings from the movie; and lots of power-ups, hidden items and game secrets based on movie details such as Ben Affleck's and Jennifer Garner's costumes.
More information on the game, including screenshots and a trailer, is available at http://www.daredevilgame.com.
Daredevil, the Marvel Comics Super Hero
Daredevil is one of the most popular and best-selling comic book Super Heroes of all time. Since his introduction in 1964, over 40 million Daredevil comic books have been sold. The iconic Marvel character is part of the vast Marvel universe, which includes Spider-Man(TM), The X-Men(TM), The Fantastic Four(TM) and The Incredible Hulk(TM), among others.
Daredevil continues to be one of Marvel's most successful series, with a dedicated fan base of millions worldwide. Daredevil consistently ranks as one of the industry's top-selling titles, and, over the past 24 months, the comic book series has sold over 2 million copies (source: Diamond Distributors, the leading comic book distributor in the world).
Daredevil, the Movie
The Daredevil movie is scheduled for release on February 14, 2003. The film is produced by Arnon Milchan, Gary Foster and Avi Arad (Marvel) and will be distributed by 20th Century Fox. It will star Ben Affleck ("The Sum of All Fears," "Pearl Harbor"), Jennifer Garner ("Alias"), Michael Clarke Duncan ("The Green Mile") and Colin Farrell ("Minority Report") and is written and directed by Mark Steven Johnson ("Jack Frost", "Simon Birch," "Grumpy Old Men"). More information is available at http://www.daredevilmovie.com.
About Navarre Corp.
Navarre Corporation provides distribution and related services to leading developers and retailers of home entertainment content, including PC software, audio and video titles, and interactive games. Encore, Navarre's majority owned subsidiary, is a leading interactive publisher in the videogame and PC CD-ROM markets. Navarre's client-specific delivery systems allow its product lines to be seamlessly distributed to over 11,000 retail locations throughout North America. The Company provides such value-added services as inventory management, Web-based ordering, fulfillment and marketing and EDI customer and vendor interface. Since its founding in 1983, Navarre has built a base of distribution partnerships with a broad base of leading retailers across the mass merchant, music, computer and office specialty, wholesale club and military PX channels, as well as software content developers from all categories of the industry and independent record labels encompassing all musical genres. For more information, please visit the Company's Web site at http://www.navarre.com
About Marvel Enterprises, Inc.
With a library of over 4,700 proprietary characters, Marvel Enterprises, Inc. is one of the world's most prominent character-based entertainment companies. Marvel's operations are focused in four divisions: entertainment (Marvel Studios), licensing, toys (Toy Biz) and comic book publishing. Marvel facilitates the creation of entertainment projects, including feature films, television and DVD/home video, based on its characters and also licenses its characters for use in a wide range of consumer products and services including video and computer games, apparel, collectibles, snack foods and promotions. Marvel's characters are created by its comic book division which continues to maintain a leadership position in the U.S. and worldwide while also serving as an invaluable source of intellectual property. For additional information visit the Marvel Web site at http://www.marvel.com.
About Griptonite and Amaze Entertainment
Griptonite Games is the handheld and mobile gaming studio of Amaze Entertainment, one of the world's largest independent interactive entertainment development companies. The company creates high-quality games for virtually any platform, from popular handheld devices and PCs to today's advanced game consoles. Known for creating top-selling handheld titles such as Harry Potter(TM) and The Sorcerer's Stone(TM), Griptonite Games pushes the technology and sophistication of handheld devices to new limits with outstanding control, vibrant graphics and unsurpassed playability. For more information about Griptonite Games and Amaze Entertainment, visit http://www.griptonite.com and http://www.amazeentertainment.com.
Daredevil, Marvel and related characters: TM & (c) 2003 Marvel Characters, Inc.