WWE™ SMACKDOWN!™HERE COMES THE PAIN ANNOUNCED
EXCLUSIVELY FOR PLAYSTATION 2
Sequel to Last Year’s #1 Selling Wrestling Game Scheduled for Fall 2003 Release
CALABASAS HILLS, Calif. - July 17, 2003 - THQ® Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) and JAKKS Pacific, Inc. (NASDAQ: JAKK) today announced WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain, the latest addition to their multi-million unit selling World Wrestling Entertainment™ (NYSE: WWE) videogame franchise. WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain, exclusively for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, marks the third installment in the highly successful SmackDown! Series. According to NPD TRST, the SmackDown! series has sold more than 4.7 million units on the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 in North America since 1999. WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain features all the action, excitement and attitude of World Wrestling Entertainment and is scheduled for release this fall.
“WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain will feature several new gameplay enhancements, such as a new submission system, player-specific grappling mechanics and a countering system that will improve the overall dynamics every match,” said Tiffany Ternan, senior vice president of North American sales and distribution, THQ. “We’re confident that WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain will continue to strengthen our position as the premier publisher of wrestling games on all major console systems.”
“The SmackDown! franchise has been highly successful and our top-selling titles to date,” commented Nelo Lucich, vice president interactive, JAKKS Pacific. “WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain features the largest arsenal of WWE superstars available in one game with the most accurate finishing moves and electrifying action we’ve seen so far in a WWE game.”
About WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain
Developed by Yuke’s Co., Ltd. of Japan, WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain showcases more than 55 WWE Superstars including, Brock Lesnar™, Scott Steiner™, Rey Mysterio™ and Goldberg™. The game includes an all-new story mode that is being created exclusively by WWE writers depicting both fictitious story paths and classic WWE moments. The overall gameplay has been enhanced and features real-life attributes of strength, submission, technique, speed and stamina. These new attributes will allow players to wear down their opponents and take advantage of each Superstar’s unique abilities and extensive move sets. WWE SmackDown! Here Comes the Pain’s TV-style presentation will also be enhanced with new dynamic camera angles, improved audio, Superstar voiceovers, realistic animations and improved arena and crowd elements.
For more information about the THQ/JAKKS Pacific World Wrestling Entertainment videogame franchises and the rest of THQ’s 2003 holiday line-up, visit
www.thq.com.
About World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc.
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (NYSE: WWE) is an integrated media and entertainment company headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Toronto and London. Additional information on the company can be found at
wwe.com and
corporate.wwe.com. For additional information on WrestleMania® XX, to be broadcast live on pay-per-view from Madison Square Garden in New York City on March 14, 2004, go to wrestlemania.wwe.com. Information on television ratings and community activities can be found at
parents.wwe.com.
About THQ
THQ Inc. is a leading, worldwide developer and publisher of interactive entertainment software for a variety of hardware platforms including PC CD-ROM, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc., Nintendo and Microsoft. The THQ web site is located at www.thq.com. The THQ Wireless site is located at
www.thqwireless.com.
About JAKKS Pacific, Inc.
JAKKS Pacific, Inc. is a multi-brand company that designs and markets a broad range of toys and leisure products. The product categories include: Action Figures, Arts & Crafts Activity Kits, Stationery, Writing Instruments, Performance Kites, Water Toys, Sports Activity Toys, Vehicles, Infant/Pre-School, Plush and Dolls. The products are sold under various brand names including Flying Colors®, Road Champs®, Remco®, Child Guidance®, Pentech®, Trendmasters®, Toymax®, Funnoodle®, Go Fly a Kite® and Color Workshop®. The Company also participates in a joint venture with THQ Inc. that has exclusive worldwide rights to publish and market World Wrestling Entertainment™ video games. For further information, visit
www.jakkspacific.com.
Trademark Statement
The names of all World Wrestling Entertainment televised and live programming, talent names, images, likenesses, slogans and wrestling moves and all World Wrestling Entertainment logos are trademarks, which are the exclusive property of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc.
“Safe Harbor” Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This press release contains forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect the current views of the Company with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual future results or events may vary materially from those described herein.
