New City of Heroes Comic Book Announced

The full press release:

New Comic Book for City of Heroes Announced

Comic Book Publisher Brings Star-Studded Team Together for New Series

AUSTIN, Texas, February 28, 2005 In a co-venture with NCsoft® Corporation (KSE: 036570.KS) and Cryptic Studios™, Top Cow Productions will launch City of Heroes® as a new comic book series that will link together gamers and comic book fans alike. Celebrated writer Mark Waid (X-Men, Hunter-Killer, Flash, JLA, Ruse, Fantastic Four, Kingdom Come, Empire) teams up with David Nakayama (Proximity Effect, a graduate of the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art, and a Wizard art contest winner), to bring to life the action and the adventure of the super-powered heroes and villains that make up the City of Heroes massively multiplayer online world.

With an audience of well over 100,000 subscribers, City of Heroes has received mass market and critical acclaim in the gaming industry since its launch in April of 2004. The game was awarded PC or Console Game of the Year and Multiplayer Game of the Year by Billboard Magazine. It also received MMORPG of the year honors from Spike TV and Computer Gaming World.

The new series of comics will launch in May and City of Heroes players will continue to get the new comic book as part of their game subscription. (The most exciting part for me is the fact that we’ll be sending this out to both the City of Heroes subscribers and the comic book retailers every month,) says Top Cow Editor in Chief, Jim McLauchlin. (There is a legion of fans out there who love comic books as an idea and as a genre, but may have forgotten that they love comic books in and of themselves. This is our chance to remind them. It’s a great day for the comic business.)

(We’re thrilled to be working with the Top Cow team,) said City of Heroes Lead Designer Jack Emmert. (Top Cow is putting together a lineup of artists and writers who are tops in this business. This is an experienced team that has a strong track record for making quality comics. The big winners will be our players, who are really going to enjoy this new experience.)

As the official comic book for City of Heroes, the ongoing series will focus on the signature heroes from the online game: The Freedom Phalanx: Statesmanâ„¢, Manticoreâ„¢, Positronâ„¢, Sister Psycheâ„¢ and Synapseâ„¢. (Our goal is to bridge the gap between game players and comics readers with something that appeals to both and conjures the best elements of both media,) says Top Cow Productions President Matt Hawkins. (I’ve been playing the game since it came out and met with game creator Jack Emmert and NCsoft product marketing manager Kevin Sullivan. Our discussions eventually let to this deal and announcement.)

About Cryptic Studios
Cryptic Studios, Inc., located in Los Gatos, California, was established in July of 2000 and is an independent developer of massively multiplayer online games for the PC and next generation consoles. Its first game, City of Heroes, launched in April 2004. The game takes place in a virtual world where thousands of people play simultaneously, take on the role of super-powered heroes, fight villains and help create a dynamic story in a visually-stunning, 3-D graphical world.

About NCsoft North America
NCsoft – North America (NC-NA) is headquartered in Austin, Texas and is part of Korea-based NCsoft Corporation. NC-NA, with development and administrative offices in Texas and California, launched two ground-breaking titles in the first half of 2004, Lineage® II and City of Heroes. The company also works with NCsoft subsidiaries and third party developers throughout North America to develop and publish innovative online entertainment software products. More information about NCsoft North America can be found at http://www.PlayNC.com.

About Top Cow
Top Cow was founded in December of 1992 and currently publishes its line of comic books in 21 languages in over 55 different countries. The company has launched 20 franchises (18 original and 2 licensed) in the industry’s Top 10, seven at #1, a feat accomplished by no other publisher in the last two decades. Its flagship franchise Witchblade was TNT’s #1 original film of 2000. Virtually all of Top Cow’s other properties are in development as feature films, live action television, animation or video games. Top Cow has also successfully licensed and merchandised its franchises into toys, statues, clothing, lithographs, puppets, posters, magnets, shot glasses, lighters, lunch pails, wall scrolls, mouse pads, die cast cars, calendars, Christmas ornaments, Halloween masks, trading cards, standees, video games and role playing games.