Graffiti To Develop Updated Empire Deluxe For Handheld, PC

Signature Devices subsidiary Graffiti Entertainment (Crazy Frog Racer) has announced it has signed an agreement with Killer Bee Software to develop and publish an update to its real time strategy game Empire Deluxe for "a major handheld gaming system" and PC, slated for release in the last quarter of 2008. Killer Bee Software originally purchased the rights to the game's 1990s PC precursor from its developers in 2002, and has now licensed the IP to Graffiti for a new version of the game. Earlier this year, Graffiti announced that it had also been granted rights to publish Wii and Nintendo titles, noting at the time that the studio was evaluating an unspecified number of titles for release on both platforms. Most recently, Graffiti also announced it would develop a title for Xbox Live Arcade, for which no details have yet been specified. While Graffiti Entertainment was first established in March 2006, its parent company Signature Devices was responsible for technology on multiple earlier releases, including the Xbox conversion of Samurai Shodown V and 3D engine work on the PC version of Medal of Honor: Pacific Assault. Signature Devices CEO Kenneth Hurley said, "Empire Deluxe is a great RTS game that we will be developing for a major handheld gaming system and the PC. The game will include multiplayer capabilities and receive a major upgrade in that we will be making the game completely 3D and take advantage of the handheld gaming system. We are very excited to add this RTS to our growing list of published products."