Rebellion Releases First Social Game, Evil Genius: WMD

British independent developer and publisher Rebellion (Rogue Trooper, Aliens vs Predator) announced the launch of its first social game, Evil Genius: WMD, on Facebook. The free game is based on Elixir Studios' 2004 PC release, Evil Genius. Rebellion acquired the rights to the real-time strategy title in 2006 and re-published it on digital download platforms (along with Elixir's Republic: The Revolution and titles from other developers). In Evil Genius: WMD, players take on the role of a villain out for world domination in a spy thriller setting. Players are encouraged to "create their own evil empires, undertake dastardly missions, and recruit friends into their evil syndicates" while defending their lairs from agents. Founded in 1991, Rebellion has so far specialized in traditional home console, handheld, and PC video games. Earlier this year, the developer closed Rogue Warrior studio Rebellion Derby and laid off an unspecified number of employees at its Oxford headquarters. "This is an exciting project for us. The team has done a great job and we’re thrilled at the amount of attention EG:WMD is already getting," says Rebellion CEO Jason Kingsley. "We’re looking forward to expanding the game with big new features and additional content over the coming months."