Video Games Take Stage At 2008 NY Comic Con

Author: ReedPop





Norwalk, CT, April 1, 2008: New York Comic Con (NYCC), the second largest popular culture event in the United States, today announces many of the video game highlights during its 2008 event, April 18-20, at the Jacob K. Javits Center in New York City. With an expanded focus on video games, this year's conference includes a look into the award-winning Gears of War franchise and the upcoming Gears of War 2 for the Xbox 360 by Epic Games President Michael Capps and Gears of War 2 scriptwriter Joshua Ortega of Microsoft Game Studios. New York Comic Con is a showcase for the biggest and the best of American pop culture and video games. These driving forces in what's popular and hot are represented through a number of NYCC events, exhibitors, and guests, with this year's show attracting many celebrities including Neil Gaiman, Grant Morrison, and T.M. Revolution.

New York Comic Con is proud to welcome exhibitors including Konami, Namco Bandai, Square-Enix, and Ubisoft; some of the biggest names in the interactive entertainment industry. These exhibitors will present their current hits and preview the summer's biggest titles from the show floor. While these demos and videos will be enough to satisfy any gamer, they are just the tip of the iceberg. New York Comic Con will present a special gamer summit on Sunday, April 20, with 12 panel discussions led by video game industry leaders. NYCC's gamer summit was created with the guidance of TenTonHammer.com and Themis Media, publishers of cutting-edge sites like The Escapist Magazine and WarCry Network. The summit will showcase games including Age of Conan, EvE Online, Iron Man, Warhammer Online, and studios including CCP, FunCom, Turbine, and 38 Studios. The summit will also feature round table discussions and topics ranging from video game journalism and writing for video games, to starting a career in the video game industry.

The gamer summit will begin with a presentation by Michael Capps, president of Epic Games, and Joshua Ortega, the scriptwriter behind Gears of War 2, discussing the origin of the Gears of War saga, its unprecedented success, and offering a glimpse into this year's upcoming Gears of War 2.

As a benefit to attendees, this year's show also features an exciting mix of celebrity guests including: Stan Lee (creator of X-Men and Spider-Man), Mike Mignola (creator of Hellboy), Ron Perlman and Selma Blair (stars of Hellboy II), Guillermo del Toro (director of Hellboy II), Frank Miller (creator of Sin City and 300), Seth Green and Matthew Senreich (creators of Robot Chicken), John Cho and Kal Penn (stars of Harold and Kumar), Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer (creators of The Venture Bros.), and Eva Mendes (star of Ghost Rider).

ABOUT MICHAEL CAPPS:
Dr. Michael Capps is the president of Epic Games, creator of the multimillion-selling, award-winning Unreal series and 2006 Game of the Year, Gears of War. Epic is responsible for the Unreal Engine, the underlying technology that powers a range of games including 2K Games' 2007 Game of the Year, BioShock, and BioWare's 2007 RPG of the Year, Mass Effect. Epic's Unreal Engine 3 is the current holder and three-time consecutive winner of Game Developer magazine's Front Line award for Best Engine. Under Michael's leadership, Epic has been recognized as Studio of the Year by Spike TV, Developer of the Year by Official Xbox Magazine, and Large Company of the Year by the North Carolina Technology Association. Michael serves on the board of directors for the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) and the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (AIAS), two leading organizations committed to advancing the interests of the game development and entertainment software communities. Prior to entering the game industry, Michael served as a professor at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, CA, where he specialized in defense and entertainment collaboration, virtual reality, and computer graphics. While at the Naval Postgraduate School, Michael was also the producer, designer and lead programmer for America's Army, the official military action game sponsored by the U.S. Army.

ABOUT JOSHUA ORTEGA:
Ortega is a Seattle-based writer whose work spans nearly the entire spectrum of the popular arts. He has written for every major American comic book company including Marvel, DC Comics, Dark Horse, Image, Top Cow, TOKYOPOP, Dynamite Entertainment and more, working on high-profile properties such as Star Wars, Spider-Man, Star Trek, Frank Frazetta's Death Dealer, and Battlestar Galactica. A former journalist, Ortega is also the author of the critically acclaimed novel ((FREQUENCIES)), co-writer of the short film "…loves Martha," and has worked on a wide variety of Xbox 360 titles for Microsoft Game Studios, including the upcoming Gears of War 2.

ABOUT EPIC GAMES:
Epic Games, Inc., based in Cary, North Carolina and established in 1991, develops cutting-edge games and cross-platform game engine technology. The company has created multiple million-selling, award-winning titles in its Unreal series, recently shipping Unreal Tournament 3 for PC and PlayStation 3. Epic's breakthrough game, Gears of War, sold over 4.5 million copies and was awarded overall Game of the Year for 2006 by the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, Game Developers Choice Awards, GameSpot, GamePro, and many others. Epic is also responsible for the Unreal Engine, which is the underlying technology for a wide range of games including the Game Critics Awards' Best Console Game, Spike TV's 2007 RPG of the Year Mass Effect by BioWare, the 2007 BAFTA Best Game and Spike TV Game of the Year BioShock by 2K Games. Epic's Unreal Engine 3 is the current holder, and three-time consecutive winner of Game Developer magazine's Front Line award for Best Game Engine. Epic was also recognized as 2006 Studio of the Year by Spike TV, 2006 Developer of the Year by Official Xbox Magazine, and 2007 Large Company of the Year by the North Carolina Technology Association. Additional information about Epic can be obtained through the Epic Games Web site at www.epicgames.com.

ABOUT TENTONHAMMER.COM:
TenTonHammer.com began in 2005 as an online game community site specializing in building communities where players have a home away from home where they can chat with their friends, post in the message forums, share game stories, and ask questions to our experienced staff. Now entering into its third year of service, TenTonHammer.com has become a premiere site for online game news and videos. Offering coverage of the top MMO games as well as exploring the market for new games, Ten Ton Hammer provides readers and viewers with one of the largest selections of free MMO guides on the internet, along with quality features, editorials, previews and review of your favorite games.

ABOUT THEMIS MEDIA:
Themis Media, a division of Themis Group Inc., is the publisher of The Escapist Magazine (www.escapistmagazine.com) and WarCry Network (www.WarCry.com). The Escapist Magazine is the hottest video game news and lifestyle site on the internet today, covering gamer and digital culture in a progressive editorial style, with articles and columns by the top writers in and outside of the industry and cutting-edge, highly intelligent, and super-entertaining viral video content. WarCry Network is the online community centered on massively multiplayer online games that provides a combination of innovative editorial, user-generated content and an extended network of MMO centric fan sites.

ABOUT NEW YORK COMIC CON:
New York Comic Con is the East Coast's biggest and most exciting popular culture convention. Our show floor plays host to the latest and greatest in comics, graphic novels, anime, manga, video games, toys, movies, and television. Our panels and autograph sessions give fans a chance to interact with their favorite creators. Our screening rooms feature sneak peeks at films and television shows months before they hit either big or small screens. And with dedicated professional hours, New York Comic Con is a market place, bringing together the major players in the entertainment industry. New York Comic Con is the second largest pop culture convention in America and the only one that takes place in the comic book, publishing, media, and licensing capital of the world -- Gotham City. Further information can be found at newyorkcomiccon.com.

ABOUT REED EXHIBITIONS:
The New York Comic Con is operated by Reed Exhibitions, the world's leading events organizer. In 2006, Reed brought together over six million industry professionals from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today, Reed events are held in 34 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, and organized by 37 fully staffed offices.

Reed organizes a wide range of events, including exhibitions, conferences, congresses, and meetings. Its portfolio of over 460 events serves 52 industry sectors, including aerospace and defense, building and construction, design, electronics, energy, oil and gas, entertainment, food and hospitality, gifts, healthcare, IT/telecoms, jewelry, manufacturing, marketing and business services, pharmaceuticals, property, publishing, security, sport and recreation, transport and logistics, and travel.

Working closely with professional bodies, trade associations, and government departments, Reed ensures that each and every event is targeted and relevant to industry needs. As a result, many Reed events are market leaders in their field.

Reed Exhibitions is part of Reed Elsevier Group plc, a FTSE-100 company and world-leading publisher and information provider. In 2005, Reed Elsevier made adjusted profit before taxation of £1,002 million on turnover of £5,166 million.

Epic, Epic Games, Unreal, Unreal Tournament and Gears of War are trademarks or registered trademarks of Epic Games, Inc. in the United States of America and elsewhere. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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CONTACT:
Roger Bilheimer
New York Comic Con
203-966-0792

Joe Ziemer