Wiki

THQ Announces distributing agreement

Multi-Property Agreement Includes Popular Banjo-Kazooie Brand

CALABASAS HILLS, CA., August 12, 2003 - THQ Inc. (NASDAQ: THQI) today announced a multi-property agreement with Microsoft Corporation that grants THQ worldwide rights to distribute titles from Microsoft's Rare game studio on Game Boy Advance, including Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge, Banjo Pilot, It's Mr. Pants and Sabre Wulf. The first game scheduled for release under the agreement, Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge, is scheduled to release in fall 2003.

"Rare is one of the leading original content developers in the interactive space," stated Germaine Gioia, vice president of licensing at THQ. "With multi-million worldwide unit sales, Banjo-Kazooie is a perfect addition to THQ's leading handheld catalog. We look forward to working with Microsoft in bringing Banjo-Kazooie and Rare's other new titles to the Game Boy Advance market."

"Rare has made world class games for both console and handheld," said Ken Lobb, studio manager, Microsoft Game Studios. "This agreement with THQ will allow Rare to continue to offer top level content for the Game Boy Advance fans that know and love Rare. I'm really excited that we can bring all of these excellent games to fellow fans of the Game Boy."

About Banjo-Kazooie:
Grunty's Revenge Developed by Microsoft's acclaimed Rare game studio, Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge for Game Boy Advance marks the debut of the popular Banjo-Kazooie brand on any handheld system. Players follow the witch Gruntilda back through time, hoping to thwart her plans of preventing Banjo and Kazooie from ever meeting. Gameplay includes puzzle solving, battles, as well as encounters with familiar and all-new characters from the critically acclaimed, top-selling Nintendo 64 franchise.

About Rare United Kingdom-based Rare Ltd:
(http://www.rareware.com) one of the world's leading video game developers, was founded in 1985 by Chris and Tim Stamper. Rare has been the mastermind behind some of the most popular video games in history, including such global multimillion sellers as GoldenEye 007, Perfect Dark, Banjo-Kazooie and the Donkey Kong Country series. 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.
%s1 / %s2