STORY-BASED GAME LAUNCHES IN APRIL
New York, NY – March 9, 2012 – AMC and RockYou® announced today “The Walking Dead Social Game,” the first interactive game where users can play inside a social gaming world based on AMC’s TV series. The game allows players to have their own, unique adventures, with opportunities to encounter show characters at key moments suggested by the show’s rich narrative. The goal of the game is to survive the apocalypse by fighting walkers (zombies) to keep yourself and your fellow survivors alive, while scavenging resources and establishing camps based on settings from the show. Users can sign-up now for “The Walking Dead Social Game” on AMC’s “The Walking Dead” Facebook page and at Facebook.com/amcthewalkingdeadgame. AMC first premiered “The Walking Dead” in October of 2010. The series, which airs Sunday nights at 9PM EST, currently delivers more Adults 18-49 than any other cable drama series.
“Fans of ‘The Walking Dead’ are so passionately engaged with the world of the show that we wanted to build an experience that allows them to enter into that world and to share the experience with their friends,” said Mac McKean, SVP of digital media. “We are excited to launch this game with RockYou so that our audience can start to play alongside the characters from AMC’s series.”
“We are targeting the maturing gamers that post college have reached a point in their professional and personal lives where games need to fit into their broader lifestyle,” said Josh Grant, SVP & GM of Studio Partners at RockYou. “‘The Walking Dead Social Game’ lets traditional core gamers engage in battle against zombies, with win or lose consequences, but on a more flexible social platform.”
“AMC’s ‘The Walking Dead Social Game’ is a next generation game for social networks.” said Stephen Griffin, CEO of Eyes Wide Games, which is the studio developing the game in conjunction with AMC and Rock You. “It’s got deep playability. It’s got drama, and it’s still approachable for the casual audience. However, if you’re a gamer and you’ve been looking for a deeper game to play and to experience on social networks then this is it.”
“The Walking Dead Social Game” allows users to place guards, gather materials and fight zombies while avoiding detection and attack. The player controls his own unique party of survivors, which can include his friends but there are also opportunities for the player to interact with the TV characters. Mid-core and hard-core gamers typically engage with and thrive in games where failure is a critical element; social titles lack this key aspect of gameplay and, for the first time on Facebook, “The Walking Dead Social Game” reintroduces a sense of risk and heightened challenge for players.
“The Walking Dead” TV series is based on the comic book series written by Robert Kirkman and published by Image Comics. It tells the story of the months and years that follow after a zombie apocalypse. It follows a group of survivors, led by police officer Rick Grimes, who travel in search of a safe and secure home. The TV series (like the comic book series) goes on to explore the challenges of life in a world overrun by zombies who take a toll on the survivors, and sometimes the interpersonal conflicts present a greater danger to their continuing survival than the zombies that roam the country. Over time, the characters are changed by the constant exposure to death and some grow willing to do anything to survive.
About AMC
AMC reigns as the only cable network in history to ever win the Emmy® Award for Outstanding Drama Series four years in a row, as well as the Golden Globe® Award for Best Television Series – Drama for three consecutive years. Whether commemorating favorite films from every genre and decade or creating acclaimed original programming, the AMC experience is an uncompromising celebration of great stories. AMC’s original stories include “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad,” “The Walking Dead,” “The Killing” and “Hell on Wheels.” AMC further demonstrates its commitment to the art of storytelling with its slate of unscripted original series, as well as curated movie franchises like AMC’s Can’t Get Enough and AMC’s Crazy About. Available in more than 97 million homes (Source: Nielsen Media Research), AMC is owned and operated by AMC Networks Inc. and its sister networks include IFC, Sundance Channel and WE tv. AMC is available across all platforms, including on-air, online, on demand and mobile. AMC: Story Matters HereSM.
About RockYou
RockYou® is committed to defining the future of social gaming, creating products intended to serve players, advertisers, and developers alike. The company has dedicated itself to the development, distribution and monetization of high-quality games, including the award-nominated the celebrated Zoo WorldTM franchise. With advertising products that offer brands more meaningful interactions with players, RockYou creates an unmatched value-per-engagement for both brands and users. RockYou’s partnerships with world-class talent are part of their steadfast commitment to working with the next generation of social game developers. RockYou can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.rockyou.com.
About Eyes Wide Games
Eyes Wide Games is an independent game studio focused on making high-quality social games with an emphasis on originality, playability, story, and fun. Located in Atlanta Georgia and founded in 2007, the game studio’s tools and platforms have enabled the rapid development of colorful worlds enjoyed by millions of players. Coming soon, Eyes Wide Games will bring deeper playability to social games and reveal new frontiers for casual storytelling in AMC’s The Walking Dead Social Game.