DUBLIN and LONDON, October 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --
Following a retweet by Lord Alan Sugar announcing the arrival of a new Dublin-based game company, Digit Game Studios and Penguin Books have reached agreement to publish books based on Kings of the Realm, the soon-to-be-released free-to-play strategy title from Digit. After spotting the interesting Tweet earlier this year, Penguin's editorial director Shannon Cullen arranged to meet Digit's co-founder David McGovern on a trip to Dublin, and discussions began.
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Penguin has acquired the world rights for tie-in titles to Kings of the Realm. The first title will be released to support the game's launch in 2013 and will contain the back story of the fallen realm, hints on strategy and richly expand on details of the online world through an action-adventure fantasy novel. Future titles will feature characters inspired by real players from the game and will be a close collaboration between Digit, Penguin and the online Kings of the Realm community.
Shannon Cullen says: 'Having seen the success of our younger interactive properties like Moshi Monsters, where the online world inspires content in our books, I am very excited about bringing this type of storytelling to a teenage and older crossover audience. Kings of the Realm is a fantastic gaming experience that will appeal to fans of books ranging from The Hobbit to Game of Thrones, making this perfectly timed. To be able to involve the players of the game in future narratives is an exciting, innovative approach to contemporary storytelling, and we're delighted to be working with such a forward-thinking and creative company as Digit.'
'It's great to be working with Penguin,' says Digit CMO Martin Frain. 'Our game world is a rich fantasy setting and this will be an ideal way for fans of the game to learn more about the history and characters in Kings of the Realm - or to get a taste of the intrigue and backstabbing they will enjoy in the game.'
Kings of the Realm is a free-to-play massively multiplayer real-time-strategy game. It will be launched on browser, Facebook, tablet and smartphone in Spring 2013.
About Digit Game Studios
Digit Game Studios is Ireland's biggest independent studio, developing cross platform games for a global audience. Currently working on a series of strategy games, Dublin based Digit was founded by a group of English and Irish industry veterans from EA, Jagex, Popcap and Monumental.
http://www.kingsoftherealm.com
About Penguin Books
Penguin Books is the flagship imprint of the worldwide Penguin Group and is owned by Pearson PLC, the global media company who also own the Financial Times, the business information group and Pearson, the world's largest education publishing and technology company
For further Information:
Digit: Paul Hayes
0876209823 paul@beachhutpr.com
Penguin: Jayde Lynch
+44(0)2070103072 jayde.lynch@uk.penguingroup.com
SOURCE Digit Game Studios and Penguin Books