LADYDRAGON.COM - KONAMI TO RELEASE COMIC BOOK SERIES BASED ON THE HIGHLY POPULAR METAL GEAR SOLID VIDEO GAME FRANCHISE

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Tuesday May 18, 2004

KONAMI TO RELEASE COMIC BOOK SERIES BASED ON THE HIGHLY POPULAR METAL GEAR SOLID VIDEO GAME FRANCHISE

- Konami Begins Aggressive Licensing Campaign for Original Content -

Konami Corporation (President and CEO: Kagemasa Kozuki, headquartered in Tokyo) and IDW Publishing (President: Ted Adams, headquartered in California) will be publishing a comic book adaptation of Konami popular action video game series, Metal Gear Solid. The first volume of the comic will be released in September 2004 in the U.S.

The Metal Gear Solid series, developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan, Inc. (President: Motoyuki Yoshioka), is an innovative, tactical espionage action game that emphasizes covert actions rather than directly confronting enemies. With an in-depth scenario, new and original game design combined with a story full of plot twists and intricate human drama, this award-winning game series instantly gained international recognition.

Ashley Wood and Kris Oprisko have been appointed, respectively, as artist and writer for the comic book version of Metal Gear Solid. With their creative talent, they will introduce a new perspective into the world of Metal Gear Solid. Ashley Wood is a world-renowned illustrator, who has worked on many comic creations including the hit Spawn series. His line of work extends beyond the world of comic books and has been adapted in a wide range of media including film and television. Writer Kris Oprisko has produced many popular comic scenarios including Crime Scene Investigation.

In reference to the comic book adaptation of Metal Gear Solid, Hideo Kojima, the Director and Producer of the Metal Gear Solid series, and Vice President of Konami Computer Entertainment Japan, Inc., said, Personally I have always been a fan of Mr. Ashley Wood. I am very glad that Metal Gear Solid will be made into a comic with his talented artwork.

I have a lot of confidence in the people at IDW Publishing who understand the world of Metal Gear Solid. I have great hope for this new development of the series through the work of these people.

Konami is aggressively seeking to license its game content in order to strengthen its brand power.

IDW PUBLISHING is a division of Idea + Design Works, LLC, a revolutionary creative service company with a wide range of clients including The Upper Deck Company, Electronic Arts, Ultima Online, WizKids, Cartoon Network, Sony Online Entertainment, Nickelodeon, and many more. IDW Publishing focuses on a small number of high-quality titles. Among them are CBSs CSI: Crime Scene Investigation; Steve Niles and Ben Templesmith's 30 Days of Night and its sequels, Dark Days and Return to Barrow; Ashley Wood's Lore; CVO: Covert Vampiric Operations; Beau Smith's Wynonna Earp; and Steve Niles™ Wake The Dead. Columbia Pictures has optioned the movie rights to 30 Days of Night, with Sam Raimi attached to produce. Konami is producing a video game based on CVO: Covert Vampiric Operations. Dimension Films has optioned the movie rights to Wake The Dead and Hyde.

For further information, please visit the company Web site at http://www.idwpublishing.com/