R. Lee Ermey 'Gunnery Sergeant Hartman' of `Full Metal Jacket' Fame to Voice Simon & Schuster Interactive's Forthcoming War Game

Business Wire, May 8, 2001

Business/Technology Editors

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 8, 2001

'Real War' Briefings will Feature The Famous Actor

Legendary actor, R. Lee Ermey, best known for his Golden Globe Nominated role as "Gunnery Sergeant Hartman" in Stanley Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket," will be lending his voice to the forthcoming PC game title "Real War." A real-time strategy, modern warfare game for the PC, REAL WAR will star Mr. Ermey who will use his commanding voice to ensure gamers are prepared for their missions through military style briefings.

About Mr. Ermey

Mr. Ermey is one of the most successful and talented actors working in film and television today. His numerous roles in feature films include: "Dead Man Walking" with Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn, "Seven" with Brat Pitt and Morgan Freeman, and "Switchback" starring opposite Dennis Quaid and Danny Glover. He has also appeared in: "Leaving Las Vegas", "Murder In the First", "The Frighteners", as well as his critically acclaimed role opposite Jared Leto in "Prefontaine." Mr. Ermey can also been seen in the forthcoming movies: "Scenes of The Crime" with Jeff Bridges, and "Taking Sides" with Harvey Keitel.

Mr. Ermey spent eleven years in the Marine Corps, which included one and a half tours in Vietnam. He rose to the rank of Gunnery Sergeant and was medically retired for injuries received. Using G.I. Bill benefits, Mr. Ermey enrolled at the University of Manila in the Philippines, where he studied drama. Francis Ford Coppola was filming "Apocalypse Now" in the area and cast Mr. Ermey in a featured role. He has since gone on to star or appear in approximately 40 films.

About "Real War"

REAL WAR is a Real Time Strategy (RTS) game set in the politically volatile Eastern Hemisphere. A U.S. military base is bombed by a group of terrorists resulting in a number of deaths. The U.S. searches for the culprits and locates their compound in the Sudan. A missile strike is launched, but an unexpected catastrophic event occurs. These actions lead the U.S. into a war with the ILA and the countries that back them.

Gameplay

Gamers can choose to be either the U.S. or the I.L.A. (Independent Liberation Army). Each side will contain 12 scenarios which will take an average gamer approximately 40 hours to finish. Dynamic in-game briefings and news reports gives the gamer a current state of affairs.

REAL WAR is played from an isometric perspective (top down). Gamers control all aspects of their military campaigns - air, sea and land troops. There is no phony resource gathering in REAL WAR, rather gamers must establish and protect land, air and sea supply lines. These build up the player's supply points and allows them to order more units and weaponry.

REAL WAR will contain over 50 (for both U.S. and ILA) different units types - from infantry and armored vehicles, to nuclear subs and attack bombers. Gamers can attack their enemy with M1A1s or T80s or go with Special Forces. Each type of unit has their own tab in REAL WAR's interface so gamers can easily click and see what each unit is doing.

Gamers can build Air Force bases so planes can land and provide a facility for them. In addition to F16s and B52s, games will also be able to use psychological warfare on the enemy via a special Psyops plane which will drop propaganda on the enemy. Converted troops and citizens will join your side to aid in the battle. REAL WAR also allows gamers to use electronic warfare and reconnaissance planes to eavesdrop on the enemy.

Multiplayer

REAL WAR will allow up to eight gamers to play simultaneously via a LAN or TCP/IP connection. The game will be supported by the Gamespy gaming network -for those gamers who want to do battle against others on the Internet.

Availability

REAL WAR will be available for the PC (Windows(R) ME, 98, 95) in August 2001.

ESRB Rating

REAL WAR will be rated by the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). All advertising and promotional materials currently carry a "RP" or "Rating Pending" logo. More information on the ESRB and its rating system can be found at www.esrb.org.

Simon & Schuster Interactive (www.ssinteractive.com) is the consumer software publishing unit of Simon & Schuster, Inc. Based in New York, S&SI publishes entertainment, education and reference titles across numerous platforms. The Company is the Codie Award winning publisher of the best-selling "Douglas Adams Starship Titanic" adventure, the best-selling parody "Deer Avenger" series, and numerous critically-acclaimed children's software titles.

Simon & Schuster, the publishing operation of Viacom Inc., is a global leader in the field of general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic and multi-media formats. Its divisions include the Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, Simon & Schuster New Media, Simon & Schuster Online, Simon & Schuster U.K., and Simon & Schuster Australia. For more information, visit our website at http://www.simonsays.com