overview    pressroom    showcase    technology    services    contact us

Contact: Halle Eavelyn, HyperBole Studios Voice: (425)373-5230, Fax: (425)373-9370 For Immediate Release VIRTUALCINEMA® ACKNOWLEDGED FOR BREAKTHROUGH INTERACTIVE METHODS HyperBole Studios Awarded Software Patent (Feb. 10, 1998 - Seattle, WA) HyperBole Studios announced that VirtualCinema, its interactive software engine, has been granted US Patent No. 5692212. The patent provides intellectual property rights to HyperBole Studios for methods used by VirtualCinema in creating video-based games and other products. The company has additional US patent applications pending. VirtualCinema is a set of design principles and a cross-platform engine that enables developers and producers to unite traditional Hollywood filmmaking, cinematic storytelling, and considerable depth of interactivity to produce elegant, integrated gaming experiences. VirtualCinema is currently being used to develop The X-Files for Fox Interactive. "The power and flexibility of VirtualCinema is the essential tool that successfully brings the complex and fascinating world of the X-Files into the interactive domain. You're not playing the X-Files, you're in the X-Files," stated Paul Provenzano, Executive Director of Development for Fox Interactive Until now it has been difficult to create games which combine full-motion video with such a high degree of interactivity. VirtualCinema allows for that interactivity but also speaks the language of film - cuts, close-ups, medium shots - so a traditional director or a writer can understand and develop an interactive project easily. Jerry Isenberg, Executive Director of Electronic Media Programs at the USC School of Cinema-Television, said, "VirtualCinema represents the long awaited breakthrough in bringing interactive entertainment and traditional cinematic narrative storytelling to the point of convergence. At last, Cinema students will be afforded the opportunity to merge their cinematic training with interactive storytelling." HyperBole will now license the engine and continue developing a variety of software applications using VirtualCinema, including games and corporate training. HyperBole Studios, a creator of world-class interactive entertainment, was founded in 1990 by Greg Roach, one of the country's foremost interactive designers. Its interactive game engine, VirtualCinema, and award-winning CD-ROM titles have consistently broken new ground in the interactive entertainment market. The company is currently developing The X-Files for Fox Interactive, and has just signed a development agreement for a new title with Stephen King. HyperBole Studios and VirtualCinema are registered trademarks of HyperBole Studios. All other marks are the property of their respective holders. http://www.hyperbole.com/corp/tech/index_tech.html http://www.virtualcinema.com #### © Copyright 2001, HyperBole Studios, All Rights Reserved Webmaster: webmaster@hyperbole.com