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Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures, A New Comedy Game Series from Aardman Animations and Telltale, Premieres Today

First of four monthly, digitally-distributed episodes now available from www.telltalegames.com

Make a nice cuppa and settle into your favorite chair for Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures, a new game series debuting today at http://www.telltalegames.com. “Fright of the Bumblebees,” the first of four digitally-distributed games starring the popular Plasticine duo, is available now. Subsequent installments will be delivered in May, June, and July.

Wallace and Gromit, the well-meaning but accident-prone inventor and his capable and highly-intelligent canine companion, have been delighting audiences with their animated adventures for twenty years. Their most recent outing, Wallace & Gromit in A Matter of Loaf and Death, aired with record-setting viewership this past Christmas. Telltale’s Wallace & Gromit games are designed for the same all-ages crowd as the films, and will be appreciated by gamers and non-gamers alike.

Alternating between the roles of both Wallace and Gromit throughout the game, players will banter with a charismatic cast of characters, tinker with Wallace’s creative contraptions, and enjoy four all-new stories set in the colorful Wallace & Gromit universe. Given the franchise’s global appeal, Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures includes subtitles in German, French, Italian, and Spanish. In today’s debut episode, “Fright of the Bumblebees,” Wallace attempts to save his bumbling honey business through the growth of supersized flowers. When these giant flowers lead to an unintended consequence, giant bees, Gromit must step in to save the town from the angry swarm.

Sean Clarke, Head of Aardman Rights said: “The partnership with Telltale was a natural one. Their talent for crafting engaging adventures with humour and charm fits well with the Wallace & Gromit style, and the four games of Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures make excellent new additions to the series.”

To celebrate the series premiere, Telltale is offering the full series on PC for the limited-time special price of $29.95 (approx. GBP21), a 15% savings on the regular price of $34.95 (approx. GBP24). During the launch week, customers who purchase Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures will also get an amazing 50% discount on all other items in Telltale’s store, including the acclaimed Sam & Max games, Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People, and related merchandise. These special offers expire March 29.

To buy Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures or download the free demo, visit http://www.telltalegames.com/wallaceandgromit.

Limited-time preorder offer begins today: save 25% and get two free games

Interactive entertainment pioneer Telltale, Inc. and Aardman Animations are announcing that Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures, the new comedy game series based on the colorful claymation duo, will premiere for PC on March 24. The digitally-distributed four episode series of Wallace & Gromit adventures will be delivered monthly from http://www.telltalegames.com. The series’ Xbox LIVE Arcade debut will follow soon.

In Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures, the world of West Wallaby Street comes alive in four brand new stories you can play. Like the films, each Wallace & Gromit episode finds the earnest inventor and his faithful canine companion embarking on ambitious new ventures laced with unexpected (and always amusing) complications. Players will experience all of their favorite elements from the acclaimed Wallace & Gromit films: imaginative storylines; warm, character-based humor; creative contraptions; physical comedy; and a distinct visual style. A demo that showcases both Wallace and Gromit as playable characters can be downloaded exclusively from Yahoo (http://videogames.yahoo.com/events/wallace-and-gromit/) and FilePlanet.com today. Starting tomorrow, the demo will be available from Telltale’s website and mirror sites around the web.

For PC, Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures is available as a downloadable, four episode bundle from Telltale’s website (http://www.telltalegames.com/wallaceandgromit). In the March 24 premiere episode, “Fright of the Bumblebees,” Wallace & Gromit are struggling to find success with a honey business plagued by giant problems. Subsequent episodes, scheduled for May, June, and July, will take the duo from an underground beach resort to a sprawling carnival to a country club hiding an age-old mystery.

In a special preorder offer, which starts today and will run through March 23, customers can get the full, four episode series on PC for just $26-a 25% discount off the regular $34.95 price. Customers who preorder will also receive two free bonus episodes, one from Telltale’s acclaimed second season of Sam & Max (named Adventure Game of the Year by PC Gamer, IGN, and Adventure Gamers) and one from Strong Bad’s Cool Game for Attractive People (runner-up for IGN’s Adventure Game of the Year award).

To take advantage of this limited-time offer or to view the latest game trailer, visit the official Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures website at www.telltalegames.com/wallaceandgromit.

Xbox LIVE joins PC and Wii as new channel for “gaming’s first sitcom”

The dog and rabbity-thing stars of Telltale’s popular episodic games are one step closer to world domination today with the announcement that the first two “seasons” of Sam & Max will be appearing on Xbox LIVE Arcade. This is the award-winning comedy duo’s first appearance on the Xbox 360, as well as on a connected console download service. Worldwide PC and Wii retail releases of the second season are also upcoming.

These approaching releases will sport catchy new monikers to more closely tie the season titles with their respective story arcs. Season One, which takes the Freelance Police from the New York City streets to Washington D.C. and all the way to the moon on the trail of a hypnotic nemesis, will be dubbed Sam & Max Save the World for all new releases moving forward. Season Two, which involves a baffling series of time paradoxes at the hands of unconventional aliens, has been renamed Sam & Max Beyond Time and Space. The Xbox LIVE Arcade releases will carry these new titles, as will Atari’s 2009 retail versions of the second season.

“With Sam & Max coming to Xbox LIVE Arcade and the approaching retail launch, we’re reaching a larger audience than we ever have before,” says Telltale CEO Dan Connors. “These new releases give us an opportunity to better communicate the imaginative stories that make the Sam & Max games so special, and to strengthen the unique identity of each season.”

Both Sam & Max seasons will be released on Xbox LIVE Arcade as full-season bundles, providing instant gratification to players who have been eagerly waiting for the Freelance Police to appear on Microsoft’s console. The second Sam & Max season — which recently received Best Adventure Game accolades from IGN and PC Gamer and took home five Aggie Awards, including Best Comedy Writing, Best Gameplay, and Game of the Year from Adventure Gamers — is also scheduled to hit retail for PC and Wii in the coming months.

Today’s news follows Telltale’s recent announcement that the highly anticipated new series, Wallace & Gromit’s Grand Adventures, is leading the company’s expansion to Xbox LIVE Arcade. For more details about Sam & Max, Wallace & Gromit, and Telltale’s other games, please visit http://www.telltalegames.com.

Email is finally working, and first one through is from Telltale Games about Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Adventures. Nothing on the format other than “a series of interactive Wallace and Gromit stories launching in 2009, with players assuming the roles of both the quirky inventor and his faithful canine companion”. Sounds episodic. No details on the platforms yet, but since they used the plural as far as platforms, you can bet it’ll be the PC and…..  

Here’s screens and concept art, thank you guys for your patience on the mail outage!