4K MEDIA SECURES WINNING MOVES AGREEMENT FOR Yu-Gi-Oh! MONOPOLY AND TOP TRUMP GAMES
New Licensing Agreement Incorporates Series’ Artwork and Characters into Classic Board and Card Games
New York – October 12, 2015 – 4K Media Inc., the Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. subsidiary that manages the licensing and marketing of the Yu-Gi-Oh! brand, today announced the company has signed an agreement with Winning Moves International Limited on the development of Yu-Gi-Oh! Monopoly board games and Top Trump card games.
The announcement was made by 4K Media’s Vice President of Licensing and Marketing, Jennifer Coleman, and Winning Moves’ Head of Marketing, Suzie Howes.
“We’re thrilled to be working with Winning Moves on the development of a Yu-Gi-Oh!-inspired Monopoly board game and Top Trumps card pack,” said Coleman. “There are certain pinnacles that mark success in the licensing industry, and certainly Duel Monsters editions of these two games validate the popularity and longevity of the Yu-Gi-Oh! brand.”
“We’re very excited to translate the artwork, characters and passion of the Yu-Gi-Oh! property to the Top Trumps card game and the iconic Monopoly board game,” added Howes. “It takes a phenomenally popular brand to fuel consumer interest around the globe, and Yu-Gi-Oh! has proven to be one of those rare opportunities that transcends demographics, geography and culture to become truly global in reach and appeal.”
Winning Moves will develop a Monopoly board game incorporating the artwork from the Yu-Gi-Oh! series. That same artwork will also be used in creating Top Trump card packs.
Both games are tentatively scheduled for release between fourth quarter 2015 and second quarter 2016 in the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Spain, Italy, Poland, Eastern Europe, Scandinavia, the Balkans Africa, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Australia and New Zealand.
Monopoly was first released in 1935. Eighty years later, more than one billion people in 114 countries have played the classic board game based on amassing property and real estate holdings, and there are more than 100 various editions of the game.
Top Trumps is a fast-paced, super competitive, and easy-to-learn card game that is also a great tool for teaching and learning. Fondly remembered from its original heyday in the playgrounds of England in the 1970s and 1980s, it now has fans across the globe, with over 80 million Top Trumps packs being sold in the past 10 years alone. In 2011 the National Children’s Bureau in England carried out research into the role of Top Trumps in education and found Top Trumps improves children’s literacy and numeracy skills, while also enabling them to practice their decision making abilities.
Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters introduces viewers to Yugi and his best buds Joey, Tristan and Téa, who share a friendship as well as a love for the newest card-battling game that’s sweeping the nation: Duel Monsters! In the game, players pit different mystical creatures against one another in creative and strategic duels utilizing awesome monsters and mighty spell cards. Yugi and his friends are totally obsessed with the game, but there’s more to these cards than meets the eye.
Legend has it that 5000 years ago, ancient Egyptian Pharaohs used to play a very similar game, Shadow Games, that involved magical ceremonies used to foresee the future and ultimately decide one’s destiny. Since the game used so many magical spells and ferocious creatures, it wasn’t long before the game got out of hand and threatened to destroy the world. Fortunately, a brave Pharaoh stepped in and averted this cataclysm. But Yugi and his friends have awakened the giant monsters, their powerful magic and the ancient Egyptian legends that fuel this action-packed adventure series.
About Winning Moves
Winning Moves International Ltd is an independently owned games company operating globally with offices in the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Poland, Australia and the US. Winning Moves owns and/or distributes a range of classic game brands and is the sole licensee in Europe, Middle East, Australia and Africa for limited editions of Hasbro games. The Winning Moves games range includes Top Trumps, Whot!, Monopoly, Cluedo, Risk, Connect 4, Pass The Pigs, Bananagrams and many more. www.winningmoves.co.uk
About 4K Media
4K Media Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc., manages the licensing and marketing of the Yu-Gi-Oh! franchise outside of Asia. In addition, 4K Media handles brand management and the production and distribution of the Yu-Gi-Oh! television series. The Yu-Gi-Oh! animated franchise, with over 650 episodes, consists of Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters , Yu-Gi-Oh! GX, Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s, Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal and the new series, Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V. The series have been translated and broadcast in 65 countries on leading networks. The Yu-Gi-Oh! website is available at www.yugioh.com
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