I-play Partners with James Patterson to Launch Second Women’s Murder Club Interactive Game

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--I-play, the world’s leading multi-platform casual games publishing division of Oberon Media, announces the exclusive launch of the second casual PC game based on the best-selling Women’s Murder Club book series by James Patterson. Women’s Murder Club: A Darker Shade of Grey makes its debut on MSN Games (www.games.msn.com) today, where it will be available exclusively for two weeks. Created by best-selling author James Patterson, in collaboration with I-play’s award-winning team of designer Jane Jensen and producer Robert Adams, this new title delivers another original story and thrilling adventure to follow the massive success of its predecessor, Women’s Murder Club: Death in Scarlet.

“We are pleased to again collaborate with MSN Games on the exclusive launch of Women’s Murder Club: A Darker Shade of Grey”

“We are pleased to again collaborate with MSN Games on the exclusive launch of Women’s Murder Club: A Darker Shade of Grey”, said Don Ryan, Chief Operating Officer, Oberon Media, I-play’s parent company. “Millions of casual gamers, and James Patterson fans alike, made Women’s Murder Club: Death in Scarlet an interactive gaming hit! Now, James Patterson and the I-play team have created an addictive sequel that will have users riveted with the new Women’s Murder Club storyline through hours of spine-tingling game play.”

A casual adventure game based on Patterson’s massively popular Women’s Murder Club novels, Women’s Murder Club: A Darker Shade of Grey is available exclusively for download at MSN Games until March 10. MSN Games will be offering Women’s Murder Club fans exclusive content including a sneak peek of the first ten chapters of James Patterson’s not-yet-released novel “The 8^th Confession,” desktop wallpapers, Windows Live Messenger icons and jigsaw puzzles created from in-game scenes and characters. Additionally, players purchasing the game via MSN Games will have access to Women’s Murder Club trivia questions and quizzes. The game is available for PC download for $19.95.

Women’s Murder Club: A Darker Shade of Grey is the sequel to the tremendously successful Women’s Murder Club: Death in Scarlet seek-and-find mystery game. The adventure begins when a brisk morning jog ends in tragedy for a young military cadet. The famed heroines of Women’s Murder Club are called to the scene and eventually led to a prestigious but secretive military academy in South Carolina. Users will follow Lindsay and Cindy from California to South Carolina as they interrogate suspects and investigate esteemed military personnel. Along the way, players will attempt to reveal the truth and track down the killer by solving challenging puzzles using instinct, fact and forensic evidence to expose years of corruption, cover-up and conspiracy.

Women’s Murder Club: A Darker Shade of Grey is filled to the brim with new features including an all new Women’s Murder Club storyline; character dialogue; ten thrilling investigations unveiling a story of mystery, adventure and sordid secrets; twenty-five challenging puzzles; a point system to track progress within the game; and breathtaking art of locations that lead gamers to delve deeper into this interactive adventure. The game is being developed and published online by I-play and will be published at retail by Elephant Entertainment, a division of THQ Inc.

About I-play

I-play, the publishing division of Oberon Media, Inc., is the world’s leading multi-platform casual games publisher. With powerful franchises and massive distribution across PC, Mobile, and Interactive TV, I-play content reaches global consumers across the three most popular entertainment screens, and delivers fun, entertaining, accessible content to casual gamers of all ages. I-play’s PC publishing division (formerly known as Oberon Games) is based in Seattle and created the hit Dream Day Series, as well as the first casual games for bestselling author James Patterson and legendary mystery author Agatha Christie, including the Zeeby’s Awards 2007 Game of the Year, Agatha Christie: Death on the Nile. I-play’s mobile division has delivered some of the biggest selling franchises in the mobile space, including the world’s #1 best-selling racing franchise, The Fast & the Furious, based on the blockbuster movies. I-play’s interactive TV group (formerly PixelPlay) creates and distributes games featuring many top brands including Centipede^™, Missile Command^®, Asteroids^™, Monopoly^®, Scrabble^®, Boggle^®, and Yahtzee^™. I-play is headquartered in New York City, with offices in Seattle, San Mateo, London, and Dunfermline, Scotland.

About Oberon Media

Oberon Media, the world’s leading multi-platform casual games company, is the first company to deliver global, integrated casual games solutions across three platforms-online, mobile and interactive television - and at retail. The Oberon Gaming Platform has become the industry standard and been adopted by the world’s leading digital and media companies, such as Microsoft, Comcast, Verizon, MTV Networks, Electronic Arts, MySpace, France Telecom and NHN. The Oberon Media Gaming Platform consists of a full gaming experience that includes a full suite of casual game content, services and features tailored to each partners’ specific needs. Oberon Media’s game publishing division, I-play, works with the industry’s best and award-winning game developers to produce the top selling casual games, which are played across online, mobile, console and iTV platforms in more than a dozen languages. Founded in 2003, Oberon Media is headquartered in New York with offices in North America, Europe and Asia, and is backed by Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Oak Investment Partners.

About James Patterson

James Patterson is the best selling author in the world with more NY Times #1 best sellers than any author in history. He has also written more best sellers in different genres than any other author… young adult adventures, romances, non fiction, as well as his trademark mystery/thrillers that include Alex Cross and The Women’s Murder Club, respectively the #1 and #2 best selling detective series in the US over the last fifteen years. He has had feature films and TV series developed based on his work, with several currently in development in Hollywood. Prior to his unprecedented storytelling success, James Patterson was the youngest CEO of J Walter Thompson USA, the global ad agency.