May 27^th, 2003 (12:00am) - Criterion Software, the world’s leading provider of game development solutions, announces that its de facto game development technology, RenderWare, will be used by SEGA’s SONICTEAM development studio in the creation of "Sonic Heroes" for the PlayStation 2, Xbox and Nintendo GameCube.

Already previewed at E3, "Sonic Heroes" demonstrates the real power and strength of RenderWare, and its ability to support the timely delivery of highly creative games on any platform. RenderWare has been supporting the SEGA Sonic team throughout the development process of Sonic Heroes helping them deliver the awesome new graphics and gameplay the world expects from SEGA.

Yuji Naka, President & CEO of the Sonic Team comments, "We decided to license RenderWare because the solution provided us with not only the technology, but also the best methodologies for efficient multi-platform development, enabling our team to focus on what really makes Sonic stand out. Criterion’s extensive knowledge and experience of multiplatform development has enabled them to provide unrivalled support throughout the course of the development process. We hope our customers will enjoy the thrilling experience of our latest and greatest Sonic."

David Lau-Kee adds, "We are honored to be an integral part of what is a hugely significant move for the Sonic brand at this time. Its enormous success to date is testament to the huge talent within the SEGA Sonic team and we are fully committed to supporting them to maximize the huge opportunities on all available platforms."