October 29^th, 2004 (12:15pm) - It has been known for some time now that former members of Bungie had left to form their own development house, Wideload Games, but nobody knew what they were cooking up... until today. The official press release is as follows:

Aspyr Media, Inc., an entertainment publisher delivering fun in the form of games, music and DVDs, and game developer Wideload Games, Inc. today unearthed their upcoming game, Stubbs the Zombie in "Rebel without a Pulse". Guaranteed to turn some heads, this third-person action game is an original IP by Bungie Studio veterans that uses an updated Halo™ engine to deliver a stirring tale of one man’s hunger for love, justice...and brains. The game will be a cross-platform release, including Xbox, PC and Mac, and will be published worldwide in summer, 2005.

In this game, players take on the role of the rebel himself – Stubbs, a wisecracking Zombie who takes on an ultra-modern city of the future using nothing but his own carcass and the weapons of his possessed enemies. The game’s tongue-in-cheek humor, innovative combat and strong storyline keep Stubbs the Zombie’s gameplay as bizarre and unpredictable as its namesake.

“To us nothing has the sweet smell of success like rotting Zombie flesh,” said Alexander Seropian, President of Wideload Games. “We fell in love with the Stubbs game concept because of the unique player experience and the potential of the main character. We are really enjoying bringing this concept to life… or un-death, as the case may be.”

"Wideload Games is delivering an experience unlike any other. Who else could create a game featuring an undead hero who eats brains, tosses his own innards like cherry bombs, and still makes time for the ladies? Those guys are absolutely nuts and we couldn’t be more pleased," said Michael Rogers, president of Aspyr. "Stubbs the Zombie will give gamers a new appreciation for the walking dead."

On his quest, Stubbs lurches his way through numerous large and visually captivating indoor/outdoor environments in and around the gleaming city of Punchbowl, PA, a city built during the Eisenhower administration to show off the ultra-futuristic technology of the 21st century. Stubbs’ brain-eating adventure brings him through bustling shopping districts and verdant farmlands to battle mad scientists, rural militiamen and the world’s deadliest barbershop quartet. His enemies have shotguns, tanks, and all manner of futuristic weaponry. All Stubbs has is his own rotting corpse, a distinct lack of pain or conscience, and the ability to turn foes into zombie allies.

What begins as one zombie’s search for revenge quickly escalates into an all-out war between the living and the dead - but this time it’s the zombie fighting for truth, justice and the redemption of true love. Yes, it’s a love story too.

As Stubbs, you can:

• Play as a Zombie and give those unpleasant, violent humans a piece of your mind...by eating theirs


• Destroy an entire city built with Bungie’s Halo Engine


• Use Zombie Strength to smash down doors and maul a wide variety of citizens and armed defenders


• Spread Zombie Love by eating the brains of your enemies and adding them to your own personal zombie horde


• Possess unsuspecting humans and use their weapons against their friends


• Use Your Body as a Weapon in the deadliest offense ever: explosive gut grenades, zombie sputum, a severed hand that can crawl through tight spaces and possess the living, a head that doubles as an unholy bowling ball, and flatulence beyond the ken of mortal men.

Technical features include an enhanced version of Halo’s graphic engine with all new pixel shaders, new screen effects for an appropriately cinematic look and feel, and a new AI system for the most keenly intelligent mindless zombies in the history of video games.

For more information on Stubbs and Wideload Games, head over to their site at www.wideload.com.