May 11^th, 2005 (12:14pm) - Namco has entered an agreement with Universal Studios Consumer Products Group to develop videogames based on the feature film release of Universal Pictures’ and Imagine Entertainment’s "Curious George," which will see a release next February.

"This is a new and exciting opportunity for Namco," said Jeff Lujan, business director, Namco Hometek Inc. "We are thrilled to be working in tandem with Universal Studios to bring a film character to life in a videogame. ’Curious George’ is the kind of adventurous, precocious and endearing character whose adventures make for great game play and we are certain this project will be a great success for Namco."

"’Curious George’ is a character beloved by fans worldwide and the release of the animated feature film next year is the perfect opportunity to launch his hilarious adventures on multiple gaming systems," said Bill Kispert, vice president of Interactive, Universal Studios Consumer Products Group. "Namco is renowned for creating unique and innovative games and we are excited about the creativity they will bring to capturing George’s spirit for gamers worldwide."

Universal Studios first acquired the rights to "Curious George" in 1997. In addition to the animated feature film, Universal Home Entertainment Productions (UHEP) in association with Imagine Entertainment and WGBH-TV Boston are producing an animated "Curious George" preschool television series, with 30 half hour episodes scheduled to air on PBS KIDS beginning in Fall 2006.