May 18^th, 2005 (11:47am) - Midway has entered a collaboration with world renowned action film director, John Woo’s (Face/Off, Hard Boiled, The Killer) Tiger Hill Entertainment to create Stranglehold, an intense action game currently in development for next generation consoles, scheduled for a release in 2006.

The project is currently in development at Midway’s Chicago studio by the critically acclaimed Psi-Ops: The Mindgate Conspiracy team, led by industry veteran Brian Eddy. Stranglehold, will bring John Woo’s famous use of hyperkinetic, choreographed action and freeze framed sequences to the video game arena and will also feature the likeness and voice talent of international action film star, Chow Yun-Fat, (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hard Boiled, Bulletproof Monk) in his videogame debut. Having worked together for several feature films, the dynamic duo, Yun-Fat and Woo, are teaming up once again, but this time bringing their expertise to the world of interactive entertainment.

"To have John Woo creatively involved in Stranglehold and Chow Yun-Fat reprising his role as Inspector Tequila is truly a dream come true for fans of Hong Kong action movies," said Steve Allison, Midway chief marketing officer. "This game is the first pure example of the convergence of entertainment. Stranglehold is an example of what is possible in the next generation of video games as a viable approach to building a new IP as a gaming franchise that speaks to a fan base through its star and director, in the same way a film does."

"Creating, developing and producing original content for various facets of the entertainment industry is the mantra of Tiger Hill Entertainment and Stranglehold is one of our most ambitious projects yet," said John Woo, co-chief executive officer and co-founder of Tiger Hill Entertainment. "We are excited to work with Midway to create an interactive entertainment experience that filmgoers and gamers alike will appreciate and enjoy."

"After so many years of working with John Woo as a movie director, I’m thrilled to venture into the world of video games with Woo and Midway at the creative helm," said Chow Yun-Fat. "Being able to bring move-like action where people can watch and enjoy, to the world of video games where they can experience the adrenaline-filled action first hand is a great experience to be a part of."