March 27^th, 2006 (3:55pm) - Upstart Games, the Dublin based mobile entertainment publisher and Japan’s leading mobile game provider G-mode is set to launch a series of four games designed to exercise the brain’s right side and improve spatial, visual and cognitive skills in the player.

The games will be based on G-mode’s "Right Brain Paradise" series of games, the first of which launched in Japan in March 2003, with new releases having being made to the series since then. "Right Brian Paradise" games have achieved cumulative downloads of nearly two million units. The first in the new series of games, provisionally titled "I.Q. Academy" is expected to launch in Europe and the US in the coming months.

The games include specially designed puzzles to gauge a player’s responsiveness and accuracy in performing tasks such as recognizing shapes and patterns, predicting a series of actions and other tasks aimed at improving spatial resolution. The games rate a player on the basis of their performance, varying the puzzles on each replay to encourage further training and improvement. An innovative "pick up and play" control scheme ensures that the games are accessible to players of all ages and ability.

Research findings by "The Games for Health Project" (www.gamesforhealth.org) indicate that game playing can have a positive effect on maintaining mental acuity and fight senile dementia. G-mode’s "Right Brain Paradise" and subsequent brain training games from other publishers have been a massive success in the Japanese market, and are set to replicate that success overseas.

Barry O’Neill, CEO of Upstart Games commented: "We are delighted to be building on the success of G-mode’s Topolon and Sudoku, which has achieved a top five position on several carriers to date. G-mode’s ’Right Brain Paradise’ series once again demonstrates G-mode’s clear leadership in creating innovative games with appeal to all audiences. ’Right Brain Paradise’ was one of the first brain training games to be released on any platform. We look forward to bringing it to western consumers as I.Q. Academy."

Hiro Higashiyama, Business Development Manager of G-mode, added: "Right Brain Paradise series is one of the most popular games from G-mode. We are very excited about making this title available for the western market, and we hope that many of the western mobile phone owners will enjoy our sophisticated casual games."

Upstart is well known for its work with Japanese games developers such as Sony Computer Entertainment, Konami, Capcom, From Software, G-mode and others for bringing their mobile content to international markets, and with U.S. and European developers seeking distribution opportunities in Japan and Asia via its recently launched Best of WestTM service – the first multi-carrier service dedicated to providing more than 35 million Japanese consumers with access to popular US and European games.