Namco Hometek Inc.'s highly anticipated Dead to Rights is scheduled to launch for the Xbox video game system from Microsoft in the U.S. in late July. Inspired by Hong Kong action movies, classic film noir style and hardboiled detective novels, Dead To Rights stars action noir hero, Jack Slate, a good cop in a bad city, forced to be a fugitive as he fights for his life and searches for his father's killers.

Namco producers were committed to bring the elements that define action movies and physically implement them into video game play. The result is a supercharged action crime thriller with a thick plot, devoted hero and hours of engulfing game play.

"We wanted to create a video game like no other, infusing elements from our favorite movies and allowing players to make discoveries each time they play," said André Emerson, Namco senior producer. "Dead To Rights was designed with great depth and detail, and the result is an intense and adult experience that can't really be described within existing game genres."

The story takes place in Grant City, USA, a once bustling gold-mining town turned corrupt - becoming "the hardest place on Earth." Jack Slate, a Grant City cop, arrives at a murder scene to discover that his father, private investigator and former cop Frank Slate, is the victim. As Jack begins the dangerous and labyrinthine task of finding his father's killer, he is framed for another murder. The twisting plot, seedy citizens of Grant City and high adrenaline action leave players wanting more.

Dead to Rights features more than a dozen game mechanics including diving, rolling, punching, kicking, and lethally disarming enemies in a variety of over-the-top ways. Jack's canine partner (a Husky named Shadow) lives up to the name "man's best friend," helping Jack investigate crime scenes, sniff out bombs, retrieve weapons and attack enemies. Unique game play scenarios, mini-games and stop motion special effects add to the action.

When conceptualizing the game, Namco producers knew they wanted something that had not been explored before in the gaming world. They created an inspiration reel of their favorite films to bring their influences and the vision of Dead To Rights to life for executives at Namco headquarters in Japan.

Once the project was given the green light, Namco approached making the game like producing a movie, first enlisting screenwriter Flint Dille (G. I. Joe television show and Transformers television show and movie) to develop the plot and deliver the working script. For music, they recruited movie composer Kevin Manthei whose credits include Resident Evil, Air Force One and Halloween H20. For realistic sound effects and design, GDH Digital (Star Trek Babylon 5) and Weddington Productions (Lethal Weapon 4, Die Hard, Training Day) were brought in. Smashcut (The Matrix, Fight Club) was hired for motion capture effects and stunts.

Dead To Rights has been in development for over two years, with a production team of more than 50 artists, designers and programmers. This team, constituting Namco's biggest U.S.-developed project to date, is passionate about proving that movie-quality action, a compelling storyline and an appealing hero can be made interactive in a mature video game.
The graphics and characters are given depth and realism on the Xbox platform by employing advanced graphics technology called bump-mapping pixel shading. Additionally, players will feel like they're in a movie theatre with Dolby Digital sound effects and the option of a 16:9 anamorphic wide screen support which gives the look of a movie screen - wide screen with black bars at the top and bottom.
 

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