PARIS, March 16, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --
Gameloft, a leading publisher of digital and social games, is
proud to announce that Despicable Me: Minion Rush, developed
in collaboration with Illumination Entertainment and Universal
Partnerships & Licensing, has surpassed half a billion
downloads. This is a huge milestone for mobile gaming as it's the
equivalent of one in every 14 people in the
world[1].
Based on Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures'
phenomenally successful Despicable Me franchise, since its
release in June 2013, the number of
downloads for this game has increased exponentially, from 50
million less than a month after its release, to 300 million by its
one-year anniversary, and finally, surpassing the half a billion
mark in early 2015. As a result, Despicable Me: Minion Rush
is the "highest downloaded licensed game in the world across the
App Store and Google Play in 2014[2]".
A veritable worldwide phenomenon, the game has received numerous
accolades as well, winning the prestigious Nickelodeon Kids' Choice
Award and the BAFTA Award. It was also included in App Store's Best
of 2013 & 2014 and Google Play's Best of 2014 collections.
Over time, Despicable Me: Minion Rush has grown and
enhanced its gameplay with 14 updates. These featured new
challenges, plenty of mini-games such as the snowboard race or
skateboard course, and locations from the movies, including El
Macho's Lair, Minion Beach, the Jelly Lab and Minion Park.
The Gameloft, Illumination and Universal teams worked closely
with each other so that each character and feature remained
faithful to the beloved universe of the Despicable Me
franchise. Since the game's release in 2013, players have committed
over 273 billion Despicable Actions, and have traveled over 37
million kilometers within the game, the same as running from the
Earth to the Moon 100 times!
"Despicable Me: Minion Rush has seen enormous success since
its release in 2013 and continues to bring endless entertainment to
our players around the world," says Gonzague De Vallois, Senior Vice President
Publishing at Gameloft. "Thanks to the ongoing collaboration
with Illumination Entertainment and Universal and the power of our
Gameloft development and marketing teams, we were able to break the
impressive half-a-billion downloads barrier, which few
entertainment properties in history have been able to reach
."
--------------------------------------------------
1. Population is currently 7.2 billion according to United
States Census Bureau
2. Source App
Annie
About Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures is a division of Universal Studios
(http://www.universalstudios.com). Universal Studios is part of
NBCUniversal. NBCUniversal is one of the world's leading media and
entertainment companies in the development, production and
marketing of entertainment, news and information to a global
audience. NBCUniversal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of
news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company,
significant television production operations, a leading television
stations group and world-renowned theme parks. NBCUniversal is a
subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.
About Illumination Entertainment
Illumination Entertainment, founded by Chris Meledandri in 2007, is one of the
entertainment industry's leading producers of all-audience event
films. In July 2010,
Illumination, which has an exclusive financing and distribution
partnership with Universal Pictures, released its first
film, Despicable Me, starring Steve Carell, which earned more than
$540 million worldwide and launched a
beloved global franchise. With the success of
2011's Hop, 2012's Dr.
Seuss' The Lorax and 2013's
juggernaut Despicable Me 2- the highest-grossing
first-run film in Universal's history and the year's
third-highest-grossing film at the worldwide box
office-Illumination's films have made almost $2 billion. Universal and Illumination's
next film Minions, starring Academy Award®-winner
Sandra Bullock and Jon Hamm, arrives in theaters
on July 10, 2015. In 2011,
Universal Pictures acquired the animation division of French visual
effects studio Mac Guff Ligne and formed Illumination Mac Guff to
work exclusively on Illumination Entertainment's fully CG
movies. Fans may also experience Minion Mayhem in 3D with the
Ultra-HD movie motion simulator adventure at Universal Orlando
Resort and Universal Studios Hollywood.
About Universal Partnerships & Licensing
Universal Partnerships & Licensing (UP&L) oversees
NBCUniversal's consumer product and digital licensing for Universal
Pictures, NBC Television, Focus Features and Sprout Channel.
This dedicated division is also responsible for film, home
entertainment and television promotions. UP&L is part of
NBCUniversal. NBCUniversal is one of the world's leading media and
entertainment companies in the development, production, and
marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global
audience. NBCUniversal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of
news and entertainment television networks, a premier motion
picture company, significant television production operations, a
leading television stations group, world-renowned theme parks, and
a suite of leading Internet-based businesses. NBCUniversal is a
subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.
About Gameloft:
A leading publisher of digital and social games, Gameloft® has
established itself as one of the top innovators in its field since
2000. Gameloft creates games for all digital platforms, including
mobile phones, smartphones and tablets (including Apple® iOS,
Android® and Windows® devices), set-top boxes and connected TVs.
Gameloft operates its own established franchises such as Asphalt®,
Order & Chaos, Modern Combat or Dungeon Hunter and also
partners with major rights holders including Universal,
Illumination Entertainment, Disney®, Marvel®, Hasbro®, Fox Digital
Entertainment, Mattel® and Ferrari®.
Gameloft is present on all continents, distributes its games in
over 100 countries and employs over 5,200 developers.
Gameloft is listed on NYSE Euronext Paris (Euronext: GFT.PA,
Bloomberg: GFT FP, Reuters: GLFT.PA). Gameloft is traded OTC in the
US (sponsored Level 1 ADR ticker: GLOFY).
Press Contact:
Mandy Paez
Gameloft U.S PR Manager
mandy.paez@gameloft.com
+1(415)852-7209
SOURCE Gameloft