Free Radical Design teams up with Ubisoft for next-gen gaming

Free Radical Design, the British studio responsible for the acclaimed TimeSplitters game series, has entered into a publishing agreement with Ubisoft for its latest, as yet un-named next generation console and PC title.

The studio was established in 1999 by former Rare employees who had worked on the critically and commercially successful N64 title, GoldenEye. The team has since made a name for itself with the TimeSplitters series, which has sold over 3.5 million units worldwide to date.

Virginie Gretz, director of third-party development for EMEA at Ubisoft commented: "Ubisoft is looking forward to working closely with Free Radical, renowned for creating beautiful and engaging gameplay. With this game, we plan to take players to a new level of intensity and create an environment at once terrifying, enthralling and impossible to resist."

Steve Ellis, managing director of Free Radical Design, added: "We are delighted to benefit from Ubisoft's collaboration on this title and benefit from its strong experience developing and marketing powerful, innovative action titles."

No firm details regarding the theme or content of the game have been released so far, other than Ubisoft's confirmation that it will be developed for PC and next generation consoles, and will "target mature gamers, featuring difficult strategic choices and moral dilemmas, tapping into both their rational and emotional instincts."

The game has been given a broad, if not a little vague release period, with Ubisoft simply scheduling it for release within the "fiscal year 2006-2007," which runs between April 2006 and March 2007.