Los Angeles, Calif.—February 15, 2012. Today, via his personal website jordanmechner.com, celebrated game designer Jordan Mechner confirmed that he will revisit feudal Japan with a remake of his 80s blockbuster Karateka, available for download this year on XBOX 360® and Playstation3™.
Mechner developed Karateka in his dorm room at Yale when he should have been studying. Published by Broderbund in 1984 for the Apple II, Karateka was one of the game world’s first blockbuster hits. At a time when home computing was just taking form, Karateka hooked hundreds of thousands of gamers with simple, addictive 2D fighting mechanics that incorporated cinematic storytelling through fluid, life-like animation.
Fans will be pleased to learn that, for the first time since the making of Ubisoft’s blockbuster Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time™, Mechner is taking an active role in the day-to-day game development process as Creative Director of Karateka. Like Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, the new Karateka is a remake that reinvents Mechner’s classic gameplay for this generation.
“Making the original Karateka was a labor of love. To have so many people embrace it and share the impact that game had on them has been incredibly fulfilling,” Mechner said. “In remaking Karateka, I want to honor the original with a compact, pick-up-and-play game that is fluid, atmospheric and beautiful.”
Karateka will be available for PSN and XBLA in 2012.
