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No you’re not imagining things, one of the biggest names in video games is indeed coming back in full force this year.
From Acclaim!
So who remembers Acclaim? If you’ve got a history of any length with gaming, then you probably know and remember it well, since the company had been around as far back as 1987. And though it folded in 2004, the publisher delivered a whole bunch of iconic titles across its lifetime.
The likes of Turok, NBA Jam, and yes even Mortal Kombat were all originally under the Acclaim banner when they first arrived on consoles. While those are monster properties for sure though, Acclaim has a slightly different bent planned for its big return, and will be set to deliver a two-pronged stable of titles.
The first part of that will be to “resurrect and revitalize its beloved portfolio of classic IP enjoyed for years by millions of players”. Oh my are we getting pumped over the idea of that, considering Acclaim’s catalog. But classic series’ and franchises are just half of what the new version of the company will be engaging with, as the publisher will also serve up a collection of indie titles.
And on that end, Acclaim says that it will supply indie devs with “much-needed resources such as funding, marketing and PR support”. Obviously the goal there will be to bring games that normally wouldn’t get broad attention to that bigger audience.
Dream team
Doing all of the above will be a leadership team of wide-ranging talent. Very wide-ranging. The group includes an advisory board touting the likes of Russell Binder at Striker Entertainment, Mark Caplan at Ridge Partners, and… Jeff Jarrett at Global Force Entertainment. Yes, that Jeff Jarrett.
“For more than three decades, I’ve had the privilege to have been a part of both the wrestling and gaming universes, and I’m thrilled to now be a partner in the revival of Acclaim, an iconic publisher known for releasing some of the most legendary games of the ‘80s and ‘90s,” said Jarrett. “From my early involvement with the publisher’s hit 16-bit WWF titles to my experience helping shape the TNA Wrestling series, which spawned the first video game wrestler to become a full-time roster member in the Squared Circle, I’ve seen firsthand the type of impact great games can have on players and fans. Resurrecting Acclaim is an opportunity to impart the same degree of passion and love to a new generation, and I’m excited to be involved.”
Jeff Jarrett
Along with “key partners” Phil Toronto (Partner at VaynerFund) and Eric Vogel (Partner at JET Management), the new Acclaim will be headed up by its CEO, Alex Josef. If you don’t know the name, Josef was CEO of Graffiti Games, and has been involved with the marketing and publishing of “hundreds of games on PC, console and mobile”, according to the press release.
“It’s an absolute honor and pleasure to be leading the charge in bringing Acclaim back to the forefront of the games industry,” said Alex Josef, CEO, “We’re fortunate that we have an extremely talented team and that we’ve already signed some incredible indie titles, which we’ll be revealing soon.”
Alex Josef
Acclaim is just getting (re)started, and while there are no game announcements just yet, we can’t wait to see what’s coming. And not that we mean to push, nudge, or otherwise annoy, but uh, how ’bout a new NBA Jam? Just sayin’.
