Press releases
Horse lovers unite behind surprise new computer game heroine
11/05/2005
A new breed of “rural heroine” is taking the computer games market by storm.
For the first time ever an equestrian athlete has joined the elite list of sportspeople so idolised by the British public they have a video game named after them.
Pippa Funnell, Britain’s record breaking three day eventer and Olympian, now has her own video game - and copies are literally galloping off the shelves.
The game’s success has taken many by surprise. Strong sales are still earning it a place on the front page of GAME’s online store www.game.net. In the last month it has outsold other sporting hero’s games such as Colin McRae Rally 2005, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005, and Rugby 2004 (featuring Johnny Wilkinson on the front cover) – as well as traditional game franchises such as (the latest in the James Bond series) Golden Eye: Rogue Agent, and Getaway 2.
It’s even been outselling the industry’s most famous heroine Lara Croft.
“Pippa Funnell: The Stud Farm Inheritance” was released on 24 March in GAME stores nationwide. Using state of the art graphics and gameplay, the PC game allows players to take the reins of different horses to compete in show jumping trials and cross country events. Under Pippa’s expert guidance, competitors learn horse care as well as competition tactics.
West Country stores have seen the biggest number of GAME customers buying Pippa’s game, but many stores in cities have also seen a rise in sales. Extra stocks have been sent this weekend to GAME stores in Cirencester, Cheltenham, Bristol and Bath as riding fans descend on Gloucestershire for Badminton Horse Trials.
Anna Macario, Marketing Director at GAME said “Sports related video games are always popular, especially when they’re named after a British world champion. However this is the first time a female equestrian celebrity has been such a success.
“Using state of the art technology the developers have created a very realistic representation of the thrills and tensions of eventing and the equestrian world. Our research shows that it’s very popular with dedicated riders - as well as players who love horses, but don’t have access to the real thing.
“It’s part of a big jump by games developers to create interactive entertainment that appeals to girls as well as boys. Until now sports games have been dominated by players taking control of their male heroes…David Beckham, Wayne Rooney, Johnny Wilkinson, Tiger Woods, Colin McRae, Tim Henman, Lennox Lewis…to name a few.
“Now the ladies are fighting back, and in the future we will hopefully see games with heroines like Kellie Holmes, Ellen Macarthur or even Zara Phillips.”
Pippa Funnell’s PC game has sold most copies in:
- Cribbs Causeway (Bristol) GAME
- Bluewater Shopping Centre GAME
- York GAME
- Taunton GAME
- Braehead (Glasgow) GAME
- Sheffield (Meadowhall) GAME
- Plymouth GAME
- Chelmsford GAME
- West Quay - Southampton GAME
- Nottingham GAME
- Milton Keynes GAME
- Southend GAME
- Newcastle upon Tyne GAME
- Norwich GAME
- Cambridge GAME
GAME’s store in Cirencester, spiritual home of the infamous “Glossy Posse” of horse mad young Royals and their friends, was 77th out of 400.
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| For further details please contact: | Simon Soffe / Lisa Artemis – GAME PR Dept 01256 784442 / 784512 |
About GAME:
GAME is Europe's leading specialist retailer of computer software and video games. The Group currently operates from 400 stores in the UK and Ireland, over 50 GAME stores in Scandinavia, over 90 CentroMAIL stores in Spain and around 65 GAME stores in France. It also offers an on-line shopping service. For further corporate information log onto www.gamegroup.plc.uk, and for the on-line store log onto www.game.net.
