Under the multi-year agreement, SEGA has been granted the exclusive interactive rights to develop and distribute games based on both Marvel‘s Iron Man feature films and the classic comic book iterations of the character. The Iron Man agreement represents the first step in a strategic partnership between Marvel and SEGA to bring at least one additional Marvel Super Hero property to next-gen platforms.

The first Iron Man project produced under the license agreement will be based on Marvel Studios' highly-anticipated Iron Man feature film starring Academy Award® Nominees Robert Downey Jr. and Terrence Howard, and directed by Jon Favreau. This project, the first feature film to be produced independently by Marvel Entertainment, will blast into theaters May 2, 2008.

“Marvel is recognised as one of the world’s leaders in the entertainment industry and SEGA is excited to be publishing the next-gen interactive entertainment based on Iron Man, the first Marvel Studios project being brought to the widescreen,” said Simon Jeffery, President and COO, SEGA of America, Inc. “The Iron Man history is filled with compelling and intriguing characters and stories, and with the power of the next-gen systems, SEGA will be bringing these characters to life like never before.”

David Maisel, Executive Vice President, Office of the Chief Executive of Marvel Entertainment, added, “SEGA is an excellent partner to bring our Iron Man franchise to the next generation consoles. SEGA is a powerful force in the video game space and has always been on the cutting edge of the industry. We are very excited to be bringing Iron Man to theaters in 2008 and to team with a great partner to simultaneously introduce Iron Man to the video game world.”