"Ener1 Group has been looking for the right opportunity to expand its video game operations. We believe that Nival Interactive is the ideal platform and that Sergey Orlovskiy is the ideal person to expand the new company and the Nival Interactive brand as we continue to grow through future acquisitions," said Mike Zoi, President of Ener1 Group.
He adds, "Sergey is an exceptional leader who has built his company from the ground up and it is now selling millions of video games throughout Europe and the rest of the world. He has assembled one of the most talented creative teams and his ability to land distribution and development deals with leading publishers such as Ubisoft shows his strong business acumen."
Nival, Inc. will combine the artistic strengths and the economies of scale offered by an offshore production team with the cultural and linguistic expertise of North American game developers to create next generation console (Xbox 2 and PlayStation 3) and wireless games with universal appeal. Ener1 Group will also provide the company with entry into the Japanese market, one of the world's biggest and fastest growing markets for video and wireless games.
Sergey Orlovskiy, President of Nival, Inc., stated, "This partnership provides both our companies with the optimal solution for accomplishing our mutual goals. Ener1 Group's resources and international presence will accelerate Nival's strategy for growth, developing exceptional and creative content for the interactive entertainment industry, exploring new distribution opportunities and attracting top talent in the global marketplace."
Founded in 1996, Nival Interactive has developed eight internationally marketed entertainment titles, including Blitzkrieg published by CDV, a game that has sold more than a million copies worldwide and set new standards for WWII games and the RTS genre; and the award-winning Silent Storm series. The company recently announced it is developing game five of the legendary franchise Heroes of Might and Magic for Ubisoft, one of the world's largest video game publishers.
Nival Interactive has achieved critical acclaim both at home and abroad winning Best Developer 2005 at the Russian Game Developers Conference as well as numerous international Game of the Month and Game of the Year awards for its game titles.
Ener1 Group also announced that Sergey Orlovskiy, Nival Interactive CEO and Founder, has been named President of the new company, called Nival Inc., which will be based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.