With over 52 million registered players worldwide, Gameforge is focusing on business development and building awareness in the U.S., while working to translate and localize its catalog of titles for the North American audience, starting with its first flagship title, Ikariam.

Ikariam is a multiplayer game set in the Greek islands that focuses on trade, warfare, and city-building. Players can manage resources and trade valuables with gamers from around the globe as they turn a small patch of coastal land into a full-fledged empire spanning dozens of islands. Free-to-play and completely browser-based, Ikariam requires no client downloads and can be played at the pace of the players' choosing. Registration details and additional information can be found at www.ikariam.com/.

Lars Koschin, co-founder of Gamigo, one of the biggest online game magazines in Germany, and former CTO of Curse.com, a portal for massively multiplayer online gamers, has signed on to manage the new San Francisco office.

"Gameforge has held the top spot in the European browser-based gaming sector for several years, and expanding into other continents is a strategically important step," said Lars Koschin, president and CEO of Gameforge Production INC. "I look forward to contributing my experience to Gameforge as we join the North American market."