Dead Heat proves a school holiday hit for Namco

Dead Heat proves a school holiday hit for Namco

Dead Heat, the street driving game which incorporates a clutch of social networking features to encourage repeat play, has been the highest new entry in the Namco Funscape income charts at locations where it has been sited.

The game, which was officially launched at January's EAG, is living up to its billing as one of the most popular and powerful video games of the year according to Namco Operation's Rob Cook. He explained: "The school holidays in the early part of 2011 provides operators with an insight to what games are likely to be the best performers for the remainder of the year. Dead Heat offers something quite different and was certainly popular with our customers. It delivers a host of 'out of home' entertainment experiences and crucially it allows any player to excel at every level."

John Crompton, sales manager for UK and Ireland said: "It was our stand out product at both EAG and AmEx and has hit the ground running wherever it has been sited. All of the signs so far are indicating a rapid return on investment for operators."

A creative use of available technology includes PIN code entry and a Nam-Cam photo avatar to personalise each car, giving instant recognition of competing drivers in the field. Patented software technology analyses driving styles and accurately mimics registered 'ghost' drivers, allowing players to race against absent opponents. Repeat play between two or more players is automatically registered, in the process creating new friend networks.