Dark Horse swings for the bleachers

Have you ever wondered if Hellboy could break the single season home run record because of that big arm? Or maybe if Grendel Prime could use his agility to set the single season stolen base record? Now's your chance to virtually find out! Dark Horse has teamed up with Challenge Online Games to bring fans of Dark Horse and/or baseball on online baseball challenge. The free-to-play electronic trading card game brings in all the goodness of collectible card games and mixes in some Dark Horse. Dark Horse President Mike Richardson's love of baseball may have led to such a mixture. “Being a longtime baseball fan, it’s great to see so many Dark Horse characters taking part in an online version of our national pastime and playing alongside some of my favorite real-life players.” Playing the game is simple. First, you need to register for free over at the Baseball Boss website. Once you've signed up, each time your team beats the Dark Horse All-Stars in a best of five series, you can randomly get a Dark Horse All-Star card for your collection. Registering period gets you three free packs of the virtual baseball cards to assemble your challengers. So yeah, it appears that a love of comics won't get you by in this game alone. You have to have some knowledge and passion for baseball to successfully manage the team to win. But if you are a fan of baseball and Dark Horse then playing it lots and lots will get you those special edition Dark Horse cards for your collection. Full press release below. DARK HORSE SWINGS FOR THE BLEACHERS DARK HORSE TEAMS WITH CHALLENGE GAMES TO DRAFT THE FIRST DARK HORSE BASEBALL BOSS TEAM JULY 29, MILWAUKIE, OR–It’s no secret that Dark Horse loves comics, but perhaps lesser known is the fact that Dark Horse loves baseball, too! In celebration of the summer season and America’s greatest pastime, Dark Horse Comics and Challenge Online Games have teamed up to create the greatest sports franchise ever. In a move that will have agents talking for weeks, Baseball Boss will now feature Dark Horse players, including Concrete, Hellboy, Abe Sapien (B.P.R.D.), X, Rumor and Kraken (The Umbrella Academy), the Mask, Conan, King Kull, Cal McDonald (Criminal Macabre), SpyBoy, Ghost, the Goon, Grendel Prime, the Occultist, Go Boy 7, and Heath Huston (Fear Agent). The free-to-play online electronic trading card game combines the collectibility and trading aspects of collectible cards with the competitive excitement of multiplayer games. Harnessing Web 2.0 applications and asynchronous, short-form design, Baseball Boss and Dark Horse will set the bar for this emerging entertainment sector. Plus, players can win a full set of virtual cards of the Dark Horse All-Stars team! * First, players need to complete their free registration for the online game Baseball Boss and finish a quick account setup. * Then, each time their team beats the Dark Horse All-Stars in a best-of-five game series, they can randomly win a card of the Dark Horse All-Stars for their collection. * Players get three free packs of virtual baseball cards when they register for free for Baseball Boss. To play their first game against the Dark Horse All-Stars, players should visit baseballboss.com/darkhorse. Baseball Boss has been described by GameZone as “iTunes meets baseball cards.” The addition of Dark Horse superstars will allow players to create the ultimate dream team to go head to head with other players in a way never before imagined. Dark Horse President Mike Richardson has this to say about the new program: “Being a longtime baseball fan, it’s great to see so many Dark Horse characters taking part in an online version of our national pastime and playing alongside some of my favorite real-life players.” Jeff Petry, vice president of sports and licensed properties at Challenge Games, said, “Adding key characters from the Dark Horse universe creates a fun activity for our players. We hope that both sports fans and comic fans alike enjoy these highly collectible virtual cards. We’re looking forward to a great partnership with Dark Horse and to creating many more fun activities for all our players.” About Challenge Online Games, Inc. Challenge Online Games (Challenge Games) creates online games that are fun and easy to play whether you’re a serious or casual gamer. The company was founded by veteran entrepreneur and gamer Andrew Busey, author of Secrets of the Mud Wizards and creator of one of the first instant-messaging applications. Challenge Games currently offers Duels and Baseball Boss—multiplayer, web-based games that combine the best of the collectible card games (CCGs) and traditional role-playing games with the convenience of the short-form gaming experience. The company also holds a multiyear licensing agreement with MLB Advanced Media, LP (MLBAM), the interactive media and Internet company of Major League Baseball. The company offers web-based games for a variety of tastes, including the area skill game Duels (duels.com), the command and strategy game Warstorm (warstorm.com), the futuristic battle game Planetstorm (planetstorm.com), and the build and destroy game Mechduels (mechduels.com). Challenge Games is based in Austin, Texas, and is privately held with funding from Sequoia Capital and Globespan Capital Partners. For more information on Challenge Games, visit challengegames.com. About Dark Horse Comics Since 1986, Dark Horse Comics has proven to be a solid example of how integrity and innovation can help broaden a unique storytelling medium and establish a small, homegrown company as an industry giant. The company is known for the progressive and creator-friendly atmosphere it provides for writers and artists. In addition to publishing comics from top talent like Frank Miller, Mike Mignola, Neil Gaiman, Gerard Way, and comics legend Will Eisner, Dark Horse has developed such successful characters as the Mask, Timecop, and SpyBoy. Additionally, its highly successful line of comics and products based on popular properties includes Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Aliens, Conan, Emily the Strange, Tim Burton, Trigun, and Serenity. Today, Dark Horse Comics is the third-largest comic-book publisher in the U.S. and is recognized as one of the world’s leading publishers of licensed comics material.

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