Rising Star Games and Ground Shatter Enter Into Publishing Partnership to Bring Explosive Co-op Shooter RICO to all Major Gaming Formats in 2018 Videogame publisher Rising Star Games today announced it has entered into a publishing partnership with UK-based developer Ground Shatter, to bring the arcade-paced, action-movie inspired, sensory onslaught that is RICO, to digital storefronts of all major gaming formats in autumn 2018. The game’s title stands for “Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations” Act, a United States federal law relating to criminal organisations. But forget that! Just kick down doors, shoot bad guys, and exploit the element of surprise to gain the upper hand against overwhelming odds, in this cooperative multiplayer first person shooter. Partner up with a friend in local couch co-op or online, to blast through an ever-changing series of procedurally generated levels. Come back every day for daily challenges and, as you play, unlock weapons, weapon customisations, and new “traits”– gameplay affecting rewards that modify, enhance and dramatically alter your characters’ abilities.

“With their worldwide reach and extensive routes to market, Rising Star Games is a shining example of what a modern games publisher can be”, said James Parker, game director at Ground Shatter, “and we are delighted that RICO forms part of what looks to be a bold and hugely exciting 2018 line-up”. “We’re excited to welcome the explosive action and bullet-time fueled gameplay of RICO into Rising Star Games’s slate of releases for 2018”, said Martin Defries, Managing Director of Rising Star Games. “It’s great to be working together, ‘buddy cop’-style with esteemed developer Ground Shatter, in order to bring the visceral and frenetic action of RICO to a global audience.”

About RICO

RICO is an arcade-style, first-person shooter inspired by modern action cinema. In the game you and a friend play as a pair of loose-cannon police partners, given twenty-four hours to crack a case as part of an elite organised crime taskforce. Planning is tactical rather than strategic, players must react in the moment to shootouts as they unfurl, with additional extra time to assess the situation if they are able to surprise their adversaries. Ammo and enemies are plentiful, and combat is punchy and impactful, supported by an extensive destruction system that ensures every shot looks and feels great.


Gameplay Features

• Online co-op and offline split-screen play • “Daily play” with online leaderboards • Randomly generated cases, operations, and environments • Unlockable weapons, traits, and mission types • Compete against the clock to solve a case in 24 hours

Developed by Ground Shatter and published digitally by Rising Star Games, RICO is scheduled for global release in autumn 2018. For more information visit rico-game.com.