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Press release:
UK – 16th May 2017 – Award-winning international games label Team17 and Swedish developer Villa Gorilla today announced that charming pinball platform game Yoku’s Island Express has joined Team17’s games label. Meet our hero Yoku the Dung Beetle who has arrived on Mokumana Island to relieve the resident pterodactyl postmaster of his duties. He’s ready for the easy life, soaking up the sun and delivering parcels on a tropical paradise!

However, he’ll quickly discover that an ancient Island deity is trapped in a restless sleep, and a host of colourful, quirky islanders are plagued by quakes and storms brought forth by its nightmares. It’s all down to Yoku to traverse the island using a unique blend of pinball mechanics and open world exploration, in an amazing quest to help those in need! Flip and bump our pint-sized protagonist around the stunning hand-painted island on your quest to rebuild the post-office, discover the mystery of the Fruit Altar, and wake an old god from its deep slumber.

Stockholm based, independent developer Villa Gorilla are headed up by veterans Jens Andersson (Starbreeze, LucasArts, Collecting Smiles) and Mattias Snygg (Starbreeze). Both have a solid AAA pedigree and worked on titles such as The Darkness, Chronicles of Riddick, Syndicate and Colors! 3D.

“With Team17 we’ve found a publishing partner that cherishes innovation and style – something we recognized way back when we played Alien Breed on our Amigas. We feel that their commitment to quality and fun gameplay is a perfect match for us, and we are incredibly excited to be working with Debbie and the team to finish and release Yoku’s Island Express.” said Jens Andersson, Co-Founder of Villa Gorilla

Debbie Bestwick, MBE, CEO of Team17 added, “Yoku’s Island Express has such a beautiful, distinct style with a unique twist on the platform genre. It’s a true gem, we’re looking forward to working with the very talented Villa Gorilla and welcome them to our growing games label family.”

Yoku’s Island Express is coming to Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch™ and PC in 2018.

About Team17 Digital Ltd
Founded in 1990, Team17 Digital Limited is a leading international games label that hosts the Worms franchise, Yooka-Laylee, The Escapists, Overcooked, Aven Colony, Genesis Alpha One, Way to the Woods and many more from developers around the world. Visit www.team17.com for more info.

About Villa Gorilla
Villa Gorilla is located in Stockholm, Sweden and was founded in 2013 by industry veterans Jens Andersson and Mattias Snygg. Our goal is to create small and unique games with a focus on innovative game design and beautiful execution.

Yoku’s Island Express. Developed by Villa Gorilla. © 2017. Yoku’s Island Express and Villa Gorilla are trademarks or registered trademarks of Villa Gorilla. Published by Team17. © 2017. Team17 is a registered trademark of Team17 Digital Limited. All other trademarks, copyrights and logos are property of their respective owners.