UK-based Darkmonth Studios has today announced that its first original title will be a real-time wargame in which players assume command of an ape army. In fact, players will command the ape army's elite fighting force, the 51st Banana Battalion, and they will have to guide their troops through no less than five epic wars against the forces of the gibbons, the orangutans, the baboons, the himpanzees, and the gorillas.

　　"With Damn Dirty Apes, we wanted to make a game that was fun and entertaining," said Graeme Laws, creative director, Darkmonth Studios. "We view Damn Dirty Apes as a form of escapism, offering a refreshing change from the realities of war, which we see not only in a lot of modern RTS and FPS games, but, sadly, in our media every day. Aside from that, everyone loves monkeys, and there's no better feeling than making an ape soldier lob a napalm grenade at a group of orangutan soldiers in a simian version of 'Nam."

　　Damn Dirty Apes will feature large environments and a variety of real-world and futuristic weapons. Weapons confirmed for inclusion in the game to date include heavy machine guns, explosives, rocket launchers, napalm grenades, and sticky bombs. Despite the fact that all the environments and characters in the game are colorful and cartoonlike, Darkmonth claims that its patented Blood-o-Rama technology will accurately re-create the effects of extreme firepower on simian anatomy.

　　"Although, in company terms, we're very young, our team is high on expertise and experience," Laws added. "We've all learned from past experience and from the outset we have set out to be creative yet disciplined and efficient. We're aware of the typical development problems, which is why we've been working from a completed design and a self-imposed tough schedule for the past few months. Having previously been involved in the development of classics like the GTA series and Wipeout 2097 and worked with Atari and Konami on high-profile outsourcing projects, we've become accustomed to producing quality work in short timescales."

　　Damn Dirty Apes will feature a number of LAN and Internet multiplayer modes in addition to the single-player campaigns, including deathmatch, capture the flag, and last man standing. Although the game is currently in development only for the PC, it has been designed with a view to porting it to current-generation consoles in the future.

　　Although no publisher has been announced for Damn Dirty Apes at this time, Darkmonth Studios is hoping that the game will be released toward the end of this year. We'll bring you more information on the game as soon as it becomes available.