Larkspur, Calif. (March 17, 2022) – Mattel, Inc. and Milestone, a leading global racing game developer, announced today the winner of the Hot Wheels Unleashed™ Design Battle, an exclusive contest for the global community of the fast-paced arcade racing game. To date, Hot Wheels Unleashed has sold over 1 million copies worldwide.
The Design Battle contest ran between January 14, 2022, and February 14, 2022, and more than 10,000 unique livery designs for the Hot Wheels Rodger Dodger™ die-cast model were submitted using the in-game Livery Editor. The winning Rodger Dodger will be now transformed into a real Hot Wheels toy (scale 1:64) available for purchase globally beginning December 2022.
After a meticulous process of evaluation, Mattel’s judges selected “Digigold,” made by Hot Wheels Unleashed player Reds, as the winning Rodger Dodger livery. Characterized by a dominant white colorway, this livery is a stylish addition to the classic Rodger Dodger vehicle thanks to its gold details enriched by some black abstract inserts that complete a stunning look. Check out a brand-new video showcasing the design here: https://youtu.be/Ag8FhzWv_EQ
The winner has been chosen by a special judging panel of Mattel’s world-class Hot Wheels designers:
- Ted Wu - Vice President and Global Head of Vehicle Design, Mattel
- Bryan Benedict - Director of Product Design, Mattel
- Dmitriy Shakhmatov - Manager of Product Design, Mattel
- Jerry Thienprasiddhi - Principal Graphic Designer, Mattel
“Hot Wheels is all about encouraging the challenger spirit, and we really saw that come through with the Design Battle,” said Ted Wu. “The brand has always pushed the limits of automotive performance and design to create the perfect car which was echoed in fans’ creativity with an astounding 10,000+ entries in the contest. Reds ‘Digigold’ livery was truly unique, and we look forward to making it available for fans to purchase at retail later this year.”
Reds’ Rodger Dodger die-cast will be available from major retailers for purchase globally beginning December 2022.
For more information, visit hotwheelsunleashed.com. Drivers can also join the #HotWheelsUnleashed conversation online at Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter.
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About Mattel
Mattel is a leading global toy company and owner of one of the strongest catalogs of children’s and family entertainment franchises in the world. We create innovative products and experiences that inspire, entertain, and develop children through play. We engage consumers through our portfolio of iconic brands, including Barbie®, Hot Wheels®, Fisher-Price®, American Girl®, Thomas & Friends®, UNO®, Masters of the Universe®, Monster High® and MEGA®, as well as other popular intellectual properties that we own or license in partnership with global entertainment companies. Our offerings include film and television content, gaming and digital experiences, music, and live events. We operate in 35 locations and our products are available in more than 150 countries in collaboration with the world’s leading retail and ecommerce companies. Since its founding in 1945, Mattel is proud to be a trusted partner in empowering children to explore the wonder of childhood and reach their full potential. Visit us online at mattel.com.
About Milestone
Founded in Milan in 1996, Milestone S.r.l. is one of the leading and longest established racing game developers in the world. The 260+ people team is responsible for hit series like MotoGP™, MXGP and Monster Energy Supercross – The Official Videogame, as well as RIDE and Gravel, Milestone’s own IPs. For more information, please visit www.milestone.it
HOT WHEELS UNLEASHED™ © 2021. Published and Developed by Milestone S.r.l. All rights reserved. HOT WHEELS™ and associated trademarks and trade dress are owned by, and used under license from, Mattel. ©2021 Mattel. All manufacturers, accessory suppliers, names, tracks, sponsors, brands and associated imagery featured in this game are trademarks and/or copyrighted materials of their respective owners.
About Koch Media
The Koch Media Group is a global developer, publisher and distributor of video games, VR games, gaming hardware and merchandise. The group’s publishing activities, marketing and distribution extend throughout Europe, America, Australia and Asia. Koch Media has more than 25 years of experience in the digital media business and has risen to become a leading global publishing partner. The Koch Media Group runs a multi-label strategy with fully owned publishing units such as Prime Matter, Deep Silver, Milestone, Vertigo Games and Ravenscourt, publishing games for consoles, PC and VR platforms across all physical and digital channels.
Additionally, as global publishing partner Koch Media has formed long-term multi-national publishing collaborations with numerous game publishers including Activision Blizzard, Bethesda, Capcom, CI Games, Giants Software, Kalypso, Koei Tecmo, Konami, Paradox, Sega, SNK, Square Enix, Techland, Tripwire, Warner Bros, and many others.
With its parent company in Höfen, Austria, and the Publishing HQ in Munich, Germany, Koch Media owns local publishing companies in Germany, UK, France, Spain, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Poland, Australia, the United States as well as Japan and Hong Kong.
The Koch Media Group owns ten game development studios: Deep Silver Volition (Champaign, IL / USA), Deep Silver Dambuster Studios (Nottingham / UK), Deep Silver Fishlabs (Hamburg / Germany), Warhorse Studios (Prague / Czech Republic), Milestone (Milan / Italy), Voxler (Paris / France) , Flying Wild Hog (Warsaw, Kraków, Rzeszów / Poland), Free Radical Design (Nottingham / UK) and Vertigo Games (Rotterdam /The Netherlands), DigixArt (Montpellier, France).Additionally, the Koch Media Group collaborates with numerous independent development studios around the world.
Part of the Koch Media Group is also Koch Films, a leading European independent film distributor with business primarily in Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Italy as a cinema, TV, online and Home Entertainment distributor. The Koch Media Group also owns Gaya Entertainment, a leading video game merchandise company in Munich, Germany, and the Quality Assurance Facility in Olomouc, Czech Republic.
Koch Media is an Embracer Group company.