LEGO Universe Will Be Distributed by Warner Bros.

The LEGO Group and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment have announced that they have entered into an agreement regarding the publishing duties for LEGO Universe, the MMO, which will deliver the brick-based experience to gamers all over the world. Warner will hold the exclusive rights to sell the new title outside the normal distribution channels that LEGO as a company has.

LEGO Universe was designed by NetDevil, which has experience in creating MMOs, and by the LEGO Group. The idea is to allow gamers who are familiar with the LEGO mechanics from real life to experience them in a virtual world where more possibilities for creation and creative destruction can be introduced.

At the moment, the game is in a closed beta stage and launch is expected before the end of this year. Of course, it has seen its share of delays, being initially mentioned as coming out in 2009 and even 2008, so take that with a grain of salt.

It takes place in an alternate universe where the essence of imagination, crucial to the creation of new LEGO figures, has been corrupted by an evil baron, meaning that dark beings can now spread darkness and twist the beautiful LEGO world. Players, apart from creating by using LEGO bricks, can also join together in quests in order to restore the imagination of the universe they are building.

Martin Tremblay, who is the president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, stated, “The LEGO Group has long been a leader in family entertainment, and we are excited to help extend the brand into the online arena through an MMOG platform with LEGO Universe. We look forward to expanding our relationship with the LEGO Group beyond what we’ve already established with the successful TT Games’ titles. LEGO Universe builds upon the LEGO video games business in an exciting new way.”