Microsoft Game Studios and Relic Entertainment held the Impossible Creatures University (ICU) in Vancouver, Canada last week to herald the launch of the Relic Developer's Network (RDN), a site dedicated to modding Relic’s games. Seven modders were invited to get acquainted with the Impossible Creatures mod tools at Relic Entertainment's headquarters for three days of intense, personal training by the developers.

On the RDN site (http://www.relic.com/rdn), new members are invited to download Impossible Creatures mod tools well in advance of the release of the game. The IC Tools Installer comprises a suite of tools including the Mission, Objects, FX and Sound Editors. The animal combiner test application and complete documentation are also included in the package.

Set in the 1930s, Impossible Creatures is a 3-D RTS game that pits players against an evil madman in a desperate campaign across a chain of remote and diverse islands. Using Earth's most formidable animals as building blocks, players create an army of genetically altered mutant monsters in a struggle to protect an unsuspecting world. Impossible Creatures takes the RTS genre to the next level with streamlined, fast-paced combat gameplay. Developed by Relic Entertainment Inc., the title is scheduled for U.S. release on January 7, 2003.