GTA: Quahog? <i>Family Guy</i> gets game deal

"It seems today that all you see is violence in movies and sex on TV." The first line of Family Guy's theme left one thing out--Family Guy on home video game systems. Take-Two Interactive and Airborne Entertainment have attained the rights to publish games based on the animated dysfunctional family.

Under the arrangement, Grand Theft Auto publisher Take-Two can produce Family Guy games for multiple platforms. Take-Two is currently developing a third-person action game based on the show and will publish it under its newly formed 2K Games brand. The game is expected to get into gamers' hands in 2006. No specific platforms have been announced.

The deal also allows Airborne Entertainment to produce Family Guy mobile content. Airborne is planning to release wallpapers, wireless games, and animated ringers in time for the show's second coming on the Fox network, May 1.

Family Guy debuted in 1999 on Fox but was canceled after just its third season. The series has enjoyed a successful resurrection after getting a second life on The Cartoon Network's cult Adult Swim programming, and its DVD collections have become top sellers.

The brainchild of Seth McFarlane, Family Guy combines absurdity and tongue-in-cheek humor and has come under scrutiny for poking fun at everything from celebrities to religion. The show is centered around the Griffins, a dysfunctional family in Quahog, Rhode Island, that features a murderous baby, a martini-swigging dog, and the moronic father, Peter Griffin.

"Family Guy is totally unique in the licensing business, having found its 'sweet spot' the second time around," said Peter Byrne, executive vice president of Fox licensing and merchandising. "There's an insatiable demand for merchandise currently, but we are taking a very long-term view of building Family Guy into a major franchise for the studio on multiple levels."

GameSpot will have more on the Family Guy game soon.