Epic Games today announced that the North Carolina Technology Association (NCTA) has named them the "Large Company of the Year." This award was received at the NCTA 21 Awards gala last night at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Cary, North Carolina. Epic Games received the large company "Stage of Development" award for its massive success of Gears of War and the continued prosperity of Unreal Engine 3, beating out other finalists that included Accenture, Cisco, Red Hat and Microsoft Charlotte.

"The NCTA 21 Awards recognizes companies and individuals in North Carolina for their diligence and innovation in implementing successful business plans, excelling in the marketplace and their contributions to the community," said Bob Hawkins, 2007 Chairman of the NCTA Board of Directors. "We look forward to this event every year so we can celebrate not only the finalists but all the companies and individuals who actively promote the growth of knowledge-based jobs in North Carolina."

"It's such an honor for a private company with less than a hundred employees to be nominated in a category with four world-class publicly held companies," said Dr. Michael Capps, president of Epic Games. "To win the award was such a great surprise, and I couldn't be more proud of our team. Through innovations in game development, as well as crossing over into film, government and military applications, architectural previsualization and more with our engine software, Epic is positioned to be a lasting contributor to North Carolina's technology market."