Atari to distribute Rising Star titles across Europe

Atari has signed a deal with Rising Star Games to distribute the fledging publisher's forthcoming console and handheld titles across PAL territories worldwide.

Rising Star is a joint venture between Japanese publisher Marvelous Interactive Inc. and long-standing Nintendo distributor Bergsala AB, and was established with the aim of bringing Japanese title to Europe, Australasia and other PAL markets.

The first title distributed by Atari will be Bubble Bobble: Revolution, an updated version of the arcade classic for Nintendo DS which is due out next month. PSP title Bubble Bobble: Evolution will follow in February, along with Rainbow Islands: Revolution for the DS.

January 2006 will see the release of Space Invaders: Evolution on PSP and Swords of Destiny, a hack and slash adventure for PlayStation 2.

"Working with Rising Star presented us an exciting opportunity to bring a wealth of appealing titles to the European and PAL markets," said Atari Europe president Jean Michel Perbet.

"We're certain that our relationship will prove fruitful, generating sales that might have otherwise eluded this valuable marketplace."

Rising Star COO Martin Defries commented: "Atari has a first rate distribution network and wealth of expertise gained through many years experience of publishing and marketing a diverse range of interactive entertainment."

"There is significant amount of high quality and popular Japanese video game software that the European and other PAL markets have long since demanded, and will now be able to enjoy as a result of our cooperation in bringing these titles to market."