Is There A Surgeon In The House?

20 January 2006 - A steady hand will be required as life and death decisions are laced firmly in your palm when Trauma Centre: Under The Knife launches on the Nintendo DS across Europe on 28th April 2006.

Become the next emergency room super-star as you take on the role of rookie doctor Derek Stiles in Trauma Centre: Under The Knife, from Publisher and Developer Atlus, Co. After being emerged into a dramatic and exciting storyline, players must guide Dr Stiles through a series of operations, learning new skills and talents along the way.

Set in Hope Hospital, Bay Dr Stiles must learn to cope under pressure as he gets to grip with basic surgery. After getting a few operations under his belt his mentors realise Dr Stiles is no ordinary doctor, but possesses a gift known in medical circles as the 'Healing Touch', a skill only possessed by a few top doctors, this special ability allows you to slow down time and perform miracles. Players must now utilise all the speed and concentration they can muster to master Stiles' fantastic ability and save lives.

As rumours of his talent spread, Dr Stiles is scouted by Caduceus, an arm of the World Health Organisation responsible for being at the forefront of modern medicine and disease prevention. He is asked to help combat and eradicate diseases such as GUILT (Gangliated Utophin Imuno Latency Toxin), a disease that is thought to be spread by a medical terrorist group based in Africa, and save the world.

If variety is what you desire then Trauma Centre: Under the Knife won't disappoint. In the game's main Story Mode players must complete an array of different operations, with many different medical instruments, to prove themselves a miracle doctor. They can also unlock many secret missions by completing surgery with enough speed and proficiency. All of the operations in Trauma Centre must be performed within a strict time limit, while also monitoring and safeguarding the general condition of the patient.

Story Mode is not the only game play option available to players, they can also select Challenge Mode for the chance to re-enact any previously completed operations and attempt to beat their previous score and rank.

Using Nintendo DS's unique touch-screen, players are put in the heart of the action - carrying out surgery using the Nintendo DS stylus on the lower screen. The touch-screen not only displays the area of surgery, but also displays all the tools for the job including scalpels, tweezers, syringes, lasers and more. This user interface allows players to quickly select the correct tools for the job and adds realism by making the player use each individual item. The top screen is used to display vital hints and tips from colleagues, time remaining and the all-important number of mistakes made.

So scrub up and prepare to eradicate the world of disease as Trauma Centre: Under The Knife goes on sale across Europe on 28th April 2006 at the estimated retail price of around £29.99.

For further information please contact the Nintendo Press Office on 0207 307 3103.

About Nintendo

Nintendo Co., Ltd. of Kyoto, Japan, is the acknowledged worldwide leader in the creation of interactive entertainment. To date, Nintendo has sold more than 2 billion video games worldwide and more than 350 million hardware units globally, creating such industry icons as Mario^® and Donkey Kong and launched franchises like The Legend of Zelda^® and Pokémon. Nintendo manufactures and markets hardware and software for its popular home video game systems, including the Nintendo 64, NINTENDO GAMECUBE, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, and Game Boy - the world's best-selling video game system which has sold over 180 million units. As a wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of Europe, based in Grossostheim, Germany, was established in 1990 and serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in Europe.

About Atlus

Atlus Co., Ltd. of Tokyo, Japan has been in the video game business for over twenty years and is one of the original video game publishers, with a major focus on the RPG (Role Playing Game) market. Best known for its Shin Megami Tensei series, Atlus has developed and published hundreds of titles, and is well known for their creative and challenging game play.