IT'S HELLGATE HALLOWEEN! EA AND NAMCO BANDAI GAMES UNLEASH HELLGATE: LONDON AT RETAILERS TODAY
Forget Trick-or-Treating Because the Hellgate is Officially Open
Chertsey, UK. - November 1, 2007 - Remember the dead, but fight for the living! Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) and NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. today announced that Hellgate: London, the first title from Flagship Studios and one of the most anticipated PC games of the year, is now available at retail outlets in North America and Europe1. Combining the depth and addictive gameplay of traditional role-playing games with the visceral action of first-person shooters, the long-awaited action RPG from the creators of the global blockbuster Diablo franchise is poised to keep gamers hacking-and-slashing for many Halloweens to come.
"Today marks a major milestone for Flagship Studios," said Bill Roper, CEO of Flagship Studios. "The greatest thrill any developer can have is to see their game actually in a player's hands. We've put our all into making Hellgate: London a great gaming experience, and now we're able to share what has been a huge part of the past four years of our lives with our friends, family, and the world."
"The core of the EA Partners program is utilizing our strengths as a publishing organization to help world-class independent development studios like Flagship bring their games to market globally," said David DeMartini, Vice President and Global General Manager, EA Partners. "Hellgate: London is a great achievement and we are excited to have had the opportunity to work with Flagship and NAMCO BANDAI in delivering a breakthrough action RPG."
It's 2038 and London lies in ruins, overrun by hordes of terrifying demons. Players begin their mission to save the once-great city by creating a hero, choosing among six character classes featuring distinct gameplay styles. Hellgate: London offers gamers a deep storyline campaign with over 35 hours of gameplay that is infinitely re-playable because of the game's dynamically generated levels and random items, enemies and events. Hellgate's robust, flexible skill and spell system, highly customizable appearances, and a massive variety of equipment ensures each player's experience will be unique.
While some may prefer to save humanity on their own offline, gamers will also be able to fight online*, joining up with other survivors in a secure, client-server environment and playing through the entire story-driven campaign for free. For those players who want to extend their Hellgate: London experience, Flagship is offering an optional subscription service for $9.99/month2 which will give players access to tremendous amounts of ongoing content in the form of quests, character classes, demons, items, etc.
Hellgate: London has been rated M for Mature (Violence, Blood and Gore, Mild Language) by the ESRB. Visit www.esrb.org for updated rating information. For more information about Hellgate: London, log onto http://info.ea.com or the game's official website at www.hellgatelondon.com.
Internet connection required. 1 In store dates vary by country and retail location. All stores will be in stock by November 2nd.2 Pricing for the optional subscription service is 9.99/month in Europe and £7.99/month in the United Kingdom.
About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City, California, is the world's leading interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, cellular handsets and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA SPORTS, EA, EA SPORTS BIG and POGO. In fiscal 2007, EA posted revenue of $3.09 billion and had 24 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA's homepage and online game site is www.ea.com. More information about EA's products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at http://info.ea.com.
About Flagship Studios
Flagship Studios is a creator of innovative entertainment software, designing games that focus on ease of play, replayability, and fun. The studio was formed in 2003 by former executives and developers from Blizzard North® and represents the creators of the worldwide, best-selling Diablo® franchise. With members that are renowned within the gaming industry, Flagship Studios embodies a team that has worked together for over a decade and have numerous #1-selling games and multiple Game of the Year awards to their credit. For more information about Flagship Studios log onto www.flagshipstudios.com.
About NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc.
NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc., is a leading interactive entertainment software publisher and developer based in Santa Clara, CA. The company is a part of the NAMCO BANDAI group of companies known for creating and publishing many of the industry's top video game franchises including the PAC-MAN®, SOULCALIBUR®, NARUTO and Tekken® brands. For more information about NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc., and our products log onto www.namcobandaigames.com.
EA, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS BIG, and POGO are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S and/or other countries. Hellgate: London is a trademark and/or registered trademark of Flagship Studios, Inc. throughout the world. Licensed by NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.