Neverwinter Nights™ 2 Companions Take Center Stage At Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3)
Atari Reveals Innovative New Features for Neverwinter Nights 2
LOS ANGELES, CA - May 10, 2006 - Atari, Inc
(Nasdaq: ATAR) and Obsidian Entertainment today disclosed
exciting new details surrounding the popular companion party
system in the highly-anticipated Neverwinter Nights 2.
Neverwinter Nights 2 is set in the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS®
Forgotten Realms® universe created by Wizards of the Coast, a
subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE: HAS), and will transport
players back to the embattled city of Neverwinter. DUNGEONS
& DRAGONS is under license from the Hasbro Properties
Group, the intellectual property development arm of
Hasbro.
Developed by Obsidian Entertainment, Neverwinter Nights 2
will feature more than 10 new companions that players will
encounter and join in their ongoing adventures in the lands
of Faerun. Players will be able to select up to three
additional companions to adventure with at any particular
time. Along with the larger party size comes increased
companion complexity in all aspects from enhanced usefulness
and combat effectiveness to dramatically improved
personalities, dialogue and story background.
In addition, companions in Neverwinter Nights 2 take full
advantage of the game's complex influence system, which
dramatically alters the player characters' alignment and the
world's reaction to the player based upon the actions and
choices made during the course of game play. Just as the
world will change based upon the player's actions, companions
will also react directly to the player characters' alignment
and the decisions they make. The more a companion trusts the
player the more likely it will share its history, fears and
even secrets. Likewise, the more divergent the player's point
of view is from a companion, the greater the potential for
loss of influence and, in some cases, may even lead to the
companion abandoning the player during gameplay.
"Companions in Neverwinter Nights 2 are much more than just a
simple collection of statistics and abilities. We wanted
companions to provide the player with real value, insight
into the game's storyline as well as a source of additional
entertainment," said Feargus Urquhart, CEO of Obsidian
Entertainment. "Allowing more companions to accompany the
player, the addition of companion control, much more robust
companion storylines and interactions, not to mention the
romance possibilities, are all sure to make companions a very
popular part of Neverwinter Nights 2."
In Neverwinter Nights 2, players will also have the ability
to select and control companion actions, including guiding
their spell selections, attacks and other special abilities.
Players can also simply allow each companion's advanced
artificial intelligence to take over, which will ensure an
appropriate response to any given situation. In addition,
each companion in Neverwinter Nights 2 has also been designed
to fill both a role-playing personality role as well as a
specific class support role. No matter what class a player
chooses to start with, the selection of available companions
will allow players to balance out their party to reflect the
style of play they prefer.
Some of the first companions players will come across in
Neverwinter Nights 2 include:
Khelgar Ironfist (Chaotic Good, Dwarf, Fighter) -- Khelgar is
a good-natured dwarf with a love of the finer things in life.
He's strong and tough, even by dwarf standards, and developed
a fearsome reputation as a brawler. Khelgar is heading to the
city of Neverwinter, to find a monastic order that has opened
their doors to anyone who wishes to learnKhelgar is
going to make them rue that policy quickly.
Neeshka (Neutral, Tiefling, Rogue) -- Part demon and part
human, Neeshka has had a tough life. She has been raised most
of her life as a ward of the Church of Helm, and from
childhood to today she's been in one sort of trouble or
another. Tieflings are often noble figures who fight to
redeem themselves despite people's initial prejudices.
However, Neeshka doesn't have a heart of gold, or some inner
core of virtue, she's just trouble at heart. She's a cute
sort of trouble, though. She fuels the perception of
Tieflings as worrisome imps good for nothing but
headaches.
Elanee (Neutral Good, Wood Elf, Druid) -- A child of the
forest, fickle and fae - Elanee is a wood elf druid who
watches over the Mere of Dead Men. Elanee is not quite of
this world, and is more at home in the realm of forests and
mires than she ever will be in civilization. She has
tremendous courage and a fiery temper, as well. She views the
world with a strange newness - which is at odds with her
often wise counsel. She also sees deeper into people than
they suspect.
The Neverwinter Nights franchise has sold more than two
million copies worldwide, is translated into 10 languages,
sold in more than 40 countries and features one of the
largest and most active fan communities in all of gaming. To
date, fans of the franchise, which includes Neverwinter
Nights, Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide and
Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark, have
created nearly 4,000 modifications to the original game using
the award-winning Aurora Toolset, the groundbreaking software
included with the full game that allows players to create
their own universes, quests and storylines. A new and
improved toolset will be included with the release of
Neverwinter Nights 2.
Neverwinter Nights 2 is scheduled for release in September
2006. More information about Neverwinter Nights 2 can be
found at www.nwn2.com, which includes user forums,
project news, development updates and more.
# # #
About Obsidian Entertainment
Obsidian Entertainment, Inc. is a premier software
development company passionately dedicated to creating high
quality, next generation role-playing games for PC and
console systems. More information about Obsidian
Entertainment can be found online at www.obsidianent.com.
About THE HASBRO PROPERTIES GROUP
The Hasbro Properties Group (HPG), the intellectual property
development arm of Hasbro, Inc., (NYSE:HAS), translates one
of the industry's richest portfolios of brands into a world
of fun and excitement for children and adults globally.
Through a host of publishing, digital media, lifestyle and
entertainment platforms, HPG is able to surround fans
worldwide with consumer products that expand Hasbro's core
brands, such as TRANSFORMERS, LITTLEST PET SHOP, MY LITTLE
PONY, MONOPOLY, G.I. JOE, TONKA and PLAYSKOOL.
About Atari
New York-based Atari, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATAR) develops
interactive games for all platforms and is one of the largest
third-party publishers of interactive entertainment software
in the U.S. The Company's 1,000+ titles include hard-core,
genre-defining franchises such as DRIVER, The
Matrix (Enter The Matrix and The Matrix: Path of Neo),
Stuntman and Test Drive®; and mass-market and
children's franchises such as Nickelodeon's Blue's
Clues and Dora the Explorer, and Dragon Ball
Z®. Atari, Inc. is a majority-owned subsidiary of
France-based Infogrames Entertainment SA (Euronext - ISIN:
FR-0000052573), the largest interactive games publisher in
Europe. For more information, visit www.atari.com.
# # #
DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, FORGOTTEN REALMS, Neverwinter Nights,
Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide and
Neverwinter Nights: Hordes of the Underdark and related logos
are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast Inc. in the United
States and/or other jurisdictions, and are used with
permission. Hasbro and its logo are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Hasbro, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other
jurisdictions, and are used with permission. Atari and the
Atari logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Atari,
Inc. in the U.S. and/or other jurisdictions, and are used
with permission. Obsidian Entertainment and the Obsidian
Entertainment logo are trademarks of Obsidian Entertainment,
Inc. in the U.S. and/or other jurisdictions. Copyright 2006
Atari, Inc. All rights reserved. All other trademarks are the
property of their respective owners.
Safe Harbor Statement
With the exception of the historical information contained in
this release, the matters described herein contain certain
"forward-looking statements" that are made pursuant to the
Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements in this
release are not promises or guarantees and are subject to
risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results
to differ materially from those anticipated. These statements
are based on management's current expectations and
assumptions and are naturally subject to uncertainty and
changes in circumstances. We caution you not to place undue
reliance upon any such forward-looking statements. Actual
results may vary materially from those expressed or implied
by the statements herein. Some of the factors which could
cause our results to differ materially include the following:
the loss of key customers, such as Wal-Mart, Best Buy,
Target, GameStop and EB Games; delays in product development
and related product release schedules; inability to secure
capital; loss of our credit facility; adapting to the rapidly
changing industry technology, including new console
technology; maintaining relationships with leading
independent video game software developers; maintaining or
acquiring licenses to intellectual property; fluctuations in
the Company's quarterly net revenues and results of
operations based on the seasonality of our industry; the
termination or modification of our agreements with hardware
manufacturers; and other factors described in our SEC
filings, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended March 31, 2005 and our quarterly reports on Form
10-Q, as amended.
The Company undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking
statements to conform the statement to actual results or
changes in the Company's expectations.
® 2006, Atari, Inc. All rights reserved. ATARI, the ATARI
logo, and classic Atari game titles and logos are trademarks
or registered trademarks of Atari Interactive, Inc. or its
affiliates.
Contacts: Andrea Schneider Brandon
Smith
Atari, Inc. Maverick PR
(212) 726-4259 (310) 404-9906
Andrea.schneider@atari.com
Brandon@maverickpr.net