RUSH FOR BERLIN
GENERALS.......START YOUR TANK ENGINES
BASINGSTOKE, England (February 28th 2006) - DEEP SILVER and STORMREGION announce an exciting new way to experience World War II strategy gaming, in their upcoming PC DVD-ROM title; RUSH FOR BERLIN. From the creators of the highly successful Codename: Panzers® franchise, Rush for Berlin takes players back to the European battlefields of 1944, where they will experience a whole new perspective on history. In a desperate race against the clock to capture the German capital, time itself will become the player's greatest ally. Set for release 26th MAY 2006, Rush for Berlin will provide a fresh new visage in World War Two strategy gaming.
The Rush for Berlin was an offensive like non-other in history. To the west, Allied forces totalled a massive four million men, split across eighty five divisions of infantry, armoured units and support. To the east, the imposing Soviet Red Army threatened Germany's boarders. On April 16th 1945, the Soviet offensive began from the Oder: "Whoever breaks in first; let him take Berlin." The first Soviet soldiers set foot in Berlin on April 21st. After days of desperate, bloody street fighting between German and Soviet forces, the Allies made the following announcement: "The mission of this Allied force was fulfilled at 02:41 local time, May 7, 1945." The fall of Berlin symbolised the total defeat of the Third Reich and the end of the war in Europe.
These events are history; they are fact. Many have been played out a thousand times in books, movies and video games. Rush for Berlin challenges the player with a simple question - "What if?"
What if the US troops raised their flag over the Reichstag first? What if Stauffenberg's assassination of Hitler had been a success? What if the German army had been able to produce their prototype super-weapons? Or what if scattered German soldiers had tried to kill French general Charles de Gaulle? The answers can be found in Rush for Berlin.
Rush for Berlin's principle game mechanic is unique to strategy gaming. The player's only resource and what shapes the outcome of missions is the element of 'time'. Objectives have a given time limit for completion, following the course of historical occurrence. Fighting against the clock, players can mirror the events of history, or achieve mission times to a greater or lesser degree. Time is used to measure the overall performance of the player, as they advance from level to level. Bonuses can be secured by completing objectives and secret missions, which hinder enemy operations in future encounters.
Completion of missions in a swifter manner (time gained by Allies / lost by Germany) skews the timeline in favour of the Allies, as they beat history in their race to the capital, catching German forces unprepared. Accumulated time during missions can be used to transport reserve units to the battlefield in upcoming missions or give the player more time than the default during a harder mission. Objectives that takes longer to complete (time wasted by Allies / gained by Germany) support the German army, allowing for greater mobilisation of reinforcements in the defence of the Fatherland and the development of proto-type super weapons to unleash.
The production of units within a mission is unrestricted. The only consideration is the time taken for manufacture. Strategic planning is needed at every step; does the player produce several light tanks, or will the costly time investment in the super tank pay dividends. With each step the player takes towards Berlin, their time achievements are displayed on a map of Europe, by a fluctuating frontline. Previous missions can be replayed time and time again to scrape vital extra days for the endgame confrontation in Berlin.
Rush for Berlin places players in familiar gaming territory, with innovative new game play; where their every decision has an actual affect on the game, from the level they are playing, to the levels they have yet to encounter. History is not set. Make a difference. View an alternate World War II reality, with two newly released movies at the official Rush for Berlin website: www.rushforberlin.com
- FEATURES -
- The latest real-time strategy hit by the creators of Panzers: Stormregion
- Groundbreaking war-gaming thanks to innovative gameplay and fresh ideas
- Western Allies and the Red Army race each other in the Rush for Berlin '44-'45
- In an alternate reality, the Germans counter-attack with their prototypes
- The new Gepard Engine delivers photo-realistic and sophisticated graphical opulence
- More than 100 different units, including numerous prototypes
- Storyline and graphics provide entertainment and atmosphere, mirroring the greatest war movies
- The officers represent special units with extremely powerful individual skills
- The detailed damage model of the vehicles requires tactically sound movements
- Soldiers can occupy vehicles and buildings and fight inside houses
- Factories produce supplies, including "camouflage tanks" for misguiding the enemy's airborne reconnaissance
- Day and night as well as the weather influence the game action
- Challenging new AI that reacts aggressively to player actions
Published by DEEP SILVER and distributed exclusively by KOCH Media in UK, Germany, France, Italy, Austria and Switzerland. The race begins, MAY 2006.
For all UK press enquires relating to RUSH TO BERLIN please contact:
MEDIA CONTACTS:
DAVID BLUNDELL,
HEAD OF PR
+44 (0) 8700 276 530
d.blundell@kochmedia.com
DEEP SILVER
Deep Silver is KOCH Media's premium games label. Deep Silver has been collaborating with international developers and publishers since 2002 to publish creative and innovative computer and video games. The multi-award-winning X2 and the daring Singles have already put Deep Silver at the top of the charts. Pipeline projects include co-publishing titles with Sunflowers (ANNO 1701, ParaWorld) and JoWooD (SpellForce 2, Gothic 3, etc). www.deepsilver.com
KOCH MEDIA UK:
Founded in 1994, KOCH MEDIA UK develops, publishes and distributes a diverse mix of titles for home console gaming systems, personal computers and the Internet. Based in Basingstoke, the company has distribution contracts with a number of software publishers, including NINTENDO. For publishers not in the UK, KOCH MEDIA exclusively markets, sells and distributes titles. Under its own brands of DEEP SILVER and EUROPRESS, KOCH MEDIA develops and publishes its own range of gaming and educational and lifestyle software. For more information on KOCH MEDIA and its products, visit www.kochmedia.co.uk
STORMREGION
Stormregion is the premier Hungarian game software developer, specialized in 3D RTS games fully developed with in-house technology, based on the GEPARD 3D engine. Following the massively entertaining "S.W.I.N.E.", the company went on to create "Codename: Panzers", a full-bred RTS set in the WWII epoch. An explosive mixture of fast-paced action and dazzling mocap cinematics, it was one of the top sellers of 2004 and received high praise from both customers and gaming journalists. In 2005 summer the standalone add-on for Codename Panzers launched and Stormregion successfully presented the playable demo of Rush for Berlin on the Games Convention. The company currently employs over seventy people, working on the the sequel of Codename Panzers (Panzers 2) and on the next release (Q2 2006) Rush for Berlin