Sorrent and Atari to Publish BALDUR’S GATE™ for Mobile Phones
Leading Mobile Publisher Launches Wireless Game Based on Popular DUNGEONS & DRAGONS RPG Franchise
Monday 10 January 2005/... SAN MATEO, Calif. - Sorrent, Inc., a leading creator and global publisher of mobile entertainment, today announced that, together with Atari, it has launched BALDUR'S GATE for mobile phones. Today's announcement brings the award-winning BALDUR'S GATE series owned by Hasbro, Inc.'s (NYSE: HAS) Wizards of the Coast subsidiary, to a brand new gaming platform. The mobile adaptation of BALDUR'S GATE has already received praise from the gaming press, including an Editor's Choice award from IGN.com, and a strong review by GameSpot, which said that it "proves that mobile can cater to more than just a casual experience."
"BALDUR'S GATE pushes the envelope of what is possible on the mobile platform," said Robert Nashak, vice president of production, Sorrent. "This launch gives fans of the popular series the ability to play a truly immersive RPG on their mobile phone and more deeply integrates the games people love into their everyday lives."
The mobile version of BALDUR'S GATE is a completely new DUNGEONS & DRAGONS adventure, written specifically for the platform. The seven-level game challenges players with treacherous dungeons and powerful monsters, while engaging them with compelling interactions with the non-player characters they'll discover throughout the Forgotten Realms.
"With the mobile launch of BALDUR'S GATE, Sorrent's production team has once again created a top-rated title specifically for mobile phones that is extremely faithful to the franchise on which it is based," said Wim Stocks, EVP of sales and marketing, Atari. "We're thrilled to offer fans a way to play this favorite title wherever they are."
The BALDUR'S GATE franchise, developed out of the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, has regularly topped the PC game charts with sales of more than 2 million units worldwide. The franchise continues to receive accolades from gaming press around the world. BALDUR'S GATE was a top 10 PC game during the 2003 holiday season, according to NPD data; was named by GameSpy as one of the 50 best games of all time; and was named by Gamespot.com and MSNBC as "Best Game of the Year in 2003."
About Sorrent, Inc.
Sorrent is a global publisher of award-winning wireless entertainment based on original and licensed properties including Atari, Viacom, Cartoon Network and FOX Sports. Sorrent games are available to more than 800 million mobile subscribers via 90 carriers worldwide, across platforms including Java, BREW and i-mode. Sorrent also develops and publishes mobile games under the Macrospace brand as well as offering a complete end-to-end mobile gaming solution via ProvisionX, the most widely deployed Java download service worldwide. Founded in 2001, Sorrent has attracted top tier venture capital firms including NEA, BA Venture Partners, Sienna Ventures and Globespan Capital Partners. For more information, visit www.sorrent.com.
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 games such as DriverTM, Enter the MatrixTM, Neverwinter NightsTM, StuntmanTM, Test Drive®, Unreal® Tournament 2003, and Unreal® Championship; and mass-market and children's games such as Backyard SportsTM, Nickelodeon's Blue's CluesTM and Dora the ExplorerTM, Dragon Ball Z® and RollerCoaster Tycoon®. Atari, Inc. is a majority-owned subsidiary of France-based Infogrames Entertainment SA (Euronext 5257), the largest interactive games publisher in Europe. For more information, visit www.atari.com.
About the Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast
Hasbro (NYSE:HAS) is a worldwide leader in children's and family leisure time entertainment products and services, including the design, manufacture and marketing of games and toys ranging from traditional to high-tech. Both internationally and in the U.S., its PLAYSKOOL, TONKA, MILTON BRADLEY, PARKER BROTHERS, TIGER, and WIZARDS OF THE COAST brands and products provide the highest quality and most recognizable play experiences in the world.
Wizards of the Coast, Inc., a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE:HAS), is a worldwide leader in the trading card game and tabletop roleplaying game categories, and a leading developer and publisher of game-based entertainment products. The company holds an exclusive patent on trading card games (TCGs) and their method of play and produces the premier trading card game, Magic: The Gathering®, among many other trading card games and family card and board games. Wizards is also a leading publisher of roleplaying games, such as Dungeons & Dragons®, and publisher of fantasy series fiction with numerous New York Times best-sellers. For more information, visit the Wizards of the Coast website at wizards.com.
Sorrent, Inc. is a trademark of Sorrent, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Baldur's Gate, Neverwinter Nights, Dungeons and Dragons and Magic: the Gathering are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. in the USA and other countries.