LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Pandemic Studios, a division of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS) announced today that The Lord of the Rings: Conquest for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system, PLAYSTATION 3 computer entertainment system, PC and Nintendo DS platforms, is available today in North America and January 16, 2009 in Europe.
In a partnership with New Line Cinema and The Saul Zaentz Company, The Lord of the Rings: Conquest builds on "The Lord of the Rings" universe of J.R.R. Tolkien as depicted by the Academy Award-winning films and thrusts players in to key moments of the story and on the frontlines of the epic battles.
"'The Lord of the Rings' experience is something our team has been passionate about delivering and we believe players will discover a Middle-earth experience like no other," says Andrew Goldman, Pandemic Studios co-founder and general manager. "Starting today 'The Lord of the Rings' fans can choose to save The Shire or set to destroy it. Providing that level of control and freedom is something we are proud to offer."
Created by the same team behind the best-selling Star Wars Battlefront and Star Wars Battlefront II titles, The Lord of the Rings: Conquest opens the fantasy world of Middle-earth giving players the choice to join the powers of good or the forces of evil, in the eternal struggle to control the One Ring.
"The Lord of the Rings: Conquest expands on the celebrated game play found in the Star Wars Battlefront series, on every level," says Josh Resnick, co-founder and general manager at Pandemic Studios. "We developed a game that is fun, strategic and pushes the boundaries of the renowned lore."
Players can choose to control their favorite heroes and villains including Aragorn, Gandalf, the Witch-king, the Balrog and even the Dark Lord Sauron. Players can also engage surrounding characters in the world such as wargs and oliphaunts, control catapults and balistas, and even play as giant creatures such as cave trolls and Ents. As well, fans can play through the campaign modes cooperatively via online or split-screen and relive their favorite battles competitively via four-player split-screen or online with up to 16 players.
For more information on The Lord of the Rings: Conquest, please visit: http://www.pandemicstudios.com/conquest.
About Pandemic Studios
Pandemic Studios is one of the world's premier developers of console and PC entertainment and a wholly owned division of Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ:ERTS). Over its 10-year history, Pandemic Studios has established a reputation for producing top-selling, award-winning and cutting-edge original content and enhancing the value of existing intellectual properties. Critical and retail hits include the record-selling Star Wars Battlefront, Star Wars Battlefront II, and three original Pandemic Studios-created intellectual properties: Mercenaries, Destroy All Humans, and Full Spectrum Warrior. Following the 2008 release of Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, Pandemic Studios is developing a number of new, original titles for next-generation platforms including Saboteur at its Los Angeles, California, and Brisbane, Australia, studio locations. For more information on Pandemic Studios and its games, please visit: http://www.pandemicstudios.com.
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, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS Freestyle and POGO. In fiscal 2008, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $3.67 billion and had 27 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 New Line Cinema
New Line Cinema continues to be one of the most successful independent film companies. For more than 40 years, its mission has been to produce innovative, popular, profitable entertainment in the best creative environment. A pioneer in franchise filmmaking, New Line produced the Oscar-winning The Lord of the Rings trilogy, which is a landmark in the history of film franchises. New Line Cinema is a division of Warner Bros.
About Tolkien Enterprises
The Saul Zaentz Company d/b/a Tolkien Enterprises is the holder of worldwide motion picture, legitimate stage, merchandising, and other rights in J.R.R. Tolkien's literary works The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Tolkien Enterprises has been producing and licensing films, stage productions and merchandise based on Tolkien's works for more than 30 years. Its headquarters are in Berkeley, California, and its website may be found at www.tolkien-ent.com.
EA, EA SPORTS, EA SPORTS Freestyle, POGO, Pandemic, Mercenaries, Mercenaries 2: World in Flames, Full Spectrum Warrior, Destroy All Humans and Saboteur are trademarks or registered trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. All The Lord of the Rings related content other than content from the New Line trilogy of The Lord of the Rings films 2004-2008 The Saul Zaentz Company d/b/a Tolkien Enterprises ("SZC"). All Rights Reserved. The Watcher logo, "The Lord of the Rings: Conquest" and the names of the characters, items, events and places therein are trademarks of SZC under license to Electronic Arts Inc. All content from The Lord of the Rings film trilogy MMV-MMVII New Line Productions, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Star Wars Battlefront and Star Wars Battlefront II are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Lucasfilm Entertainment Company Ltd. "PlayStation" and "PLAYSTATION" are registered trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Microsoft, Xbox and Xbox 360 are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. Nintendo DS is a trademark of Nintendo. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
