EA ANNOUNCES THE LORD OF THE RINGS, THE BATTLE FOR MIDDLE-EARTH II COLLECTOR’S EDITION
Highly Anticipated PC Sequel to Offer First Ever Collector’s Edition Full of Bonus Content
Chertsey, UK., 6 January, 2006 - Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS) today announced The Lord of the RingsTM, The Battle for Middle-earthTM II Collector's Edition - the first ever Collector's Edition DVD release from the highly successful The Lord of the Rings franchise. The sequel to last holiday's critically acclaimed PC game is filled with exclusive The Lord of the RingsTM game content that will offer fans an opportunity to delve into parts of the Middle-earth they've never seen before.
Scheduled to ship simultaneously with The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II in February 2006, The Lord of the RingsTM, The Battle for Middle-earthTM II Collector's Edition will be available at select retailers and is rated 12+ by PEGI.
Expanding on The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth, the new real-time strategy (RTS) game will allow players to engage in heated battles with Elvin and Dwarve armies plus heroes and creatures that have never been seen in The Lord of the Rings films. The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II Collector's Edition will offer everything the sequel does plus entirely new and exclusive content.
For the first time ever, The Lord of the Rings fans will now have access to all the behind-the-scenes details of creating the blockbuster The Lord of the Rings PC game. The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II Collector's Edition will feature:
- Exclusive Bonus DVD in High Definition (HD)
o Mastered in HD for the ultimate high resolution experience on your PC
o Entire musical score including original music created exclusively for The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II
o In-game cinematics and trailers in high resolution and surround sound
o "The Making of The Battle for Middle-earth II": The story of the team behind The Battle for Middle-earth series including never before seen videos and exclusive interviews with key development team members
o "The Art of the Game": The ultimate collection of artwork created for the game, including hundreds of cinematic paintings and key pieces of concept work
- Exclusive In-Game Content
o All new fire-breathing Dragon - on the battlefield, this impressive unit can only be controlled by players who purchase the Collector's Edition
o Special graphic treatment for "create-a-hero" units identify Collector's Edition gamers during on-line play
o Multiple exclusive maps including signature locations from The Lord of the Rings films - such as Weathertop and Argonath
- Exclusive Campaign Map Poster
o Two-sided, 11x17 colour poster
o Gorgeous high resolution map of Middle-earth created exclusively for the game - "Good" side lists out all the campaign locations from the good campaign while the "Evil" side lists out its campaign locations and descriptions
o The perfect companion piece while playing the Good or Evil game missions
"We believe we've created something very special with The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II, and our team felt passionate about making a Collector's Edition that is truly special for the fans," said Mike Verdu, Executive Producer at EA Los Angeles. "The exclusive content including the behind-the-scenes footage, amazing concept art, cinematic paintings and sequences, the extensive soundtrack, and access to the unique dragon unit adds new dimension to the gaming experience."
Developed at EA's Los Angeles studio, The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II introduces players to depths of the fiction never before explored in an EA game. The game makers at EALA have brought The Lord of the Rings world to life in accordance with an agreement with The Saul Zaentz Company d/b/a Tolkien Enterprises that grants EA the rights to develop games based on the books, in addition to a separate agreement that allows for games based on the New Line Cinema films.
For more information about The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II and The Lord of the Rings, The Battle for Middle-earth II Collector's Edition please visit: www.eagames.co.uk/thelordoftherings For information about all of EA's games, please visit EA's press site at www.electronicarts.co.uk/press
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 videogame systems, personal computers and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA SPORTSTM, EATM, EA SPORTS BIGTM and POGOTM. In fiscal 2005, EA posted revenues of $3.1 billion and had 31 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA's homepage and online game site is www.ea.comlectronicarts.co.uk. More information about EA's products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at www.electronicarts.co.uk/press
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 almost 30 years. Its headquarters are in Berkeley, California, and its website may be found at www.tolkien-ent.com.
About New Line Cinema Corporation
Founded almost 40 years ago, New Line Cinema is the most successful independent film company in the world. Its mission is to produce innovative, popular and profitable entertainment in the best creative environment. In addition to the production, marketing and distribution of theatrical motion pictures, the fully-integrated studio has divisions devoted to home entertainment, television, music, theater, merchandising and an international unit. In 2005, New Line partnered with HBO to form Picturehouse, a new theatrical distribution company to release independent films. A pioneer in franchise filmmaking, New Line's Oscar-winning The Lord of the Rings trilogy is one of the most successful film franchises in history. New Line is a division of Time Warner, Inc. (TWX).
Electronic Arts, 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. All The Lord of the Rings content other than content from the New Line trilogy of The Lord of The Rings films ® 2005 The Saul Zaentz Company d/b/a Tolkien Enterprises ("SZC"). All Rights Reserved. The Lord of the Rings, and the names of the characters, events, items, and places therein are trademarks or registered trademarks of SZC under license. All content from The Lord of the Rings film trilogy ® 2005 New Line Productions Inc. All Rights Reserved. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.