Overlord II

Wednesday 18th March/... Being bad will soon feel ever so good again as Codemasters® today confirmed that the Minions will return this summer, complete with a new master, in Overlord™II , Triumph Studios’ sequel to the 1 million+ selling, delightfully despotic, twisted fantasy action adventure.

Taking the ‘be evil or really evil’ theme to terrific new heights of tyranny, gamers were today introduced to the new Overlord and his powers of destruction and domination in the first Overlord II gameplay video, now available from www.codemasters.com/overlordII

In Overlord II , the new Overlord and a more powerful Minions horde take on the Glorious Empire, an advanced Romanesque nation, in a truly epic yet familiarly warped adventure. Ever since the events at the end of Overlord: Raising Hell , the Overlord has been absent from the world and, without his firm grip on the kingdom, the lands have being conquered by the Glorious Empire. On the surface, the Glorious Empire is a civilisation driven by righteous politicians and supported with a mighty military force. However, in practice the Empire is decadent, corrupt and dangerous. And if there's one thing the Glorious Empire hates, it's magic and magical beings.

As the game opens, the Empire’s Inquisition is on the hunt for anyone who has magical resonance. In the Arctic wastelands, where Yetis roam, lies the snowy town of Nordberg. Here a young lad is singled out by the Inquisition and accused of possessing a magical force (what with him having strange glowing eyes and everything). However, as he is led off, the Empire guards come under attack from a band of strange little leathery, big-eared, yellow-eyed beasts: it’s the Minions! With a rousing cry of “Master” the devilishly charming critters carry the boy off – they’ve found their new Overlord.

After some years of intensive Minion training, players will step into the now-adult sized boots of the Overlord. Initially it’s a rag-tag band of Minions under his command but off they go, looting, destroying and laying waste to the lands around Nordberg, scoring victories where they can, before setting sights on the lands at the very heart of the Empire.

As the Overlord’s powers grow, the secrets of the Empire, and those of his own origins, will be revealed and then it’s time to go Minion maximus on the Empire’s collective ass. Players will be able to choose how to wield the Overlord’s evil forces. Do they plunder and pillage across the lands, burn cities on a whim in wild acts of destruction? Or do they follow a path of domination, enslaving towns and exerting their will upon the people? Only true despots will be able to make the ultimate choice between being a ‘destructive’ or a ‘dominating’ dark lord.

“ Overlord II empowers players to enact their evil will in either a dominating or destructive way,” explains Lennart Sas, Creative Director, Triumph Studios. “Play as a ‘dominating’ Overlord and villages and people will fall under your command with rewards and benefits coming over time as you have them do your bidding. Follow a ‘destructive' route and you’ll become a demonic Lord of chaos, obliterating anything that stands in your way. For example, if you need to take a boat from one area to the next, are you evil enough to trigger global warming, melt the ice caps, so that you create your own private sea to sail across? Well, are you? It’ll be fun finding out.”

Prepare to face the Glorious Empire in Overlord II – the game that puts the laughter into slaughter – coming this summer for the PLAYSTATION®3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft® and Games For Windows®. Get an introduction to the new Overlord in the first gameplay video, now available from www.codemasters.com/overlordII

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OVERLORD TITLES, COMING SUMMER 2009:

A Trio Of Tyrannical Treats

OVERLORD™II

• PLAYSTATION®3 system, Xbox 360, Games For Windows.

Overlord™II is the sequel to the hit warped fantasy action adventure that had players being delightfully despotic. In Overlord II , a new Overlord and a more powerful army of Minions take on an entire empire in a truly epic adventure, inspired by the rise of the Roman Empire. As the Glorious Empire conquers kingdoms and destroys any sign of magic it finds, it’s time to go Minion Maximus and send in the horde.

The Minions return smarter, deadlier (and funnier) and are ready to fight in large scale battles that will see their wild pack mentality squaring up to the organised legions of the Glorious Empire. As ever, they’ll do anything and everything the Overlord commands of them, especially now that they can run ravage and wreck buildings and scenery. They’ve also learn to ride: In Overlord II Minions will be able to mount up and ride wolves and other magical creatures around the landscape and take them into battle, making our band of merry fighters faster and fiercer than ever before. Coming in 2009, Overlord II is now in development at Triumph Studios in Delft, the Netherlands, for the PLAYSTATION®3 system, Xbox 360 and Games For Windows.

OVERLORD™ DARK LEGEND

• Wii™

Designed and developed exclusively for Wii, Overlord Dark Legend is a brand new action adventure steeped in fairy tale lore with sinister, satirical twists. Set in a time before the original game, players take the role of a new young Overlord. As he revels in command of the Minions, our trainee tyrant will be able to take his growing pains out on the local fairy tale inhabitants as he protects his castle and lands.

Connecting players to the game world in three dimensions, the use of the Wii Remote gives unprecedented control over the minions. For example, individual Minions can be plucked from the horde, held by the neck and then, by vigorously shaking the Wii Remote, throttled to imbue him with some Overlordly power and turn him into a manic minion missile. With a now-explosive body, the insane little critter can be guided into enemies with hilarious, if rather fatal, consequences.

Backed by a rich, tongue-in-cheek story from award-winning games author Rhianna Pratchett, the game features Overlord favourites including Halflings, trolls, elves, and dwarves and introduces wicked witches, gingerbread men and Lil’ Red Riding Hood, the seeming sweet girl with a very personal lupine secret. Coming in 2009, Overlord Dark Legend is now in development at Climax Studios, exclusively for Wii.

OVERLORD™MINIONS

• Nintendo DS™

Meet Giblet, Blaze, Stench, and Zap – an elite Minion crew who, assisted by minion master Gnarl, get star billing in Overlord Minions , an irresistible and accessible puzzle action game, designed exclusively for Nintendo DS. In Overlord Minions , the Overlord commands the Minion team remotely. The Nintendo DS stylus becomes an extension of his evil will and every precise Touch Screen command is the player-as-Overlord directing, commanding and combining minions in battle, pointing and sweeping them to attack enemies and solving puzzles to execute his dastardly plans.

Controlling the Special Farces team of four, players negotiate fiendish levels and take on a huge range of warped enemies to hunt down the Kindred, a cult dedicated to resurrecting the mighty Dragon Kin, a race of humanoid dragon hybrids, determined to replace the Overlord’s despotism with their own. Extending the Overlord series’ trademark humour, gameplay focuses on the mischievous physical comedy of the minion’s antics and is delivered in a stylised cartoon visual style. Scheduled for release in 2009, Overlord Minions is now in development at Climax Studios exclusively for Nintendo DS.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Stu Taylor

Barrington Harvey

01462 456 780

stuart.taylor@bhpr.co.uk

Anna Larke

Barrington Harvey

01462 456 780

anna.larke@bhpr.co.uk

PRESS RESOURCE WEB SITE

Download game artwork, screens and essential Codemasters’ press materials direct to your desktop from: http://www.codemasters.com/mediabank

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Codemasters is a leading developer and publisher of best-selling interactive entertainment products for a global audience across multiple gaming platforms and channels. Established in 1986, the company’s dominant brands include Colin McRae DiRT, Race Driver GRID, Overlord and Operation Flashpoint; the company recently secured the exclusive worldwide video game rights to FORMULA 1. Codemasters is headquartered in Warwickshire UK, with North American operations based in Universal City, Calif. The company also maintains operations in Germany, France, Spain, Benelux and Malaysia. Codemasters receives over two million visitors to its web site every month, discover why at www.codemasters.com

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