LADYDRAGON.COM - EA AND LEGO INTERACTIVE TO CO-PUBLISH NEXT GENERATION VIDEO GAME BASED ON BEST-SELLING LEGO LINE: BIONICLE

Friday May 02, 2003

EA AND LEGO INTERACTIVE TO CO-PUBLISH NEXT GENERATION VIDEO GAME BASED ON BEST-SELLING LEGO LINE: BIONICLE

Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: ERTS) and LEGO Interactive today announced that BIONICLE , a fast-paced action adventure platform title based on one of the LEGO Company's most successful play materials of recent years, is under development. The game is slated to ship in fall 2003 for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, PC-CD, Xbox™ video game system and Nintendo GameCube™ game console.

In BIONICLE, players enter the world of Mata Nui, a paradise island where a shadow has been cast and the six heroes of destiny, called "Toa," have been chosen for the greatest challenge of all. Players will have the opportunity to live out the BIONICLE legend by playing the Toa, helping them evolve into the super Toa, or "Toa Nuva," and eventually find the seventh Toa. With the magical elemental powers that the Toa possess, players must defeat the shadow of darkness brought by a sinister villain, Makuta, and return Mata Nui to light. In all, from Toa to Toa Nuva, fans of BIONICLE will be able to play all 13 Toa.

BIONICLE delivers a classic good versus evil themed gameplay experience with the opportunity to battle opponents and explore a fascinating 3D world. Players will find themselves in a variety of gripping adventures such as crossing a molten river, gliding from tree to tree, and swimming in the deep waters of Lake Naho, all the while mastering a unique blend of puzzle-solving skills.

As players work to break Makuta's spell of darkness, they also will be challenged to rescue scattered islanders called "Matoran" along the way. The adventure unfolds in six elementally themed regions of Mata Nui, including high mountains, great lakes, and mighty volcanoes. Danger lurks around every corner, from battling with Makuta's foul minions to the island's many environmental hazards such as falling rocks, rainforest winds, and lava spills. Players will also be able to collect special power-ups to increase their elemental powers as they advance through the game.

BIONICLE is being developed by Argonaut Games and will be co-published by EA and LEGO Interactive. The PC version of the game will contain special features that take advantage of the Intel® Pentium® 4 processor with Hyper-Threading Technology to provide a better visual experience including high-resolution artwork, sky, lighting, and shadow and water effects for more realistic graphics in the 3D worlds.