| |
Site Navigation
Main
News
Forums
Games
Games Database
Top 100
Release List
Support Files
Features
Reviews
Previews
Interviews
Editorials
Diaries
Misc
Download
Gallery
Music
Screenshots
Videos
Miscellaneous
Staff Members
Privacy Statement
|
|
Frankly, this won't come as a surprise for you, if you are a regular reader of RPGDot, since we already spotted Icewind Dale 2 on a Release List by Virgin Interactive in January (story). Anyhow, here's the official announcement :-):
Black Isle Studios Announces Icewind Dale II
IRVINE, Calif., Feb. 4: Black Isle Studios, the role-playing game division
of Interplay Entertainment Corp. (Nasdaq: IPLY), announced today that a
sequel to the award-winning computer role-playing game Icewind Dale(TM) is
currently in development and will be distributed by Vivendi Universal Games
in North America. Icewind Dale(TM) II is scheduled to ship to retail on May
28, 2002.
Icewind Dale II is being created internally at Black Isle Studios and offers
more of the classic dungeon crawl experience, using the Dungeons &
Dragons(R) license from Wizards of the Coast. Based in part on the series of
books by New York Times best-selling author R.A. Salvatore, Icewind Dale II
will amaze players with new monsters, spells, and areas to explore within
the popular FORGOTTEN REALMS(R) campaign setting.
Icewind Dale II expands upon gameplay elements found in Icewind Dale,
offering players the ability to hone their combat skills and achieve even
more powerful possessions, spells, and experience. Icewind Dale II hosts a
large variety of new weapons, armor and magical items and features all the
spells from Icewind Dale and its expansion Icewind Dale(TM): Heart of
Winter(TM). Additionally, Icewind Dale II includes over 50 new spells such
as Executioner's Eyes and Aegis, bringing the total to over 300 spells.
In addition, over 100 new special items can be found in Icewind Dale II's
elevated "Heart of Fury" mode, first introduced in Icewind Dale: Heart of
Winter. This challenging mode enhances the game's replayability by allowing
players to face intensely difficult and strategic battles with their high
level, battle-hardened characters.
A generation after the events in Icewind Dale, a grave new threat has arisen
in the North; a threat that seeks to cut off the Ten-Towns from the rest of
Faerun in a bitter power struggle. A vicious horde of goblins, orcs, and
bugbears have gathered beneath the mysterious banner of the Chimera and are
attacking the port town of Targos. The town of Bremen has fallen, goblin
raiders ride the plains, and a stream of refugees are fleeing southwards to
Bryn Shander and beyond. Fearing that they will be overrun, Targos has sent
out a call for all able-bodied adventurers, soldiers, and mercenaries to
sail north to stand with the town's defenders against the encroaching horde,
and it's up to the players' small band of adventurers to save Targos from
destruction. Yet nothing is as it appears and as the shadow of the horde
falls on Targos, the players find themselves drawn into an escalating
conflict that plunges the region of Icewind Dale once again, into war.
Icewind Dale II makes use of a heavily modified version of the award-
winning BioWare(TM) Infinity Engine, originally developed for the Baldur's
Gate(TM) series. Modifications to the engine include a variety of features
originally developed for Baldur's Gate(TM) II: Shadows of Amn(TM), including
dual-wielding, class kits, new classes such as the Sorcerer and Monk as well
as 3D technology developed by BioWare. Icewind Dale II introduces new class
kits like the Mercenary, Giant Killer and the Dreadmaster of Bane among
others, plus new sub-races including the Drow and Tiefling.
Black Isle Studios, the creators of the Fallout(TM) series, Planescape(R):
Torment(TM) and the Icewind Dale saga, is proud to bring Icewind Dale II to
Windows(R) 95/98/ME/2000/XP-based computers. More information on Icewind
Dale II can be found at http://icewind2.blackisle.com .
Wizards of the Coast, a subsidiary of Hasbro (NYSE: HAS) and the worldwide
market share leader in the trading card game and tabletop role playing game
categories, is a leading developer and publisher of game-based entertainment
products as well as the owner and operator of one of the nation's largest
specialty game retail chains. Producing both the Pokemon(TM) and world's
best-selling Magic: The Gathering(R) trading card games, the company holds
an exclusive patent on the play mechanic of trading card games. Publisher of
adventure games such as the classic Dungeons & Dragons games, family card
and board games and electronic media products, Wizards of the Coast is also
one of the world's leading fantasy and science fiction book publishers.
Headquartered near Seattle, Washington, Wizards of the Coast has
international offices in Antwerp, Paris, Milan, London, Beijing and Sydney.
For more information on Wizards of the Coast, visit the company's web site
and electronic retail store at http://www.wizards.com .
Black Isle Studios is a division of Interplay Entertainment Corp., a leading
developer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment software
for both core gamers and the mass market. Interplay currently balances its
development efforts by publishing for personal computers as well as current
and next generation video game consoles. Interplay releases products through
Interplay, Shiny Entertainment, Digital Mayhem, Black Isle Studios, its
distribution partners and its wholly owned subsidiary Interplay OEM, Inc.
More comprehensive information on Interplay and its products is available
through its worldwide web site at http://www.interplay.com .
Here is the official site for Icewind Dale 2... (but it isn't online yet...) Addendum: It is online now, have a look... |
|
|
Icewind Dale 2 Announced!
