Return to Middle-earth(TM) to forge a new adventure... Electronic Arts (Nasdaq:ERTS) announced today that The Lord of the Rings(TM), The Third Age(TM) role-playing game has shipped and will be on store shelves in time for the holiday season. The epic quest, in which players will take on the roles of previously unplayable characters choosing their own path through Middle-earth while interacting with the heroes and villains of the movie trilogy, is available for the PlayStation(R)2 computer entertainment system, the Xbox(R) videogame system from Microsoft, Nintendo GameCube(TM), and Game Boy(R) Advance under the EA GAMES(TM) brand.

Based on New Line Cinema and Peter Jackson's acclaimed film adaptations of J.R.R. Tolkien's classic The Lord of the Rings(TM) trilogy, The Lord of the Rings, The Third Age videogame allows players to adventure through Middle-earth, building a party of heroes as they journey. Players battle on the side of the Fellowship, but can unlock additional encounters where they fight on the side of Sauron as they progress. In the game, players will interact with key characters of the Fellowship in a unique structure, taking on individual quests while intersecting the major events of the film trilogy that drive the story forward such as the epic battles at Helm's Deep and Minas Tirith. Parties will traverse through both familiar and seldom-glimpsed locations, using an innovative turn-based battle system as they fight, encountering the demonic Balrog in the Mines of Moria, or defending the fallen city of Osgiliath.