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Magic The Gathering: Battlegrounds

PC, Xbox

25th October 2003, 11:32am
Atari recently announced that Magic The Gathering: Battlegrounds will be available in November 2003.

Magic The Gathering: Battlegrounds will be available on both the Xbox and PC. The Xbox version will offer Xbox Live support which will allow for Online gameplay as well as downloadable content.

Atari, Australia’s premier source of interactive software, proudly announces “Magic The Gathering: Battlegrounds” for Xbox and PC CD-ROM, published by Atari and releasing in November 2003.

Under license from Hasbro Consumer Products, Atari is bringing one of the most popular trading card games ever created to the Xbox videogame system from Microsoft with the release of Magic the Gathering: Battlegrounds.

A PC CD-ROM version of the game was will also be released. Currently in development by Secret Level, Magic the Gathering: Battlegrounds is filled with faithful translations of classic creatures, spells and enchantments from the premier trading card game in a visually stunning 3D game environment rife with real-time strategic fighting, devastating wizard arsenals and intense creature combat.

“Magic is a game that is constantly evolving and offering players new challenges and avenues. When we started developing the video game we were looking for ways to expand the Magic experience interactively to match, and thus made the game real-time with significant Xbox Live! Support.” said Jeff Wong, Senior Product Manager, Atari Australia “Magic the Gathering: Battlegrounds is utterly different to any Magic game to date. It is like no other Magic game to date, boasting incredibly fast-paced action, eye-popping 3D graphics and tons of strategic fighting. On top of all that, we’ve gone to great lengths to deliver Xbox Live! features to allow players to compete against friends worldwide, track their stats and rank as well as download new creatures, spells, arenas and more.”

Just as in the Magic card game, in Magic the Gathering: Battlegrounds players will choose a duelist and up to two of Magic's five colours -- red, green, white, blue, and black -- to attempt to reduce their opponent’s life to zero. Of course, getting an opponent to zero will not be easy, players will have to utilise lightning-fast reflexes, strategic brilliance and, on occasion, raw power to overcome an enemy.

An important aspect to Magic the Gathering: Battlegrounds will involve the player’s mastery of the five colours in the development of his/her duelist. Each colour has a proficiency at certain types of activities, such as attacking, defending and healing. Players will be able to select up to two colours and utilise creatures, spells and enchantments in any combination from those schools. For example, a red duelist may choose to augment the attacking powers of his Lava Dragon by adding powerful green enchantments to his arsenal or increase his resilience by using white’s restorative powers instead.

Magic the Gathering: Battlegrounds will feature an engrossing single-player Quest Mode featuring a story that includes characters from Magic: The GatheQuest Mode will be comprised of six chapters, each featuring up to 15 quests. Most quests will involve battles with resident duelists, sub-bosses or bosses who often control a particular creature or spell that the player has not yet acquired. As the player progresses, the resident duelists get tougher and control more powerful spells. Upon defeating these opponents, players can gain access to these new spells and creatures; the enemy duelist becomes playable within the game; and, the player can select from various clothing and other accoutrements, allowing players to customise the look of their chosen duelist.

In addition to acquiring new spells, Magic the Gathering: Battlegrounds will provide players with the ability to increase their duelist’s power with special artifacts. Artifacts are magical relics with varying effects that, when used correctly, enhance a duelist's chances of victory. Every time a single-player chapter is completed by defeating that chapter's sub-boss, the player can select one of several artifacts to add to his/her collection.

More than 350,000 Xbox gamers are currently enjoying online game play and downloadable content via Xbox Live! Magic the Gathering: Battlegrounds will feature an entire host of features that take full advantage of this new opportunity for extended online play. Xbox Live! features will include: a global ranking and statistics system; new downloadable content; convenient cross title invitations; opponent feedback forums; a robust friends list; voice chat; and, more.
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by Damien