Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning Novel

Electronics Arts and BL Publishing issued a press release this morning announcing plans to release a novel based on Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning.

EA AND BL PUBLISHING ANNOUNCE NOVEL BASED ON HIGHLY ANTICIPATED WARHAMMER ONLINE: AGE OF RECKONING

First Novel in New Series Explores Depth of the Fantasy MMORPG Game World

CHERTSEY, UK August 31, 2007 Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) and BL Publishing, a division of Games Workshop, announced today that BL Publishing will release an original novel based on the highly anticipated MMORPG, Warhammer® Online: Age of Reckoning™ (WAR). The first book in the new series of novels set in the Age of Reckoning, EMPIRE IN CHAOS will be available in all major bookstores and on the BL Publishing website in early 2008.
In EMPIRE IN CHAOS, by noted Games Workshop author Anthony Reynolds, the lands of the Empire are being ravaged by a terrible plague. When Annaliese Jaeger’s village is overrun and destroyed by mutants, she and an injured Elf captive are the only survivors. As the two unlikely companions fight their way towards Black Fire Pass, Annaliese discovers within herself powers of courage and faith that inspire all around her. With a grizzled Witch Hunter and a Dwarf Ironbreaker, the heroes battle alongside the armies of the Empire and the Dwarfs, above and below the earth, against greenskin tribes and the hordes of Chaos. Together, they must find their courage and help turn back the tides of darkness, lest all of the Empire be lost.

Mark Jacobs, VP and General Manager at EA Mythic commented, (We’re excited to be working with BL Publishing and Anthony Reynolds to bring our game to life and explore the rich depth of WAR’s epic story. BL Publishing has released many great novels set in Games Workshop’s Warhammer world and we are proud to have a book based on our game join the ranks of such notable works.)

Anthony Reynolds, the author of the novel remarked, (The Warhammer world is a grim place, full of horror, violence and dark humor, and the EA Mythic team have really brought that to life – faithfully creating a living, breathing, bellicose world being torn apart by constant warfare. It’s the perfect backdrop for a novel. I’d been following the progress of the game for some time and it was easy to see that Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning was going to be something special.)

For further information about the novel, EMPIRE IN CHAOS, visit www.blacklibrary.com.

Based on Games Workshop’s epic tabletop fantasy war game, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning features revolutionary Realm vs. Realmâ„¢ (RvR) game play and is scheduled for release on the PC in the first quarter of 2008. More than 400,000 players have signed up for the closed beta test in Europe and North America, making it one of the most popular beta tests in massively multiplayer gaming history. The Beta Center is still open and accepting applications at: https://betacenter.eamythic.com/signup.php.

For more information about Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning, please visit www.warhammeronline.com.

About the Author
After finishing university, Anthony Reynolds set sail from his homeland and ventured forth to foreign climes. He ended up settling in the UK, and managed to con his way into Games Workshop’s hallowed Design Studio. There he worked for four years as a Games Developer and two years as part of the Management team. He now resides back in his hometown of Sydney, overlooking the beach and enjoying the sun and the surf, though he finds that to capture the true darkness and horror of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 he has taken to writing in what could be described as a darkened cave.

About BL Publishing
BL Publishing is a division of industry giant Games Workshop and has been publishing award-winning fiction set in the Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 game worlds through their The Black Library imprint for over ten years. Visit them online at www.blacklibrary.com

About Warhammer® Online: Age of Reckoning™ (WAR)
War is everywhere in Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning (WAR), the new MMORPG from the creators of Dark Age of Camelotâ„¢. Based on Games Workshop’s wildly successful Warhammer tabletop fantasy war game, WAR features next generation Realm vs. Realm (RvR) game play that will immerse players in a world of perpetual conflict. Players can choose to join the Armies of Order (Dwarfs, High Elves, and human subjects of the Empire) or the sinister Armies of Destruction (Orcs and Goblins, Dark Elves, and human worshippers of Chaos) with the ultimate goal in RvR combat being the sacking of an enemy’s Capital City. To do this, an army must invade and take control of the opposition’s homeland. Deciding battles take place on objective-based Battlefields and in instanced Scenarios – point-balanced battles that make use of NPC mercenaries known as Dogs of War. For the first time, WAR’s RvR system integrates both Player vs. Player (PvP) combat and Player vs. Environment (PvE) content on the same map. This means that every aspect of the game, including PvE missions and innovative Public Questsâ„¢, is geared towards the greater war in some important way. Drawing from a quarter century of highly detailed source material, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning will bring Games Workshop’s fantasy world to life in a way that will allow players to create characters destined for great deeds and glory on the field of battle. To learn more about the game, please visit www.warhammeronline.com.

About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA), headquartered in Redwood City, California, is the world’s leading interactive entertainment software company. Founded in 1982, the company develops, publishes, and distributes interactive software worldwide for video game systems, personal computers, cellular handsets and the Internet. Electronic Arts markets its products under four brand names: EA SPORTSâ„¢, EAâ„¢, EA SPORTS BIGâ„¢ and POGOâ„¢. In fiscal 2007, EA posted revenue of $3.09 billion and had 24 titles that sold more than one million copies. EA’s homepage and online game site is www.electronicarts.co.uk. More information about EA’s products and full text of press releases can be found on the Internet at www.electronicarts.co.uk/press.