D&D Online: Eberron Unlimited Brings in Over 1 Million New Players

Turbine just fired over a press release announcing that over one million new players have signed up for Dungeons & Dragons Online since the launch of its Eberron Unlimited free-to-play component. Impressive!

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS ONLINE®: EBERRON UNLIMITEDâ„¢ SURPASSES ONE MILLION NEW PLAYERS

Best Free-to-Play MMO Marks Four Years of Operation with Sharp Growth

WESTWOOD, MA February 26, 2010 Turbine, Inc. announced today that Dungeons & Dragons Online®: Eberron Unlimitedâ„¢ (DDO Unlimited), the world’s best free-to-play massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) has already attracted over one million new players since its September 2009 launch. The massive influx of new players has been across all of the various consumer plans available. DDO Unlimited’s paid subscriber base has more than doubled, while at the same time players are transacting in the new DDO store at three times the industry average, growing the franchise’s revenue over 500% since its launch in September.

DDO Unlimited is a free-to-play MMORPG which delivers heart-pounding gameplay featuring the industry’s best combat system, a massive world with state-of-the-art graphics and gameplay, and a rich set of features that until now could only be found in premium subscription-based MMOs. DDO Unlimited offers an innovative new pricing model that allows players to download and play for free, purchasing adventure packs, items, and account services a la carte from the new DDO Store, or to subscribe to get unlimited access to all of the game’s content. Players can download and play DDO Unlimited for free by visiting http://www.ddo.com.

(The response from players to DDO Unlimited has been nothing short of phenomenal,) said Jim Crowley, president and CEO of Turbine, Inc. (We’ve known all along how great this game is and by implementing an innovative new model that put the players in charge of how they pay and play DDO Unlimited, we’ve successfully expanded our reach and injected new energy into the game. Without a doubt, DDO Unlimited is a hit!)

(The launch of DDO Unlimited has been a huge success and has really taken the game to a new level,) said Fernando Paiz, Executive Producer of DDO Unlimited. (As we celebrate our 4th birthday, the game has never been better and we’re just getting started with more adventure packs, more store items, and other innovative features coming in the major updates we have planned throughout 2010.)

DDO Unlimited is based on the world-renowned DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® franchise of Wizards of the Coast LLC, a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc.® (NYSE: HAS), under license to Atari, SA. DDO has been enthusiastically received by many gaming critics, including The New York Times, PC Gamer, Game Informer and many more. For the latest information, please visit www.ddo.com.

About Turbine
Turbine, Inc. is the premier creator and operator of massive, persistent online worlds that foster powerful social gaming communities. Turbine is the largest privately-held online gaming studio in North America and has created some of the world’s most popular and award-winning online games, including The Lord of the Rings Onlineâ„¢, Dungeons & Dragons Online®: Eberron Unlimitedâ„¢, and Asheron’s Call®. For more information on Turbine, its products and services please visit www.turbine.com.

About ATARI, SA
Atari group is a global creator, producer and publisher of interactive entertainment for interactive game platforms that include PC, online, consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony and advanced smart phones (i.e. iPhone). Divisions of Atari, SA include Cryptic Studios, Eden Studios, Atari Interactive, Inc. and Atari, Inc.

Atari benefits from its global brand and an extensive catalogue of popular games based on classic owned game franchises (Asteroids®, Centipede®, Missile Command®, Lunar Lander®), original owned franchises (Test Drive®, Backyard Sportsâ„¢, Deer Hunter®), MMO games from Cryptic Studios (Star Trek Online, Champions Online) and third party franchises (Ghostbusters®, Project Runwayâ„¢, Dungeons and Dragons®).

For more information please visit www.atari.com

About Hasbro
Hasbro (NYSE: HAS) is a worldwide leader in children’s and family leisure time entertainment products and services, including the design, manufacture and marketing of games and toys ranging from traditional to high-tech. Both internationally and in the U.S., its PLAYSKOOL, TONKA, MILTON BRADLEY, PARKER BROTHERS, TIGER and WIZARDS OF THE COAST brands and products provide the highest quality and most recognizable play experiences in the world.

About Wizards of the Coast
Wizards of the Coast LLC, a subsidiary of Hasbro, Inc. (NYSE:HAS), is the worldwide leader in entertaining the lifestyle gamer. The company holds an exclusive patent on trading card games (TCGs) and their method of play and produces the premier trading card game, Magic: The Gathering®, among many other trading card games and family card and board games. Wizards is also a leading publisher of role-playing games, such as Dungeons & Dragons, and publisher of fantasy series fiction with numerous New York Times best-sellers. For more information, visit the Wizards of the Coast website at www.wizards.com.