Champions of Norrath Announced

Like Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance... except better.

Although the game's already made its debut on the game-magazine circuit, Sony Online Entertainment finally got around to opening up an official homepage today for Champions of Norrath: Realms of EverQuest, a brand-new game inspired by their neverending MMORPG series. The current site is unfortunately just a teaser for the full July 10 online launch, but it still gives a small taste of what to expect from this rather hot PS2 title.

Champions of Norrath is under development by Snowblind Studios, the outfit responsible for the first Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance, and the best way to describe this title is "Dark Alliance with an EverQuest skin tacked on". After choosing a character from five races (all from the real EQ game, of course), your champion will go on a journey through 45 levels of randomly-generated battlefields, with the grand total of areas to explore hovering around the 50-odd range. The scope of this quest is staggering, especially compared to the short jaunt BG:DA was?there are over 10,000 different items in this game, and Snowblind's pinched EQ's skill system for this game, so you've got hundreds of levels of combat and magic abilities to master over time. (Another feature which BG:DA fans should be elated about: you can zoom the camera in on the action during battles, so you aren't stuck with the same waaaaaaaaay-out view the entire game.)

This is a Sony Online Entertainment title, of course, so online play will be an integral part of Champions. Up to four people can play at once?either via your Network Adaptor or through a multitap?and you can import your current character into the online world of Norrath no matter where he is in the game's story. The result is something that sounds uncannily like Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles?one wonders if Square is concerned at all.

Excited yet? GamePro's seen the game in action and the editors are definitely excited, so stick around for the full report once SOE gives us the sign.

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