Ubisoft announces Dark Messiah of Might & Magic

Ubisoft announces Dark Messiah of Might & Magic

While the world waits for Heroes of Might & Magic 5, Ubisoft has announced its plan to develop Dark Messiah of Might & Magic, a first-person action title from Arx Fatalis developer Arkane Studios. They describe that the game would be a fantasy-action game to use a first-person combat system. They acquired the rights to the famed franchise in 2003.

They expect to launch this new game by summer 2006. More details should be out at the German Games Convention later this month. The game would be powered by an enhanced version of the Source gaming engine, which was also used to develop the ultimately beautiful Half Life 2. The game is expected to take full advantage of the Source Engine’s exceptional technological enhancements in areas such as character animation, advanced AI, real-world physics and shader-based rendering.

About Ubisoft:

Ubisoft is a leading producer, publisher and distributor of interactive entertainment products worldwide and has grown considerably through its strong and diversified lineup of products and partnerships. Ubisoft has offices in 21 countries and sales in more than 50 countries around the globe. Ubisoft is committed to delivering high-quality, cutting-edge video game titles to consumers. Ubisoft generated revenue of €538 million for the 2004-2005 fiscal year, an increase of 8 percent over the previous fiscal year at constant exchange rates. To learn more, please visit www.ubisoftgroup.com.

About Arkane Studios:

Arkane Studios is an independent game development studio created in 1999. Based in Lyon – France, Arkane released its first game, Arx Fatalis, in 2002. With its innovative magic and items combination systems and gorgeous graphics, this critically acclaimed first-person action RPG earned major awards, including a nomination as “Rookie Studio of the Year” at the prestigious GDC Awards Ceremony. Today Arkane Studios builds on this expertise to develop innovative Action-RPGs.