Atari ships BattleZone for PlayStation Portable

Atari today said their PSP title BattleZone (note: the Web site doesn't seem to be launched yet) was now available at retail for $29.95. This game, developed by Paradigm Entertainment, is "set in futuristic international military environments" and "puts players in control of highly maneuverable hover tanks, challenging them in close combat scenarios against their rivals. BattleZone features fast and furious gameplay, photo-realistic environments, eight unique customizable team vehicles, an assortment of high-powered weapons and multiplayer battles. The four-player wireless mode lets players go head to head, while unlockable weapons, vehicles and upgrades add even greater depth to the gameplay experience. In addition, extra game content will be available through the BattleZone web site, www.battlezonegame.com, offering gamers news, leader boards and an exclusive online level builder tool that allows players to customize game maps. The extra content can then be downloaded to the player's PSP system through a local PC-USB connection.

BattleZone provides players with six popular and well-known game modes, including Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, Team Deathmatch, Hotzone, Knockout, and Fox and Hound. For casual gamers, the single player mode offers an easy learning curve for pick-up and play gaming and a tournament progression to win upgrades and enhancements.

Designed to take advantage of the PSP system's high quality display, BattleZone's crisp environments depict military combat arenas from around the world. Specific sights include abandoned cities of Russia, jungles of China, desert canyons of the United States, Antarctica's frozen tundra and the Canary Islands. Players can fight their way through the compelling open play of ten worlds in BattleZone, two of which can be customized online and transferred to their PSP system."