Facing sorcery, malice and destruction has never been more intriguing: Psygnosis' new
Action adventure, Drakan, teams you up with a well-equipped companion, a dragon named Arokh
- PC CD-ROM Title Brings New Dimension to 3D Gaming With Awesome Seamless Air, Land and Underworld Environments -
Atlanta, GA - May 28, 1998 - Psygnosis is introducing DRAKANΓäó, a new action-adventure that combines the best of all worlds: an intriguing storyline, thrilling adventures, heroic battles and a right-hand dragon to help you cut through the mire - all within seamless 3D environments never before experienced in a game for PC CD-ROM. DRAKAN is planned for release in January 1999 and promises to be one of the years most hotly anticipated PC games.
Taking 3D technology to new heights, DRAKAN lets players explore vast, unrestricted worlds and experience fluid lifelike animations and seamless transitions from indoor to outdoor. This freedom of exploration gives players a sense of "being there," immersing them in the story and into the action.
In DRAKAN, the player takes on the persona of Rynn, a feisty female heroine who intuitively uses her fearsome and well-equipped dragon, Arokh, both in air and on land, to battle hoards of adversaries and ultimately defeat the evil sorcerer, Kulrik, who has plunged the Earth under a spell of darkness. Rynn is an acrobatic, sword-wielding warrior who takes on this epic challenge through high-flying aerial battles, fast and furious sword-fighting and tactical puzzle-solving. A classic fantasy plot provides the starting point for the action that takes place in organic, natural worlds - in the skies, on the earth's surface and even underground. A gripping adventure results that will astound players with its immersive beauty and challenging gameplay.
Soaring Gameplay
DRAKAN is played from a third person perspective and combines two styles of combat and exploration; ground-based and aerial. The game features two compelling and bonded characters, Rynn and Arokh, who together must heroically reclaim their world of peace and beauty from evil. Rynn is a hot-tempered, determined young woman who, over the course of the game, grows to realize and utilize her power. Her ground-based actions include jumping, running, swimming and climbing ladders. She also engages in fierce hand-to-hand combat using her arsenal of over 50 different weapons including swords, spears, crossbows and maces. Rynn also uses a variety of spells to defend against Kulrik's potent magic.
Arokh is a mighty dragon, and Rynn's protector who breathes fire and a host of other projectile weapons (lava, fireballs, ice) to eliminate those who cross their path. The player controls Rynn individually or both heroine and dragon, when Rynn rides on Arokh's back. Their adventure takes them through 14 multi-mission levels in five beautifully rendered and uniquely different 3D worlds. The worlds are unrestricted allowing players free exploration, and an intuitive interface makes this game extremely easy to pick up and play.
Advanced Graphics
The five worlds are amazingly organic and natural looking, and are laden with dozens of creatures. The main characters and the enemies themselves are all created with a single skin and use an advanced single-skin skeletal animation system, which allows smooth mixing of animations, like running and attacking simultaneously. The proprietary "layer" technology also allows very seamless transitions between indoor and outdoor environments, creating an uninterrupted flow in the action and heightening the player's overall experience. For instance, while riding on Arokh, you may spot a cave on a mountain in the distance, fly there, dismount, walk inside and begin to explore. Real-time object lighting overlays the skeletal and layer technologies embellishing DRAKAN far beyond the established standards of 3D PC gaming.
Tech Specs
Drakan is being developed for Psygnosis by Surreal Software. In addition to single player mode, the game offers multiplayer support up to eight players via the Internet and LAN and also offers modem play. Minimum hardware requirements are a P166, 16 MB RAM and graphics hardware acceleration. Recommended specs are a P233 with 32 MB RAM and 3Dfx Voodoo1 graphics acceleration or equivalent. Additional features are supported with Voodoo 2 acceleration or equivalent.
DRAKAN is being developed for Psygnosis by Surreal Software and is one of the first titles being produced by Psygnosis' new San Francisco development studio.
