Sony Online Entertainment Announces EverQuest®: Dragons of Norrath™ Expansion for EverQuest

Sony Online Entertainment Inc. (SOE), a worldwide leader in massively multiplayer online gaming, today announced EverQuest®: Dragons of Norrath™, a new expansion for the incredibly popular PC Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), EverQuest®. EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath is scheduled to be available at retail and for digital download from Sony Online Entertainment for U.S. $29.99 in February 2005 with a special incentive price for U.S. and European consumers who pre-order and digitally download directly from Sony Online Entertainment.

"The EverQuest development team continues to deliver new content, adventures and features in yet another thrilling expansion pack for the world of EverQuest," said Michael Lustenberger, vice president of marketing, Sony Online Entertainment. "Combining the power of the new graphics engine and nostalgic new storylines, EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath offers a beautiful new world and challenging new quests sure to please both new and veteran EverQuest players alike."

EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath returns EverQuest to its original foundation with appearances from a familiar cast of characters who will find themselves at the forefront of events transpiring across the world. Featuring new lands with enhanced graphics, bold new storylines, updated creatures including goblins, drakes and the ominous Frost Giant, and all-new guild management tools, EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath is the next great expansion pack for the fantasy adventure that is EverQuest. Make ready with new features such as the ability to regenerate your mana/health before a battle, easier inventory access via a potion belt, and the ability and to quickly swap pre-arranged weapons sets using a bandolier. All-new guild hall management tools allow players to easily ready their guild for encounters! EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath is bursting with new adventures and features for players of all levels.

About EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath

A series of events has transpired across the world of Norrath and the familiar faces of Firiona Vie and her nemesis Lanys T'Vyl return to find themselves at the forefront of these events. Unbeknownst to them, a dark influence has seeped into the world of Norrath causing new tensions to arise and conflicts to intensify as the dawn of a new age emerges. The Age of War is upon the people of Norrath and heroes return in this ultimate, unending battle between good and evil. EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath includes the following features:

  Feature Set:
   *  New Zones, Creatures and Content -- From Lavastorm to the Thundercrest
      Isles, adventure in graphically enhanced zones with all new themes.
      Brave challenging new quests, discover new treasures, and battle new
      NPC's, including drakes, goblins and fierce dragons.

   *  New Interactive World Map -- A full color interactive map of the world
      allows players to point-and-click from a world view down to a zone
      view of the traditional line maps.

   *  Player Barter System -- Allows players to set up their own method of
      giving platinum or items in exchange for other items.

   *  Potion Belt -- Allows for quick use of inventory items.

   *  Bandolier Equip -- Lets characters have two sets of pre-arranged
      weapons for each hand.

   *  New Spells, Tradeskills, and Recipes.

  All-New Guild Hall Management Tools:
   *  Guild Halls -- An instanced guild hall for guild members to meet and
      prepare for playing.

   *  Guild Bank -- Bank slot for storage of items accessible by all
      designated members of a guild.

   *  Guild Stone -- Allows guild members to easily port to the Instanced
      Guild Hall.

   *  Mana/health Regen Pool -- Allows players to easily regenerate their
      mana and health in preparation for battle while in the guild hall.

   *  Mass Corpse Summoning Altar -- Allows guilds to summon guild corpses
      en masse to the altar room.

   *  Guild Portal -- Allows guild members to purchase the ability to have a
      persistent port to pre-determined areas around the world.

   *  Guild Tradeskill Objects -- Various tradeskill tools are located in
      the guild hall for easy access by guild members.

   *  Guild 'Looking for Members' Tool -- Allows guilds to recruit by
      placing persistent "ads" on bulletin boards, search for player
      characters who match guild criteria and send in-game emails to those
      members.

   *  Players 'Looking for Guild' Tool -- Allows players to find guilds
      recruiting members.

   *  Buff timers -- Allows guild members to suspend buff timers while in
      guild halls.

The new expansion will be downloadable via the EverQuest Station Store for U.S. $29.99 (plus tax where applicable). A special incentive price will be available to consumers who pre-order and digitally download direct from Sony Online Entertainment. Additionally, retailers will be offering a boxed version that will carry a suggested retail price of $29.99, which includes a special in-box item and in-game item. For more information on EverQuest: Dragons of Norrath, please visit: http://www.dragonsofnorrath.com/.

About EverQuest

Developed and published by Sony Online Entertainment Inc. (SOE), EverQuest launched in 1999 and has since become both a gaming and cultural phenomenon. The game has sold more than 2 million copies while continuing to grow with award-winning expansions The Ruins of Kunark®, The Scars of Velious®, The Shadows of Luclin™, The Planes of Power™, The Legacy of Ykesha™, Lost Dungeons of Norrath™, Gates of Discord™ and Omens of War™, making it the largest online 3D fantasy world ever created. During peak periods, more than 118,000 simultaneous adventurers have explored the fully detailed world of Norrath, filled with monsters, magic, adventure and more. Sony Online is committed to bringing EverQuest to various entertainment platforms, releasing titles such as EverQuest Online Adventures and Champions of Norrath™: Realms of EverQuest for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, EverQuest for the Pocket PC and EverQuest: Hero's Call for wireless phones. In 2004, SOE launched the highly-anticipated EverQuest II on PCs around the globe.

About Sony Online Entertainment

Sony Online Entertainment Inc. (SOE), a subsidiary of Sony Pictures Digital Inc., is a recognized worldwide leader in massively multiplayer online games, with a subscriber base of over 800,000 active accounts around the globe. SOE creates, develops and provides compelling entertainment for the personal computer, online, game console and wireless markets. Known for its blockbuster franchises, EverQuest®, EverQuest II, Champions of Norrath and PlanetSide®, as well as for developing Star Wars Galaxies™: An Empire Divided™, SOE continues to redefine the business of online gaming and the creation of active player communities while introducing new genres on various entertainment platforms. Headquartered in San Diego, CA, with an additional development studio in Austin, TX, SOE has an array of cutting-edge online games in development.

EverQuest is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment America Inc. SOE, the SOE logo and PlanetSide are registered trademarks of Sony Online Entertainment Inc. All other trademarks and trade names are properties of their respective owners. All rights reserved.

SOURCE: Sony Online Entertainment Inc.

CONTACT: Tamara Sanderson, +1-858-577-3362, tsanderson@soe.sony.com, or
Sean Kauppinen, +1-858-577-3387, seank@soe.sony.com, both of Sony Online
Entertainment