See a gaming paradigm shift in action, pre-order Dungeon Siege III on steam and get the first two for free

by: Chuck - posted: 4/9/2011 9:49:00 AM

Square Enix is going to provide you with the opportunity to see if a major shift in the core game design mechanics in action as they are giving PC gamers the first two Dungeon Siege games for free if they pre-order Dungeon Siege III on Steam.  This will allow gamers to play through both games in advance of the new game and will allow them to judge for themselves if all the changes (like introducing fixed classes) were a good idea or not. 

It's also a steal of a deal as you're getting two solid RPG's  and an unknown quantity for $49.99.  With the recent delay in the release you should have plenty of time to get through the first two games before Dungeon Siege III is unlocked on your PC.

Pre-purchase DUNGEON SIEGE III Through Steam and Receive

DUNGEON SIEGE I and DUNGEON SIEGE II for Free

PC Version to Ship with Steamworks, Includes Suite of Services for Gamers Around the World

LOS ANGELES (April 8, 2011) - Valve and Square Enix, Inc., the publisher of SQUARE ENIX® interactive entertainment products in the Americas, today announced that customers who pre-purchase DUNGEON SIEGE® III through Steam® will be given free digital copies of the classic DUNGEON SIEGE I and DUNGEON SIEGE II games that they can access and play immediately. Additionally, all PC versions of the upcoming epic action-RPG will include a host of Steamworks® features, including auto-updating, Steam Achievements, Steam Cloud support, downloadable content and more.

In DUNGEON SIEGE III, players assume the role of one of four heroes, fighting for the sake of their fallen comrades to restore the land of Ehb. Conflict is constant in this action-RPG and decisions have lasting consequences, allowing players to alter the storyline. Choose to battle along with a companion or fight for honor with up to four friends via online co-op play. DUNGEON SIEGE III allows for two players to experience the story from start to finish in local co-op mode. Thanks to the robust AI, DUNGEON SIEGE III’s co-op multiplayer mode allows players to seamlessly drop in and out of battle without interrupting the action or impacting the campaign.



"Providing DUNGEON SIEGE I and DUNGEON SIEGE II free of charge through Steamworks is Square Enix’s way of showing appreciation to the fans of the DUNGEON SIEGE franchise," said David Hoffman, executive producer for DUNGEON SIEGE III. "Selecting Steamworks to be integrated into the upcoming DUNGEON SIEGE III title made perfect sense as we wanted to provide the best possible gameplay experience for PC gamers and long-standing fans of the series.”



“DUNGEON SIEGE III is joining a long line-up of Square Enix titles using Steamworks,” said Jason Holtman, director of business development for Valve. “Our focus for Steam is on enabling developers to spend time on creating value for our customers, and seeing the DUNGEON SIEGE franchise re-emerge, with its all-new co-op mode and inclusion of Steamworks, is a great example of that.”



Players will experience the much-awaited next chapter in the DUNGEON SIEGE lore on the Xbox 360® video game and entertainment system from Microsoft, the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system and Windows PC. DUNGEON SIEGE III is rated T for Teen. Please visit the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) website at www.esrb.org for more information about ratings. For more information about DUNGEON SIEGE III, please visit the official website at: http://dungeonsiege.com.



About Square Enix, Inc.

Square Enix, Inc. develops, publishes, distributes and licenses SQUARE ENIX®, EIDOS® and TAITO® branded entertainment content throughout the Americas as part of the Square Enix Group. The Square Enix Group operates a global network of leading development studios and boasts a valuable portfolio of intellectual property, including: FINAL FANTASY®, which has sold over 97 million units worldwide; DRAGON QUEST®, which has sold over 57 million units worldwide; TOMB RAIDER®, which has sold over 35 million units worldwide; and the legendary SPACE INVADERS®. Square Enix, Inc. is a U.S.-based, wholly-owned subsidiary of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.


More information on Square Enix, Inc. can be found at www.square-enix.com/na.


About Obsidian Entertainment, Inc.

Obsidian Entertainment, Inc., creators of Fallout®: New Vegas™, Star Wars® Knights of the Old Republic® II: The Sith Lords™, Alpha Protocol™ and Neverwinter Nights™ 2, is an entertainment software development company passionately dedicated to the creation of unique role-playing experiences for console systems and Windows-based PCs. More information on Obsidian Entertainment, Inc. can be found at www.obsidian.net.



About Steam
The leading online platform for PC games and digital entertainment, Steam delivers new releases and online services to over 25 million PC and Mac users around the world. For more information, please visit www.steamgames.com.



About Valve
Valve is an entertainment software and technology company founded in 1996 and based in Bellevue, Washington. For more information, please visit www.valvesoftware.com.



DUNGEON SIEGE, DRAGON QUEST, EIDOS, FINAL FANTASY, SQUARE ENIX, the SQUARE ENIX logo, SPACE INVADERS, TAITO and TOMB RAIDER are registered trademarks or trademarks of the Square Enix Group. OBSIDIAN ENTERTAINMENT is a trademark of Obsidian Entertainment, Inc. VALVE, STEAM and STEAMWORKS are registered trademarks of Valve Corporation. “PlayStation” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. Windows, Xbox, Xbox 360 and Xbox LIVE are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. All other marks are the properties of their respective owners.