Electronic Arts Inc., today announced that Medal of Honor is now available at retail stores in North America. Co-developed by EA's Danger Close Studio in Los Angeles and DICE in Stockholm, Medal of Honor heralds the return of EA's storied first person shooter franchise with award-winning multiplayer combat and stunningly authentic single-player incursions. Set in today's real-world war zone and inspired by actual missions in Afghanistan, Medal of Honor was developed with unprecedented access to the U.S. Army as well as active and retired Tier 1 Operators. The game brings a new level of authenticity to interactivity, inspired by soldiers' stories from the war in Afghanistan, which the NY Times Magazine calls, "...transgressively real."
Medal of Honor has impressed critics and fans around the world with its authentic environments, advanced graphics, and outstanding gameplay. As Medal of Honor ships today, it launches with great momentum. Some highlights:
- Highest pre-orders in the 11-year history of the Medal of Honor franchise.
- Supported by a global marketing campaign including multiple TV spots during Monday Night Football and out-of-home billboards in top 6 U.S. markets including attention-getting real estate in Manhattan's Times Square.
- Over 180K Facebook fans and 25K Twitter followers before the game even shipped.
- Exposed Medal of Honor multiplayer to over 1M people across PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and PC platforms via two open betas to ensure the best performing multiplayer gameplay experience.
- PC Multiplayer Beta Peak Simultaneous Users (PSUs) outperformed EA's previous record-holder Battlefield: Bad Company 2 by 41%.
- According to internal estimates, Medal of Honor is slated to be the biggest blockbuster week-one event in October 2010 outpacing movies such as 'The Social Network' ($46M), 'Secretariat' ($12.6) and 'Life as We Know It' ($14.6). Box office estimates according to Boxofficemojo.com.
- Launched Linkin Park song "Catalyst" to #1 with music video set in the Medal of Honor fiction; 6.5M worldwide views to date making it #1 most viewed video on YouTube on August 1 and 2.
For the first time in its 11-year history, Medal of Honor leaves the WWII theatre and enters the modern setting of war-torn Afghanistan. The game is told through the lens of a small band of fictional characters within the real-life Tier 1 Operators, a relatively unknown instrument of the U.S. Military. Tier 1 Operators function under the National Command Authority to take on missions so dangerous, so specialized; they require an elite level of soldier. The unparalleled authenticity and realism in the Medal of Honor single player campaign is supported by a multiplayer mode awarded "Best Multiplayer of E3 2010" by GameSpy, with its dedicated servers and full feature set developed by DICE, delivering one of the most seamless online experiences of the year.
Medal of Honor is available now in North America and will be available in Europe on October 15, 2010 for the Xbox 360 videogame and entertainment system, PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system and PC. Medal of Honor is rated "M" for Mature by the ESRB.