Champions Online Gets Raptr Support

Accompanying the Champions Online launch announcement is a press release outlining the superhero MMO's support for the Raptr social utility.
RAPTR PARTNERS PROGRAM ADDS CRYPTIC STUDIOS TO ITS GROWING LIST OF LEADING GAME COMPANIES

Leading MMOG Developer Bundling Raptr with Champions Online Title And Using Raptr to Surface In-Game Achievements And Player Data

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., September 1, 2009 Raptr (http://raptr.com), the social utility that allows you to connect with your gaming friends and see what the world is playing, today announced that Cryptic Studios, a leading developer of massively multiplayer online games, has joined the Raptr Partners Program. Cryptic Studios will bundle Raptr with Champions Online's general launch on September 1 in the U.S. and September 4 in Europe.

Champions Online will be integrated with Raptr APIs to surface game data such as character level, powerful items, and heroic achievements. By entering their Raptr username in the Champions Online in-game status sharing screen, players can automatically connect their Champions Online account to Raptr and share rank, status, items acquired, and achievements earned with their friends and other players.

(Gamers already interact with each other across dozens of platforms and communications vehicles, including IM, Facebook and Twitter. Raptr brings all of this together, supporting every major IM service, and allowing any player to enter just their Raptr ID to broadcast to all the services they use,) said Dennis Fong, Founder and CEO, Raptr. (Our initial integration with Cryptic's Champions Online will expose our service to an even greater number of gamers. It also demonstrates that game developers across all categories are beginning to embrace the notion that connections between friends are a powerful way to reach new users and better understand customer behavior.)

(Cryptic Studios has always been committed to building enthusiasm across many different game audiences,) said John Needham, CEO, Cryptic Studios. (Bundling Raptr with Champions Online and integrating with Raptr's API provides us with a proven and highly effective viral channel for reaching new users and gaining greater insight into the how our customers interact with one another, what titles they play and how they communicate about our products.)

Raptr members can access the Champions Online Raptr game page here and can track their achievements against all players of Champions Online here. Companies interested in signing up for the Raptr Partners Program can visit http://partners.raptr.com for more information. People interested in experiencing the Raptr service can get it for free at http://raptr.com.

About Champions Online
Champions Online brings epic heroism back to the MMORPG with fast-paced, epic combat. A boundless character creator takes the experience to the next level; players can even choose the appearance and style of their powers to complete their vision! A unique Nemesis system also lets players tap into a powerful customization tool to craft their own enemy, an ultimate adversary who will appear throughout a hero's career. For more details about Champions Online please visit the official website at: www.champions-online.com

About Cryptic Studios
Based in Los Gatos, CA, Cryptic Studios is a leading developer of massively multiplayer online games committed to delivering the next level of MMO gameplay. Cryptic develops AAA titles for PC and consoles, including Star Trek Online and Champions Online. For more information on Cryptic Studios, please visit the official website at: www.crypticstudios.com.

About Atari
The Atari group, mainly comprised of the Atari brand, Atari catalogue of IPs, Cryptic Studios Inc., Eden Games and its newly created London studio, is a global creator, producer and publisher of interactive entertainment software for all market segments and all interactive game platforms including consoles from Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony, advanced smartphones, Personal Computers, web and online. Its games are sold in more than 50 countries through an international distribution network; Atari also distributes video games notably in North America, through its US subsidiary Atari Inc. and direct to consumers via www.atari.com.

Atari benefits from an extensive catalogue of popular games based on original franchises (Test Drive, Alone in the Dark, V-Rally, My Horse & Me, Backyard Sports franchise, Total Annihilation, etc.), Cryptic Studios titles (Star Trek Online, Champions Online), publishing properties (Ghostbusters, The Chronicles of Riddick, Race Pro etc.), international licenses (Dungeons & Dragons, Jamie Oliver etc.) and classic games covering the entire history of the video game industry (Pong, Missile Command, Asteroids etc).

About Raptr
Raptr (http://raptr.com) is a social utility that allows you to connect with your gaming friends and see what the world is playing. Our goal is to make playing games more fun and social. We do this by letting you IM with all of your friends in one buddy list, show friends what you're playing, join your friends in-game with one click, share and compare achievements and see what games are hot right now. Raptr is the first service to automatically let you know when your friends are playing games in real-time across multiple platforms, including PC, Mac, Xbox Live, Facebook, Flash and a selection of games on the Wii and PS3. Raptr also allows you to automatically share your gaming activity with your friends on Raptr, other popular social media sites like Facebook and Twitter and on major IM networks like AIM, MSN Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, ICQ, Xfire, Facebook Chat and Xbox Live.

The Raptr client software is distributed through a variety of channels in the gaming industry via its Raptr Partners Program. Current partners include game publishers Activision Publishing, THQ, Sony Online Entertainment, NHN USA, Gamescampus and Gala-Net, as well as hardware companies Razer Group and Bigfoot Networks. For more information on the Raptr Partners Program, please visit http://partners.raptr.com. Raptr was founded in 2007 by Xfire co-founder and world champion gamer Dennis Fong. The company is made up of people who love to play games and has raised over $12 million in funding from investors that include Accel Partners and The Founders Fund. For more information, please visit http://raptr.com.