EA Heats Up Mass Effect 2 with New Demo and New Downloadable Content

BioWare Launches Sizzling New Demo That Introduces New Players to the Highest Rated Xbox 360 Game of 2010!

The Mass Effect 2 phenomenon rages on! BioWare, a division of EA, today launches a demo for Mass Effect 2 on Xbox Live and PC. Designed to help introduce the rich Mass Effect fiction to all-new players, the demo features the first two missions of the game as well as one bonus mission, totaling over 90 minutes of the action-packed game play and rich storytelling that have made Mass Effect 2 one of the most critically acclaimed games of all time. BioWare is releasing the demo with a “Story-so-far” video, narrated by actor Martin Sheen, that provides a recap of past events and plot twists in the Mass Effectuniverse.

In the demo, players step into the role of Commander Shepard and must escape from a Cerberus space station under siege. Players can jump ahead to a later mission where they must rescue Subject Zero, a hardened, dangerous criminal from a heavily guarded prison ship. Once they play the demo, players will be able to create a save and carry over their character along with the experience points, story decisions, achievements and weapons earned into the full version of the game – picking up right where they left off, on both PC and Xbox 360.

BioWare also announced today that players already in the game can download a new game add-on called “Overlord”, adding five new areas and two new achievements. Available June 15, the game add-on is available for 560 Microsoft points and on PC for 560 BioWare points. Also on June 15, BioWare is releasing a new premium theme based on Omega and new avatar items for Xbox Live will follow on June 17.

“Mass Effect 2 is one of our greatest achievements to date at BioWare,” said Dr. Ray Muzyka, Co-Founder and Group General Manager of the BioWare Group, and Senior Vice President of Electronic Arts. “The Mass Effect team continues to deliver on our promise to add exciting new content to the universe for our loyal fans, and we’re also excited to be able to give all gamers a chance to experience this amazing game through a free demo!”

With over 70 perfect review scores, Mass Effect 2 has earned the distinction of being the highest rated video game of 2010, the highest rated game in the 26 year history of EA and the second highest rated release of all time on Xbox 360*. MSNBC.com has said, “Mass Effect will go down as one of the most influential video game series of all time."

By purchasing a new retail copy of Mass Effect 2, players will also receive the full benefits of BioWare’s Cerberus Network, an in-game portal that has kept fans engaged with the Mass Effect universe through downloadable content and news. Activated exclusively by original purchasers of Mass Effect 2 through a single-use unlock code that is included in retail and digital versions of the game worldwide, the network has provided over a million Cerberus Network members with new content at no extra charge, including:

• Zaeed Massani, a new member for Commander Shepard’s crew who has his own mission and can be used in the entire game
• The Hammerhead, a heavy assault vehicle that was introduced through with five new vehicle-based missions
• New Weapons – The Arc Projector and the M-22 Eviscerater Shotgun
• New Armor – Cerberus Assault Gear

Mass Effect 2 is available for the Xbox 360® videogame and entertainment system at an MSRP of $39.99 and for the PC at an MSRP of $29.99. The game is rated ‘M’ for Mature by the ESRB and ‘18+’ by PEGI. For more information, follow the BioWare team on Twitter at masseffect2 or visit the Official Website.

^*On Xbox 360 platform according to Metacritic.com as of June 11, 2010.