THIEF DEADLY SHADOWS ANNOUNCED

Eidos plc, one of the world's leading publishers and developers of entertainment software, today announced that Ion Storm has incorporated both first and third person playable points of view for gamers in the upcoming Spring 2004 release of Thief Deadly Shadows.

The long-awaited game is the third installment in the action stealth series originally created by Looking Glass Studios, and it is currently in development for the Xbox video game system from Microsoft and PC.

In Thief Deadly Shadows, gamers will be able to play in either third person or first person perspectives, and shift seamlessly between each on the fly. The new third person perspective will further immerse players into the role of Garret - the master Thief.

Sneaking through darkly lit environments, stealing riches and ambushing unwary targets in third person presents a new, visceral gaming experience to the Thief franchise. Still, the tension fuelled gameplay in classic Thief first person view is there for returning fans of the series and newcomers alike.

Ion Storm's trademark dynamic lighting and shadow technology manifests in Thief Deadly Shadows new levels of depth and tension to the game's environments. Characters and objects cast real shadows that effect stealth gameplay, requiring the player to manipulate darkness and light to create your own shadows to hide in.

"Thief's groundbreaking gameplay laid the foundation for the popular action stealth genre," said Matt Gorman, Brand Manager at Eidos. "Thief: Deadly Shadows revisits these roots and broadens its gameplay with the addition of the cinematic third person perspective and Ion Storm's dynamic lighting and shadow technology."

In Thief: Deadly Shadows, gamers once again take on the role of Garrett, a master thief. Garrett is rarely seen, never caught and capable of breaking into the most ingeniously secured places. Garrett steals from the wealthy and gives to himself, making his living in the dark and foreboding City.

Preferring to be left alone to ply his trade, prophecies of an impending Dark Age dictate a different plan for the thief. In Garrett's efforts to prevent this approaching Dark Age, he has inadvertently roused an ancient hidden evil. Without allies, Garrett finds himself standing alone between the City and the forces that would crush it.