Montreal, Canada. January 10, 2003 – Co- publishers Strategy First and Monte Cristo and developer Digital Reality have released an update for Platoon™, their tactical strategy adventure game that was released this holiday season.

The update includes the following fixes and is for the North American release of the game only;

The ability to save the game during a mission has been implemented.- The AI has been improved. American soldiers take cover and defend themselves when they encounter enemy fire.

To download the Platoon™ update, please follow this link: http://www.strategyfirst.com/games/GameInfo.asp?sLanguageCode=EN&iGameID=67&sSection=Downloads

In Platoon™, players follow the career of newlywed Martin Lionsdale of the 1st Airborne Cavalry Division, and take part in the most thrilling moments of the conflict, controlling an entire platoon through missions based on historical events. A soldier’s performance is continuously affected by the environment, terrain and combat situation, all brought to life with realistic 3D graphics and effects. Players take advantage of a wide range of weaponry, vehicles and support units.

Platoon™ Features…

·         Covers the Vietnam War from 1965 to the height of battle in 1968.

·         Tremendous visual effects such as character and object shadows, grass and explosion effects, environment mapping for reflective surfaces (windows, water and shiny metal) etc…

·         Scalable level of detail system (L.O.D).

·         Dynamic weather effects (wind, fog, rain, monsoons...).

·         3D terrain modeled on the Vietnamese countryside (elephant grass, rice paddy, jungle...).

·         Particle system for explosion effects, smoke, fire etc…

·         Control vehicles such as M113 Armored Personnel Carrier and M48 Patton Tank.

·         Over 400 motion-captured animations ensure realistic soldier movement.

Monte Cristo has established itself as a leading French developer and publisher of PC games. Founded in 1995, the organization has grown consistently over the last seven years and currently has a large portfolio of PC titles distributed worldwide : Start Up, Economic War/Political Tycoon, Crazy Factory/Factory Mogul, Casino Tycoon/Casino Mogul, Dino Island, The Partners…Monte Cristo is continuing to consolidate its existing catalogue of economic and management simulations, while expanding its portfolio of life-simulation and strategy games, to address a broader market. http://www.montecristogames.com

Strategy First Inc. is a leading developer and worldwide publisher of entertainment software for the PC.  Founded in 1990, the company has grown rapidly, publishing major games in the industry and simultaneously developing its own in-house titles such as O.R.B., Disciples II, and Nexagon: Deathmatch. After winning numerous awards for games such as Disciples: Sacred Lands, Europa Universalis, Kohan: Immortal Sovereigns and Steel Beasts, Strategy First continues to push the gaming envelope with its own groundbreaking titles, while maintaining its reputation as a unique alternative for independent developers seeking to market their games to a worldwide audience. www.strategyfirst.com