Atari has signed a blockbuster Hollywood cast to lend voices to its greatly anticipated video game, DRIV3R, scheduled for release in Spring 2004. Michael Madsen, Ving Rhames, Mickey Rourke and Michelle Rodriguez will play the lead roles in the third installment of the gritty, crime-fighting Driver video game series, one of the most successful video game franchises of all time. DRIV3R is being developed by Atari’s Reflections Interactive for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system and the Xbox™ video game system from Microsoft.

“DRIV3R recreates the excitement of a Hollywood-style blockbuster action film and combines it with the adrenaline rush of an action-adventure video game full of sinister criminals, nail-biting car chases and international crime syndicates,” said Steve Allison, vice president of marketing in Atari Inc.’s Los Angeles studio. “By casting the game with top Hollywood talent, DRIV3R truly solidifies the look and feel of an interactive movie. Atari is well known for pushing the envelope of collaboration between the video game industry and Hollywood, and DRIV3R will once again raise the bar for what gamers will come to expect from interactive entertainment.”

Michael Madsen, who has starred in blockbuster crime films like Kill Bill, Donnie Brasco and Reservoir Dogs, will give voice to DRIV3R’s lead character Tanner, the jaw-breaking undercover cop and master “Wheelman” who dominated the first two installments of the Driver series, and who in DRIV3R will stop at nothing to bring down an international car theft syndicate. Ving Rhames, who has appeared in films that include the Mission: Impossible series, Pulp Fiction and Con Air, will provide the voice of Tanner’s hardnosed partner, Tobias Jones. Mickey Rourke, famous for his roles in Once Upon a Time in Mexico, The Thin Red Line and 9 1/2 Weeks, will be the voice of Jericho, the sinister leader of the international crime syndicate. Michelle Rodriguez, best known for her roles in S.W.A.T., The Fast and the Furious and Blue Crush, will provide the voice for Calita, the sexy leader of a Miami car theft ring.

Developed by Reflections Interactive (an Atari studio), the masterminds behind Driver and Driver 2 – which have sold more than 12 million copies worldwide – DRIV3R is an action-packed driving adventure game that stays true to its roots, incorporating the cinematic gameplay and gritty street crime of its predecessors with ground-breaking graphics and three mammoth, wide-open city environments: Miami, Florida; Nice, France; and Istanbul, Turkey.

Featuring Hollywood-caliber production values and a gripping, narrative story line, DRIV3R casts players once again as undercover cop Tanner who, alongside his partner Tobias, must infiltrate a global car theft ring, an assignment that leads to tire-squealing chases and fierce on-foot firefights while tailing gangsters, chasing witnesses, stealing cars and unloading massive clips of ammo to bring the criminals to justice.

Posted: December 2, 2003