November 4^th, 2004 (2:12pm) - On the eve of the highly anticipated Dragon Ball Z: Budokai 3 launch for the PlayStation 2, Atari announced today the future of Atari published Dragon Ball games for the North American market. The four titles slated for release next year demonstrate Atari’s commitment to the Dragon Ball brand and to building video games that will excite the imaginations of millions of loyal Dragon Ball fans, anime lovers, and superhero aficionados.

"The Dragon Ball franchise is one of the deepest, most beloved properties in the entertainment industry today," said Matt Collins, Director of Brand Marketing for Atari’s Beverly studio. "While Atari is proud to have been part of its interactive growth, we are even more excited to be part of its future. Because we listen carefully to fans and work closely with our development partners, we are optimistic that these future titles will be as successful and popular as the current slate of hit releases."

The 2005 Atari product calendar currently includes:

Dragon Ball Z: Sagas - Sagas is the first cross-platform Dragon Ball Z game to launch simultaneously, the first Dragon Ball Z action/adventure game for console, the first Dragon Ball Z game for Xbox, and the first Dragon Ball game to offer cooperative story mode play.

Dragon Ball GT: Transformation - Developed by Webfoot, creators of the successful Legacy of Goku series and Buu’s Fury, Transformation is the first all-GT action/adventure title on Game Boy Advance.

Atari will have two more games based on Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT that will launch later in 2005. One will create an innovative combination of action and fighting game elements on PlayStation 2, while the other will allow players to recreate the most dramatic moments of the second half of DBGT on Game Boy Advance.

"Atari has raised the bar for video games based on entertainment franchises. Their commitment to the Dragon Ball franchise has created some of the most authentic video game experiences in the industry," said Gen Fukunaga, president of FUNimation Productions, Ltd. the master licensor for the Dragon Ball franchise in the United States. "Atari’s future releases for the Dragon Ball trilogy will raise this bar even higher and for the first time bring fans into fully immersive Dragon Ball environments."