Deer Hunter to stalk PS2

Atari, a division of Infogrames, has announced the first-ever console game in its successful Deer Hunter series. Deer Hunter for the PlayStation 2 will carry on the tradition of re-creating the hunting experience, giving players the choice of 17 weapons--including shotguns, rifles, and bows--to use in a hunt that requires skill and strategy. The game will feature some off-road vehicles and will have an instant replay with a slow-motion bullet effect. There are a couple of multiplayer options: a split-screen cooperative mode and an online component that lets up to eight players compete in a tournament. The Deer Hunter series, previously only available for the PC and Mac, has sold five million units in the US, according to NPD.

"Atari is the creator of the original hunting series and has defined the hunting game genre," said Paul Rinde, senior vice president of Infogrames. "The hardware life cycle of PlayStation 2 has evolved to include a broad audience of gamers, and bringing Deer Hunter onto a next-generation console represents an excellent opportunity to leverage those gamers along with our loyal hunting fans."

The Deer Hunter PS2 game is being developed by Coresoft and will be out this fall. Southlogic Studios is developing a new PC game, Deer Hunter 2004, that is scheduled for this fall.