via Business Wire

The time for monkey business has arrived, as D3Publisher of America, Inc. (D3PA) announced today that The Adventures of Darwin™ is shipping to retail stores across North America exclusively for the PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system from Sony at an SRP of $19.95. In The Adventures of Darwin, players take on the leadership role in a group of primitive, yet promising, primates. The game follows the evolution of group leader Darwin the monkey and his adorable companions as they grow from a small assembly of simple primates to a powerful, intelligent colony of human cavemen. This process is prompted as players learn about and interact with the vast prehistoric world around them. If gamers want to survive life in the hostile world, they must evolve!

“Just as Darwin does in the game, the PlayStation 2 market is evolving--it’s now ready to accommodate more games like The Adventures of Darwin that appeal to family-friendly audiences,” said Sam Guilloud, brand manager, D3PA. “With such a large and loyal install base of over 38 million in the US (Source NPD), this is the perfect time in the PlayStation 2’s life cycle to release such a unique title.”

The Adventures of Darwin utilizes innovative real-time strategy elements and a first-hand evolutionary gaming experience. Commanding up to 30 primates, gamers assign a variety of tasks to their primate companions and make real-time decisions to increase the chances for survival of the fittest. Tribe members become more intelligent as they evolve, improving survival skills and verbal communication as the level of civilization advances. The richly colored world is beautiful but dangerous, filled with lush jungles, volatile volcanoes, dark caverns and raging rapids. The group hunts wooly mammoths, saber-toothed tigers, ferocious dinosaurs and other foes for the safety and benefit of the village. Players can lead their tribe on adventures, teach them to hunt, collect raw materials to build with and use as tools and weapons, and encourage the use of increasingly civilized language. The weapons arsenal will advance as the village and its members progress. Players of The Adventures of Darwin will find out if they are capable of becoming a leader of evolution, or if they are doomed to a life of monkey business!

The Adventures of Darwin was developed by Vingt-et-un-Systems Corporation and is rated “E 10+” (“Everyone 10 and older”) by the ESRB.