Atari Ship 2.5m DRIV3R News

Atari today confirmed that it has shipped 2.5 million units of DRIV3R to retail outlets worldwide, ahead of suggestions that the publisher will once again face an Enter the Matrix situation, and have to shift close to 4 million units to cover the cost of development and marketing.

Certainly controversy has followed the release of DRIV3R with numerous European retailers stocking the title as early as last week, and debuting in the UK charts at No.6 before todayâ??s official release.

"Our worldwide shipment is right in line with our plan for DRIV3R," said Bruno Bonnell, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Atari. "The global Driver fan base is as robust and passionate as ever, as indicated by retail reaction in the U.S., the U.K., Germany, France, and other key territories," Mr. Bonnell stated.

At Electronics Boutique Holdings Corp. (Nasdaq:ELBO), one of the largest specialty retailers for video games in the U.S., Debbie Mola, Divisional Vice President of Merchandising, said, "With just three days of sales, DRIV3R is certain to be one of our top three sellers for the month of June. We had high expectations for the title and it is meeting them."