Taking gamers as close to war as they’ll ever want to get, Codemasters® today revealed the CGI trailer video for Operation Flashpoint®2: Dragon Rising, the game that will mark the return of the genre-defining military series. Previewing the total conflict experience using footage created from rendered game models, the trailer is now available to view and download from www.flashpoint2-game.com.

The video reveals the sheer scale of Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising’s battlefield – the 220km2 island of Skira, located off the eastern coast of Russia, north of Japan. This oil-rich Russian-controlled island stands on the brink of war. An airborne division of the People’s Liberation Army of China (PLA) lands to claim the island as the sovereign possession of the People’s Republic. Russia turns to the US for support aid and they’re quick to respond. Sending in the USS Iwo Jima, a battalion of US Marines launch an assault on the strung out but dug-in Chinese force. Can the situation be defused before this flashpoint turns white hot and an all-out global war between the superpowers erupts?

The trailer opens with US Special Ops carrying out a stealth mission to destroy a Chinese forward observation post. Suddenly, their mission is compromised and the PLA forces attack. US reinforcements are called in and a full-scale battle develops between the PLA and the marines.

As the flashpoint escalates and becomes a total conflict situation, the action moves from position to position within one real-time battle. From Special Ops to troops piling out of LAV 25 APCs to Supercobras firing hydra rockets from the skies, to a squadron of UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters blazing away at the Chinese troops below. As smoke billows from explosions rocking the battlefield, the view pulls out of the cabin of a UH-60 Blackhawk until the island is seen from an altitude of several miles and the jaw-dropping size and scope of Skira is revealed in its entirety.

“Capturing the extraordinary intensity of rapidly escalating conflict in the game’s massive battlefield, the trailer embodies the unique Flashpoint experience,” said Brant Nicholas, Senior Producer, Codemasters Studios. “The video is a vivid portrayal of the jarring violence and devastating capabilities of modern armed forces and Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising will deliver the brutal reality of war on a breathtaking scale in the military sandbox environment of Skira.”

As an epic campaign weaves the narrative, Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising will give players the freedom to handle military crisis situations on their initiative. Unscripted missions will task players with real objectives, such as laying down suppressing fire, covering a friendly unit’s retreat or conducting short-range recon patrol.

Players will fight as infantry soldiers in battle, drive tanks in armoured assaults, pilot helicopters in air strikes and infiltrate the enemy in covert special operations utilising a wide variety of realistic military weapons from knives and rifles to machine guns, grenade launchers and laser designators for air strikes. Whatever the situation, players will need to balance brute force with intelligent use of tactics in their engagement against the full force of the PLA.

Coming 2009 for major console platforms and PC, Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising is in development at Codemasters Studios utilising an evolved variant of its proprietary award-winning EGO™ Game Technology Engine. For the trailer video and to sign up for future development briefings, please report to www.flashpoint2-game.com.