Tempe fans of the vampire saga “Twilight” started lining up well before 10 p.m. on Friday night for the film’s midnight release to DVD.

The movie came out on DVD on Saturday at 12:01 a.m., and the Blockbuster at Southern Avenue and McClintock Drive held a release party that drew crowds.

To entertain people while they waited to purchase their copy of the DVD, the store had activities and giveaways set up.

The “Twilight” film is based on the book series by Phoenix author Stephenie Meyer that has caused a nationwide obsession.

Worldwide, “Twilight” grossed more than $373 million since its November release. The movie follows high-school students Edward Cullen, and Bella Swann, and their unconventional romance.

The challenge in their love lies in the fact that Edward is a vampire — because he loves Bella, he has to stay away from her to resist killing her for her blood.

There were several DVD release parties throughout the Valley on Friday night, and across the country “Twilight” fans waited in lines to pick up their copies of the DVD.

Many fans at the Tempe Blockbuster party wore “Twilight” T-shirts.

There was a radio station there, as well as TV news crews.

Tammy Tinen, the Blockbuster district manager, said she received “gobs of phone calls” regarding the release and that the store had “plenty [of DVDs] to go around to rent and buy.”

Tinen said that the activities for the Tempe location included bobbing for apples, and poster and merchandise giveaways. “Twilight” merchandise was also available for sale.

Barb Harris, Blockbuster’s public relations coordinator, said, “We will be giving away a hardcover copy of the ‘Director’s Notebook’ [a book that chronicles the making of the movie], in addition to a life-sized Edward Cullen cutout stand-up poster.”

But the biggest giveaway of the night was a movie-release poster signed by the cast, Harris said.

Lisa Andrews, a film sophomore, said she has read all of the “Twilight” books and saw the movie in theaters.

“I think that the books are a little bit better than the movie,” she said.

When asked why the Tempe location was selected for the Blockbuster Valley release party, Tinen replied, “This is always the [store] location we use for events. There is always fabulous support at these events, especially from ASU.”

Reach the reporter at bloeffle@asu.edu.