LADYDRAGON.COM - POKÉMON ANIMATED EPISODES NOW PORTABLE USING GAME BOY ADVANCE

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Wednesday June 23, 2004

POKÉMON ANIMATED EPISODES NOW PORTABLE USING GAME BOY ADVANCE

New Technology Lets Fans Take Favourite Animation Anywhere

On a plane, in a car, in the park or at > the beach, for the first time ever fans can enjoy their favourite Pokémon® episodes using a Game Boy® Advance. Game Boy Advance Video lets > users watch their favourite animated shows on their Game Boy Advance systems at an affordable price and with no need to buy additional hardware. Pokémon episodes include "Playing with Fire!" and "Johto Photo Finish" on one video pak and "A Hot Water Bottle" and "For Ho-Oh The Bells Toll!" on another. The Pokémon titles will be offered at an MSRP of $24.95.

They join a lineup of other recently released cartoon favourites such as SpongeBob SquarePants(tm) and The Fairly OddParents(tm). "Consumers and retailers are going to be thrilled with this portable, skip-proof video technology," says Ron Bertram, Nintendo of Canada's general manager. "It's an exciting new product and a great way to pass the time during the summer travel season."

The video paks look identical to Game Boy Advance game paks, fitting into the same slot. The plus button fast forwards or rewinds through the video, while the right and left shoulder buttons skip entire scenes. The start button pauses the action, while the select button returns to the main menu. The A and B buttons adjust the brightness. Game Boy Advance Video enters the market with a massive built-in user base, with more than 170 million Game Boy Advance units sold worldwide, including more than 1.6 million in Canada. In the future, Nintendo expects to offer animated content with Game Boy Advance Video that appeals to an older demographic.

The Pokémon franchise continues to be incredibly popular. Pokémon Colosseum(tm) for Nintendo GameCube(tm) sold 400,000 copies in just four weeks after its March 2004 launch in North America. Pokémon® Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire, launched in 2003 for Game Boy Advance, have sold more than 3.6 million units in North America. And Pokémon FireRed and Pokémon LeafGreen, coming Sept. 7 for Game Boy Advance, will keep Pokémon all the rage. Pokémon USA, Inc., a subsidiary of The Pokémon Company in Japan, manages and oversees the property outside of Asia, which includes licensing activities, brand promotions, publication of the trading card game, TV animation, home video entertainment, the official Pokémon Web site, the Pokémon Center NY in Rockefeller Center and pokemoncenter.com, an e-commerce site. Pokémon was launched in Japan in 1996 for play on Nintendo's Game Boy® and has evolved into a global cultural phenomenon.

Pokémon was introduced in North America in September 1998 and has since generated more than $15 billion in worldwide retail sales. More than 38 million Pokémon video games have been sold in the United States, including Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire, which were the No. 2 and No. 3 best-selling video games of 2003, according to the NPD Group.

The trading card game, fueled by organized play programs around the world, has spurred global sales of more than 13 billion cards to date, while the Pokémon animated series on Kids' WB!, now in its sixth season, consistently ranks within the top three shows for boys ages 6 to 11. For more information, visit www.pokemon.com

As a wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of Canada Ltd., based in Vancouver, British Columbia, is a leader and innovator in the $1 billion video game industry in Canada. Nintendo of Canada markets hardware and software for Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Advance SP, and Nintendo GameCube. Since the release of its first home video game system in 1983, Nintendo has sold more than 1.8 billion video games globally, creating enduring industry icons such as Mario(tm) and Donkey Kong® and launching popular culture franchise phenomena such as Metroid(tm), Zelda(tm) and Pokémon®. Nintendo is dedicated to the long-term development of the interactive entertainment industry, devoting its resources towards maximizing the latest technology to create the most innovative, interactive entertainment products in the world. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's Web site at www.nintendo.ca