New Pokemon To Make Diamond-And-Pearl-Studded Debut
Posted by: Aaron Lockard on December 21, 2006 5:43:27 AM
Gotta Catch 'Em All! The Next Generation of Pokemon Soon Will Be Here
Pokemon trainers of the world, unite! How else will you manage to
complete your Pokedex and challenge the sinister plot of Team Galactic?
On April 22, Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl, the Pokemon series
for the best-selling Nintendo DS game system, become available in the
Americas. These two titles represent the latest adventure in the
popular Pokemon franchise.
Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl
offer a number of exciting new features to please both experienced and
new Pokemon fans alike. Set in an entirely new region called "Sinnoh,"
players can choose to begin their adventure as either a boy or girl
Pokemon trainer on a path to becoming Pokemon League Champion. The
adventure continues as players can bring Pokemon from their Game Boy
Advance Pokemon games to Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl using the
GBA game slot on their Nintendo DS.
As players trade and collect
Pokemon to complete their Pokedex in this new challenge, for the first
time they'll have the chance to catch new Pokemon, Munchlax and
Weavile. They also can play via local wireless with up to eight other
trainers while new moves and abilities deepen strategy.
"After
recently celebrating its 10th anniversary, the Pokemon franchise
continues to get stronger," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's
senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "These
two new titles represent the best that Pokemon has to offer, and a
great opportunity for Game Boy users to upgrade to Nintendo DS."
Unique
pre-sell styluses featuring new Pokemon from the new series will be
available by reserving the game early at participating retailers. Stay
tuned for more details about this special offer. Pokemon games continue
to be wildly popular around the world, with more than 155 million units
sold worldwide through September 2006. Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon
Pearl are currently shattering sales records in Japan since their
September launch.
Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl for Nintendo DS will be available April 22, and are Rated E for Everyone.
Pokemon
USA, Inc., a subsidiary of The Pokemon Company in Japan, manages and
oversees the property outside of Asia, which includes licensing
activities, brand promotions, publication of the Pokemon Trading Card
Game, TV animation, home video entertainment, the official Pokemon.com
Web site and PokemonCenter.com, an e-commerce site. Nintendo of America
manages marketing and distribution of Pokemon video games.
Pokemon
was launched in Japan in 1996 for play on Nintendo's Game Boy and has
evolved into a global cultural phenomenon. Pokemon was introduced in
North America in September 1998 and has since generated more than $26
billion in worldwide retail sales. More than 40 million Pokemon video
games have been sold in the United States, including Pokemon Emerald,
which was the No. 2 best-selling video game of 2005, according to the
NPD Group. The Pokemon Trading Card Game, fueled by Pokemon Organized
Play programs around the world, has spurred global sales of more than
14 billion cards to date, while the Pokemon animated series set to
debut its ninth season, Pokemon: Battle Frontier, on Cartoon Network
this fall, consistently ranks within the top three shows for boys ages
6 to 11.