Here are the press releases released from Nintendo Of America regarding Pokemon in the U.S. Some may be a bit old, but they are all represented in their original form.
This Pokémon was made for walking
Nintendo Introduces A Virtual Companion With Pokémon Pikachu
ATLANTA, May 27, 1998 - It's a virtual pet. It's a walking
companion. It's an alarm clock. It's a digital mini-game. And,
it's coming to the United States. This fall, Pokémon Pikachu
will be available in one fun, convenient, portable product
from Nintendo of America Inc.
Pokémon Pikachu stars Pikachu, the cutest and most popular
character from the Japanese phenomenon known as Pokémon, as a
truly interactive pet. Pokémon is a multi-faceted game for
Game Boy, that combines an adventure/role-playing game with
raising virtual pet monsters, trading, collecting and
two-player battling. Along with the game and Pokémon Pikachu,
the Pokémon wave will hit North America in September with a
dedicated animated television series and a multitude of
licensed products.
Pokémon Pikachu is the only virtual pet in the world that can
be taken out for a walk... literally. The electronic pet
monster features a built-in meter that tallies the distance
the owner travels. The more steps the owner takes, the better
the relationship between Pikachu and his owner.
"From the moment the owner sets the clock on Pokémon Pikachu
and is greeted by Pikachu, they'll immediately want to start
moving and fostering the relationship with this unique virtual
companion,", says Peter Main, Nintendo of America's executive
vice-president, sales and marketing. "Pokémon Pikachu is the
only virtual pet that actually requires its owner to
exercise."
As the owner walks, he or she will accrue electrical watts
(points). Pikachu likes watts. To build the owner-Pikachu
relationship, the watts need to be given to Pikachu in small
increments over a vast period of time. The owner can use the
watts to buy on-screen gifts for Pikachu. The more presents
Pikachu receives, the friendlier it becomes to its owner.
Conversely, the more Pikachu is ignored, the more negative it
becomes. There are five levels of friendliness for owners to
discover and continually nurture.
In addition to walking, Pikachu performs a variety of other
activities, such as brushing its teeth, taking a bath and
riding a tricycle. Like a real pet, Pikachu goes to sleep at
night and wakes up in the morning. Pikachu can't be bothered
when it's sleeping. Pikachu's activities are determined by the
clock set by the owner, but may happen at various times each
day.
The activities of Pikachu are displayed in the center of the
digital screen. Other on-screen displays include the meter
with the total number of steps taken and icons that will
access the alarm clock screen, the gift screen and a mini-game
screen. In addition to giving watts to Pikachu, the user can
use the watts collected to play an electronic slot machine. If
lucky, the machine will increase the owner's watts
exponentially.
The Pokémon Pikachu hardware easily attaches to a belt or a
handbag, or can be conveniently carried as a pendant. The unit
is powered by a single lithium battery.
Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, is the leader in the
worldwide $15 billion retail video game industry. Nintendo
manufactures and markets hardware and software for its
best-selling home video game systems, including the hand-held
Game Boy, the 16-bit Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and
the 64-bit Nintendo 64, the fastest-selling video game system
in history. As a wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America
Inc., based in Redmond, Washington, serves as headquarters for
Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere where more
than 40 percent of American households own a Nintendo game
system.
For more information about Pokémon Pikachu or any other
Nintendo product, visit Nintendo's web site on the Internet,
www.nintendo.com.
Nintendo ŚPokémon’ Characters are the
Main Course in Exclusive Promotional
Campaign with KFC
America’s most popular chicken
restaurant comes face-to-face with
Nintendo’s most popular cultural
phenomenon this fall when KFC serves as
a major staging area for a full-scale
[KFC]invasion of Nintendo’s Pokémon
craze in the United States. As
part of the $17-million dollar
partnership, visitors at as many as
5,000 KFC restaurants will have the
chance to share a meal with Pokémon
monsters. Nintendo’s group of 150
fanciful monsters have grown from
anonymity to consumers’ best friends,
establishing a better than $4 billion
industry in Japan in less than 24
months. All signs indicate it will
become wildly successful in the U.S.,
too.
Consumers enjoying regular KFC chicken
meals can collect or directly purchase
one of the four most popular Pokémon
character beanbags between November 9
and December 20. Also, from November 15,
1998, through January 3, 1999, consumers
who purchase a KFC kids’ meal will
receive one of six special Pokémon toys,
such as coin pouches, puzzle blocks and
stick-on tattoos.
"Anyone doing business or who has
visited Japan realizes how immense the
Pokémon craze is there," said Cathy
Snow, director kids marketing and
promotions, for Kentucky Fried Chicken.
"We can’t think of a better place for
Pokémon to start their American invasion
than at KFC."
KFC will support the promotion with 15-
and 30-second television spots and ads
in national magazines such as Sports
Illustrated For Kids. They’ll also
develop, produce and distribute a
package of interior and exterior
point-of-sale (POS) materials for
placement inside the KFC locations.
"A multi-million dollar partnership with
KFC is a cornerstone for spreading the
word about Pokémon across the country,"
says Peter Main, executive vice
president sales and marketing, Nintendo
of America. "Pokémon already is starting
to explode into Śmust have’ status for
the holidays."
Pokémon’s popularity in Japan is
evidenced by sales of nearly nine
million video game cartridges for the
portable Game Boy system; 400 million
trading cards; and more than one million
music CDs. And, a movie based on the
Pokémon characters immediately jumped to
number one at the box office, unseating
Godzilla in its first week at the box
office.
The popularity of the video game craze
is based on the combination of
collecting, training, trading and
battling with the 150 characters, which
range from adorably cuddly, like
Pikachu, to menacingly fierce, like
Nidorino. Nintendo will provide Game Boy
systems and Pokémon Game Boy software
for demonstrations in KFC’s POS display
units, run a full-page promotional ad in
the November issue of Nintendo Power
magazine, and highlight the program on
their web site.
Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, is
the acknowledged worldwide leader in the
creation of interactive entertainment.
To date, Nintendo has sold more than one
billion video games worldwide, and has
created such industry icons as Mario,
Yoshi, Zelda, and Donkey Kong. Nintendo
manufactures and markets hardware and
software for its best-selling home video
game systems, including the 64-bit
Nintendo 64, and hand-held Game Boy, and
the 16-bit Super Nintendo Entertainment
System. As a wholly owned subsidiary,
Nintendo of America Inc., based in
Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters
for Nintendo’s operations in the North
America, where more than 40 percent of
American households own a Nintendo game
system.
For more information about the latest
Nintendo news or any of Nintendo’s
products, visit Nintendo’s web site on
the internet at www.nintendo.com. For
more information about Pokémon, visit
www.pokemon .com.
KFC, based in Louisville, KY, is the
world’s most popular chicken restaurant
chain specializing in fried and roasted
chicken family meals, Colonel’s Crispy
Strips and home-style side items.
Since its founding by Colonel Harland
Sanders in 1952, KFC has been serving
customers delicious, already-prepared
complete family meals at affordable
prices. There are more than 10,200 KFC
outlets in 80 countries around the
world, serving nearly seven million
customers each day. KFC is a subsidiary
of Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc.,
Louisville, KY.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
1998’s VIDEO GAME HIT
NOW AVAILABLE AS ANIME AND MANGA!
POKÉMON
GOTTA CATCH ’EM ALL!
San Francisco, CA (7/15/98) - Viz Communications proudly
announces the November ’98 launch of anime and manga based on
Pokémon, the game and toy phenomenon of the year! Originating
in Japan as a Nintendo Game Boy video game, the 150
extraordinary, collectible creatures of Pokémon quickly
exploded into music, clothing, manga, and an animated TV
series; over a year after its first appearance, the original
game was still on Top Ten sales charts. Telling the story of
10-year-old Ash (and his loveable Pokémon Pikachu) as he tries
to become the World’s Greatest Pokémon Trainer, Pokémon comes
to America this Fall as a daily syndicated TV series, a video
game and toy series. Pokémon is supported by $12 million in
advertising from Nintendo. Now discover Pokémon from Viz
Comics and Viz Video!
Pokémon: I Choose You, Pikachu!
The Pokémon daily anime TV series is now available on home
video from Viz Video and Pioneer! Each volume contains three
complete episodes of fun and adventure suitable for all ages.
In Episode 1, Ash sets off to see the world with Pikachu in
tow, and runs straight into trouble. In Episode 2, Ash
travels to the Pokémon Center, only to run into the bad guys
called Team Rocket: Jessie, James and Meowth! In Episode 3,
Ash and his friend Misty travel deep into the green depths of
the Viridian Forest in search of Pokémon and find the
creepy-cute Caterpie and Pidgeotto! All this, plus special
extras with each video: mini-comics, trading cards and more!
Pokémon: I Choose You, Pikachu! Ships in November ’98. It is
75 minutes long, English dubbed, and retails for $14.98. It
Pokémon: The Electric Tale of Pikachu
All new manga adventures of the Pokémon world not just an
adaptation of the anime! Something’s eating the wiring in the
Ketchum house in Pallet Town, and when 10-year-old Ash Ketchum
under the floorboards, he finds his first Pokémon:
Pikachu! But Ash has a lot to learn about becoming a Pokémon
trainer. Can he defeat his rival Gary, gym leader Misty, and
more?
Pokémon: The Electric Tale of Pikachu is a 4-issue series
written and drawn by Toshihiro Ono. Each issue is 40 pages
long and retails for $3.25 in the U.S. and $4.40 in Canada.
***************
Viz Communications, Inc. is the leading U.S. publisher of
Japanese animation and comics (anime and manga) for
English-speaking audiences. Founded in 1987, Viz serves a
growing market of dedicated fans of all ages, and is a wholly
owned subsidiary of Shogakukan, one of Japan’s three largest
manga publishers.
Based in San Francisco, CA, Viz publishes dozens of popular
titles such as Ranma 1/2, Dragon Ball Z, and Neon Genesis
Evangelion, and an integrated line of entertainment
media‹magazines such as Animerica, videos, comic books,
graphic novels, mail-order catalogs, merchandise, CD
soundtracks, and web sites. Readers and customers regularly
visit Viz’s home page at www.viz.com and its Internet magazine
of Japanese popular culture at www.j-pop.com.
