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Latest Pokemon Games Surpass One Million Sales in First Week; Pokemon Gold And Silver Sales For Game Boy Color Break U.S. Video Game Sales Record

Business Wire, Oct 23, 2000

Business/Hi-Tech Editors

REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 23, 2000

Pokemon is hotter than ever.

The latest games featuring the world's favorite kid entertainment phenomenon, Pokemon Gold and Silver for Game Boy(R) Color, sold an astounding 1.4 million copies in the first week of availability, smashing industry sales records. The previous U.S. record breaker, Pokemon Yellow(TM) for Game Boy, sold just over 600,000 units in its first week.

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"There's no question about it; kids love to play Pokemon. So far in 2000 the best-selling game in America for any home console is Pokemon Stadium(TM) for Nintendo(R) 64, and the best-selling game for any handheld video game system is Pokemon Yellow for Game Boy Color," says Peter Main, executive vice president, sales and marketing at Nintendo of America. "But Pokemon Gold and Silver will eclipse even those impressive sales totals. We project sales of 10 million units total of these two games in less than six months time."

Pokemon remains the world's dominant video game franchise. Even before last week's phenomenal launch of Pokemon Gold and Silver, Pokemon games represented five of America's eight top-selling games so far in 2000 across all systems.(1) Of the approximately 1,000 video games available at retail this year, seven Pokemon titles are responsible for 10 percent of all software units sold year to date.

During Pokemon's first 24 months of availability in the American market (Pokemon Red and Blue launched Sept. '98), Nintendo of America reported total sales of 20 million Pokemon video games for Game Boy Color and Nintendo 64, an average of about 800,000 units monthly. However, during the fourth quarter of 2000, Nintendo projects sales of between 10 and 12 million Pokemon video games in 90 days, an average in excess of three million a month -- or nearly four times the previous rate of sales. In addition to Pokemon Gold and Silver, which officially launched on October 15, Nintendo will introduce two additional Pokemon games this holiday season: Hey You, Pikachu!(TM) for Nintendo 64 on November 6, and Pokemon Puzzle Challenge(TM) for Game Boy Color on December 4. Pokemon Pikachu 2 GS(TM), an electronic pet featuring a built-in meter that tallies the amount the owner travels, also launched on October 15.

The excitement surrounding Pokemon Gold and Silver has extended beyond the video game arena. The new animated TV episodes set in the Pokemon Gold and Silver world, "Pokemon: The Johto Journeys," debuted at number one on Kids WB on October 14. Hundreds of licensees are starting to introduce new product lines based on the Pokemon Gold and Silver characters -- from toys to clothes to bed sheets to party supplies.

The Pokemon Gold and Silver games significantly build on previous Game Boy Color titles by introducing more than 100 new Pokemon characters, a new world to explore and many innovative game play elements, such as a real-time internal clock. Once set, the software constantly detects the time of day a player is playing, which is essential because some Pokemon only come out at night, and some events occur at specific times. While Gold and Silver follow the same RPG storyline, each game features a different character set, which promotes the training and trading of different Pokemon, interactions that continue to strongly appeal to players.

The Pokemon phenomenon began in America in September 1998 with the release of the original Red and Blue Game Boy games and the debut of the animated television series. In the United States to date, Nintendo has sold more than 20 million Pokemon-related video games. Leisure Concepts Inc., a division of 4Kids Entertainment Inc. (NYSE:KDE), is Nintendo of America's exclusive licensing agent for Pokemon in all territories excluding Asia. In 2000, Nintendo projects the Pokemon franchise total retail revenues to exceed $3.0 billion in the United States alone. Pokemon launched in Europe in October 1999 and has truly become a worldwide cultural and retail phenomenon.

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, has created such industry icons as Mario(R) and Donkey Kong(R) and launched franchises like The Legend of Zelda(R) and Pokemon. Nintendo manufactures and markets hardware and software for its popular home video game systems, including the Nintendo 64 and Game Boy -- the world's best-selling video game system. As a wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in North America.

(1) Source: TRSTS independent sales tracking data

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Latest Pokemon Games Surpass One Million Sales in First Week; Pokemon Gold And Silver Sales For Game Boy Color Break U.S. Video Game Sales Record

Business Wire, Oct 23, 2000

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