The puzzle game designed by Gunpei Yokoi (creator of Game Boy) and refurbished by Q Entertainment (Meteos, Lumines) is crossing the pond thanks to Namco Bandai.
NAMCO BANDAI GAMES ANNOUNCES GUNPEY(R) FOR NINTENDO DS AND PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) SYSTEM PORTABLE PLATFORMS
Puzzle Game from Legendary Gunpei Yokoi and Q Entertainment Coming to Store Shelves Holiday 2006
SANTA CLARA, Calif., (July 10, 2006) – Leading video games publisher and developer NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. announced today that Gunpey for the
PSP(R) (PlayStation(R)Portable) system and Nintendo DS(TM) is heading to retail holiday 2006. From the mind of game industry legend Gunpei Yokoi and Q Entertainment, comes Gunpey, an exciting, innovative and challenging puzzle game with dynamic music that changes as you play. Gunpey will test your reflexes, stretch your mind and dazzle your senses.
“Addictive and easy-to-learn, Gunpey was originally conceived by Game Boy(R) creator and legendary game developer Gunpei Yokoi. It has now been re-imagined by the creative minds at Q Entertainment in a perfect dream collaboration that should excite any hardcore gamer," said Naruo Uchida, NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc.’s Product Group Director. “This title embraces the signature touches of a product conceived by Yokoi. It is accessible, original, and intuitive, yet a challenge to master. Additionally, it combines the ground breaking music integration that has become Q Entertainment’s signature."
With Q Entertainment’s tradition for visual style and original music, Gunpey offers a one-of-a-kind puzzle experience. As lines of various angles climb up the screen, the player’s objective is to flip the lines, located in squares, to connect them over five columns. Connecting lines from left to right remove the connected row. If an incomplete line reaches the top of the screen, the game is over. With 40 varied backgrounds and stylized music, and two-player multiplayer over wireless ad-hoc connectivity, this puzzle title is the game to pick up for the holidays.
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About Gunpei Yokoi
He was born in Kyoto in 1941, and after joining Nintendo in 1965 he had one hit after another, mainly with high-tech toys like the “Ultra-Hand" (1966), a children’s pitching machine called the “Ultra Machine" (1968), a male-female compatibility diagnosis machine called the “Love Star" (1968), and the and the “Ray Gun SP," which roared like a lion when it hit the bull’s eye. After that, he did “Game & Watch," “Donkey Kong," the “Game Boy," and “Virtual Boy." He is famous for inventing the “Direction Key" that is used in the “Game & Watch,"the “Fami-Con," and the “Game Boy." In 1996, he left Nintendo and established his own company and came up with a mobile gaming device called the “Wonder Swan" and also an original game called “Gunpey."In October of 1997, he passed away in a car accident.
At the Game Developer’s Conference in the United States in March of 2003, he was [posthumously] awarded a “Lifetime Achievement Award" honoring his achievements and contributions to the gaming industry.
