POKéMON IS HERE!!

Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire for Game Boy Advance launches today

It's back, and it's bigger than ever before! Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire have launched today across Europe creating hysteria amongst fans and newcomers to all things Pokémon. Today, the Pokémon fever continues five years after it was first introduced to the world and now shows no signs of letting up with its first outing for Game Boy Advance.

Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire have already gone down a storm in Japan and the US. In Japan, over 90,000 fans attended Pokémon Festa 2002 at Pokémon Centre in Tokyo. In Japan to date, Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire has shipped more than 4.5 million copies. The Pokémon Cartoon in Japan is also achieving some of its highest ratings ever since the launch of the new game and the new Pokémon film, 'The Seven Nights Wishes: The Pokémon Advance Generation Movie' sold 280,000 advance tickets in the first two days, breaking all previous records within the market.

This astounding success was also repeated in the US when Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire launched in March 2003. A unique event was held at Pokémon Centre NY where an incredible 6000 fans attended to meet some of the new Pokémon. Fans also had a chance to dress up as their favourite Pokémon character whilst visiting Pokémon Center NY to sample and buy the games first. With more than 2.5 million games now shipped to North American retailers it is safe to say that Pokémon is definitely back!

Managing director of Nintendo Europe David Gosen is ready for the same level of success in Europe. He said recently, "The reception that Pokémon has received in both Japan and the US is astounding. Kids remember what they loved about Pokémon first time round and they, along with kids new to Pokémon, are clearly very excited about the new games. We are anticipating the same level of Pokémon excitement and fever when Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire hits shelves in Europe."

The European launch of Pokémon Ruby & Pokémon Sapphire will be accompanied by a €10 million European marketing campaign, along with a host of new merchandise featuring characters from the games, plus a brand new TV series and a new blockbuster film, Pokémon 4ever.

Pokémon first launched on the Game Boy in Japan in 1996 and has since evolved into a global cultural phenomenon. Nintendo has sold more than 110 million Pokémon games worldwide and Pokémon merchandise has generated over $15 billion in worldwide retail.

Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire are available today priced at around 45 Euros each.

Click onto www.nintendo-europe.com for all of the most up to date official information on Nintendo.