The latest RPG releases in the Pokemon franchise will be hitting the US this April. Pokemon Diamond and Pearl will go on sale for the Nintendo DS on April 22, 2007. Nintendo will also be offering special Pokemon styluses as a pre-sell premium; details of the program have yet to be announced. The game has been a huge seller in Japan, and with the wireless networking features and integration with other DS and Gameboy Advance releases should have Pokemon fans lining up this Spring.

Nintendo’s full press release continues below, and further information about the game is available at Nintendo’s official Pokemon web site.

NEW POKÉMON TO MAKE DIAMOND-AND-PEARL-STUDDED DEBUT

Gotta Catch ‘Em All! The Next Generation of Pokémon Soon Will Be Here

REDMOND, Wash., Dec. 20, 2006 – Pokémon trainers of the world, unite! How else will you manage to complete your Pokédex and challenge the sinister plot of Team Galactic? On April 22, Pokémon® Diamond and Pokémon® Pearl, the Pokémon series for the best-selling Nintendo DS™ game system, become available in the Americas. These two titles represent the latest adventure in the popular Pokémon franchise.

Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl offer a number of exciting new features to please both experienced and new Pokémon fans alike. Set in an entirely new region called “Sinnoh,” players can choose to begin their adventure as either a boy or girl Pokémon trainer on a path to becoming Pokémon League Champion. The adventure continues as players can bring Pokémon from their Game Boy® Advance Pokémon games to Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl using the GBA game slot on their Nintendo DS.

As players trade and collect Pokémon to complete their Pokédex in this new challenge, for the first time they’ll have the chance to catch new Pokémon, 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 Pokémon 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 Pokémon has to offer, and a great opportunity for Game Boy users to upgrade to Nintendo DS.”

Unique pre-sell styluses featuring new Pokémon from the new series will be available by reserving the game early at participating retailers. Stay tuned for more details about this special offer. Pokémon games continue to be wildly popular around the world, with more than 155 million units sold worldwide through September 2006. Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl are currently shattering sales records in Japan since their September launch.

Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl for Nintendo DS will be available April 22, and are Rated E for Everyone.

Pokémon USA, Inc., a subsidiary of The Pokémon Company in Japan, manages and oversees the property outside of Asia, which includes licensing activities, brand promotions, publication of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, TV animation, home video entertainment, the official Pokémon.com Web site and PokemonCenter.com, an e-commerce site. Nintendo of America manages marketing and distribution of Pokémon video games.

Pokémon was launched in Japan in 1996 for play on Nintendo’s Game Boy® and has evolved into a global cultural phenomenon. Pokémon was introduced in North America in September 1998 and has since generated more than $26 billion in worldwide retail sales. More than 40 million Pokémon video games have been sold in the United States, including Pokémon Emerald, which was the No. 2 best-selling video game of 2005, according to the NPD Group. The Pokémon Trading Card Game, fueled by Pokémon Organized Play programs around the world, has spurred global sales of more than 14 billion cards to date, while the Pokémon animated series set to debut its ninth season, Pokémon: Battle Frontier, on Cartoon Network this fall, consistently ranks within the top three shows for boys ages 6 to 11. For more information, visit www.pokemon.com.

The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii™, Nintendo DS™, Game Boy® Advance and Nintendo GameCube™ systems. Since 1983, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.2 billion video games and more than 387 million hardware units globally, and has created industry icons like Mario™, Donkey Kong®, Metroid®, Zelda™ and Pokémon®. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo’s operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company’s Web site at www.nintendo.com.