Virtual Boy launch date announced; unique 3-D hardware system to be launched in August; supported by more than $25 million in marketing.

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 10, 1995--Nintendo of America Inc. today announced that Virtual Boy, the first three-dimensional, virtual immersion, 32-bit video game system developed and produced for the mass market, will be launched in the United States on August 14, 1995.

Backed by more than $25 million in marketing, the system will have a manufacturer's suggested retail price of $179.95(a).

In the U.S., Virtual Boy will be bundled with one of the outstanding titles from the launch library and the new double-grip controller. Later this year, an AC adapter will be sold separately.

"Virtual Boy is unlike anything currently available for the home," says Peter Main, Nintendo's vice president, marketing. "We're bringing a totally unique, 3-D gaming experience to market at an affordable price and in time to get a jump on the holiday shopping season. We expect to sell more than 1.5 million hardware units and 2.5 million pieces of software by the end of 1995."

At the time of launch, several new first-party software titles will be available, including: Teleroboxer, a first-person, futuristic boxing title; Galactic Pinball, a space-age pinball game featuring five three-dimensional, arcade-style tables; Mario Clash, an action/adventure game inspired by the original Mario Bros. series; Mario's Dream Tennis, a tennis match with a unique 3-D perspective; and Red Alarm, a polygon-based space shooter. Virtual Boy software will retail from $39.95(a) to $49.95(a).

More than 100 developers and third-party publishers currently are creating games for Virtual Boy, including Acclaim, Bullet-Proof Software, Hudson Soft, Ocean of America, Rare Ltd., Software Creations and T&E. Some of the third-party titles in development include: Vertical Force, from Hudson-Soft, a high-action, space-shooter game; Golf, from T&E, a fun-packed, polygon-rendered version of the popular sport; and Waterworld, from Ocean, based on the upcoming movie starring Kevin Costner.

Virtual Boy is a RISC-based, 32-bit system which uses two high-resolution, mirror-scanning LED (light emitting diode) displays to produce a 3-D experience not possible on conventional television or LCD screens. Its unique design eliminates most external stimuli, totally immersing players into their own private universe with high-resolution red images against a deep, black background. The 3-D experience is enhanced through stereophonic sound and a new, specially designed, double-grip controller which accommodates multi-directional spatial movement.

Virtual Boy combines 3-D image immersion technology developed by Nintendo with proprietary display technology created by Reflection Technology, Inc., of Waltham, Mass., and licensed exclusively within the video game market to Nintendo on a worldwide basis. Reflection is a recognized leader in miniaturized display products and holds exclusive worldwide patents for technology that incorporates color matrix LED displays which, when combined in the stereoscopic Virtual Boy, produce a complete 3-D experience.

Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, is the leader in the worldwide $15 billion retail video game industry. As a wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere, where more than 40 percent of American homes own a Nintendo system. -0-

(a) Although Nintendo of America Inc. may suggest retail prices for products, the dealer is free to determine on its own the prices at which it will sell products.

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