Amazing Island

Monster Game Invites Kids to Create, Compete, and Connect on Game Boy Advance

SAN FRANCISCO (August 24, 2004) - Dubbed "Pokémon meets Mario Party" by Game Informer; and featuring an innovative monster-creation set that GMR calls "excellent", SEGA® of America, Inc. today announced the launch of Amazing Island’ exclusively for Nintendo GameCube®. Ideal for young players, the title can be enjoyed at home and on the playground, thanks to the unique integration of Nintendo's Game Boy® Advance connectivity.

Amazing Island takes place on a lush island in a far off world. The once happy Maboo tribe has been captured by the "Black Evil" and players must help rescue them and win back their land. Players create and personalize their own monster (drawing from nearly infinite creative possibilities) and enter it into a series of frenetic competitions involving speed, time, and head-to-head battles. Winners collect design accessories and magical orbs that unlock design abilities, encouraging the creation of new, more powerful monsters.

"This innovative title encourages young players to use their imagination while creating nearly unlimited combinations of monster pals," said Scott A. Steinberg, vice president of Entertainment Marketing, SEGA of America. "Children will be totally absorbed in the process of character creation, and the title's mini-games will give them an environment in which to compete head-to-head or share their creations with friends via GBA."

There are 28 mini-games in Amazing Island that support up to four players; and Game Boy Advance connectivity allows players to upload their creations to handheld units and challenge peers to RPG (Role-Playing Game)-style battles. Both play modes allow gamers to nurture and develop their digital pets, upping their attributes, and increasing their list of accessories, etc. Amazing Island will be a long-time favorite in any child's game library with its tremendous re-play value and satisfying gameplay for both single and multiple players.

Amazing Island (Nintendo GameCube; priced at $39.95) is rated 'E' for Everyone and is available at retailers nationwide.

Source:

Sega.com Press Release

Venture to a fantastic island filled with magical monsters in a far distant world. The "Black Evil" has taken over this lush and colorful land and captured the once-happy Maboo tribe natives. Drawing on your imagination and endless possibilities, you must create your own monster and enter it into nearly 30 different competitions involving timing, speed, and head-to-head battles against the "Black Evil" to win back the island and banish the evildoers!

• Patented Monster Editing System creates an untold number of monsters, each with distinctive features and abilities.
• With each successful competition, unlock new features for monster enhancement and possession of one of eight magic orbs.
• Transfer your monster to Game Boy Advance to take on three of your friends or play alone and acquire special GBA-only monster-building items.

Source:

Sega.com

It's kind of like you're Dr. Frankenstein, but we mean that in a nice way.

Let your imagination run wild with Amazing Island. Like a mad scientist, create a monster that will help free the natives of Amazing Island.

Features * Thousands of possibilities with unique Monster Editing System * Unlock monster enhancements and power-ups * Enter your monster in 28 contests * Trade monsters with friends * GBA connectivity to trade monsters and card-battle

Black Evil conquered the world of the Maboo tribe and turned Amazing Island into a very unhappy place. You and your monsters need to defeat Black Evil and bring happiness back to the Maboo and their legendary home.

In Amazing Island, you create a monster that competes in races and other contests. If your monster wins all 28 contests, then you will have defeated Black Evil and returned Amazing Island to the Maboo. After you win a contest, you win either a power-up a potion or a new accessory (such as eyes, a horn or a jaw) for your monster. You'll then move on to the next contest in the course. A potion, which can be used once, boosts speed, stamina, power or mental strength.

All monsters are not created equal, and that's a good thing. Some types aren't well suited for certain contests. Fortunately, you can edit your monsters as you see fit with the powerful and flexible Monster Editing System. At game's start, your answers to an unusual series of questions (such as, What's your feeling when you see a sunset?) will give you a basic body type. Then, a drawing tool lets you modify your monster's physique. After molding your monster, add cosmetic touches, such as horns, a bell or dragon wings.

Once you're satisfied with your creation, use it to win the land back for the Maboo. The beginner course consists of four contests, the two intermediate courses have five each, and the four advanced courses have six. The intermediate and advanced courses fork, so you'll replay some contests each time. The contests themselves are sort of a button-mashing, freak-show Olympics. The simple rules are displayed before each. If you get a high enough score in each contest, you will clear the course, open up a new one and win an all-important magic orb. You need to collect eight orbs to defeat the Black Evil and win the game.

In the unlockable multiplayer mode, as many as four players can show off their monsters' mad skills in single contests or courses. You'll be given a couple of potions before starting. If you compete in a course instead of one contest, the monster with the most points at the end is the winner.

After you create a monster, you take a picture of it. By connecting your Game Boy Advance to your Nintendo GameCube, you can transfer as many as three of your monsters in the form of Monster Cards to the GBA. From there, you can link up GBAs using the Game Link Cable to wage a card battle against other monsters, trade photos and acquire special GBA-only monster-building items. As long as your GBA is in sleep mode, it will retain your new data. You can then transfer new items and monster upgrades to your GCN Memory Card. You can also trade monsters via Memory Cards.

The graphics are rich and colorful in the big-eyed Japanese style. Creating and editing your monster is way cool. The use of a simple draw tools means you don't have to be Picasso to create a monster he'd be proud of. The contests are challenging, but most of the difficulty centers on your ability to rapidly push the buttons. Their simplicity should satisfy a younger audience, but advanced gamers might long for a little more than showing up for twitch duty.

Be sure to check out Sega's Amazing Island Creature Cards minigame - Click Here (http://sega.com/amazingisland).

Bottom Line

The monster-creation and multiplayer components make for lots of fun on this Nintendo GameCube exclusive. Younger players will spend countless hours on Amazing Island, creating and editing their amazing creations.

Source:

www.nintendo.com

“Think of it as Pokemon meets Mario Party. What could a better combo than that?”

• Game Informer The only limit on Amazing Island is your imagination! Build an entire collection of monsters using a wide variety of legs, arms, wings, eyes, voices, colors and more. Once you’ve got your perfect monster, compete in a series of fun and wacky Olympic-style events and party games to win even more accessories, potions and gadgets that make your monster even cooler and more powerful.

COME ON! YOUR MONSTER PALS ARE WAITING FOR YOU.

FEATURES: * Create your own monster and enter a series of competitions involving timing, speed and head-to-head battles * Win monster enhancements with each victory —30 competitions in all! * Patented “Monster Editing System” allows for a nearly infinite number of monster creations, each with unique features and abilities * Collect and trade your monsters through Game Boy Advance connectivity

Source:

Back of Keep Case - GameCube (United States/Canada/Mexico)