Press release: 1999-08-09: Infogrames North America Brings the Lovable Characters From Pen Pen to the Sega Dreamcast

This is an unaltered copy of a press release, for use as a primary source on Sega Retro. Please do not edit the contents below. Language: English third-party Original source: The Free Library

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 9, 1999--

Popular Japanese Game To Hit the US Market In Time For September Dreamcast Launch

Somewhere in the universe, it is said that there is a planet called the "Iced Planet" - it's covered with ice and snow and it's where the lovable penguin-like creatures called Pen Pens live. Infogrames North America, a leading publisher of entertainment software, announced today that it will bring Pen Pens to the Sega(R) Dreamcast(TM) on 9/9/99, the highly publicized launch of Sega's new next generation console.

Pen Pen TriIcelon(TM), a new character-based arcade action game, pits the Pen Pens against other bright and colorful characters in a triathlon of activities, including belly-surfing, ice-walking and swimming. Choose from seven whimsical characters including a hippo, octopus, bird, shark, walrus, dog, and of course, the penguin. Pen Pen TriIcelon includes 12 beautifully detailed racing circuits with brilliant weather and lighting effects that take advantage of the Dreamcast hardware.

"Pen Pen TriIcelon is laugh-out-loud fun for kids of all ages," said Rick Reynolds, director of product marketing for Infogrames North America's I-Heroes studio. "It's a completely original game unlike anything on the market today."

Instantly accessible game controls let you jump, swim, skate, and belly surf in three different types of races: easy, middle and long. The easy Icelon has three areas of ice-walking, belly surfing and swimming with no obstacles and easy opponents. The middle Icelon includes three areas of ice-walking, belly surfing and swimming with various obstacles and good opponents. The long Icelon has four areas of ice-walking, belly surfing, swimming and another form of skating with plenty of obstacles and strong opponents. As players win races, they are awarded with items to dress up Pen Pen in various attire which sometimes enhances the character's speed or attacking abilities, such as flippers for swimming or a hard hat with a light for attacking.

With Pen Pen's entree onto the Dreamcast, American gamers can now enjoy the same zany characters that have taken Japan by storm. With up to four-player support, gamers can compete against each other for exciting multiplay action.

Infogrames is a global publisher of interactive entertainment software. Founded in 1983, the company ranks in the top 10 entertainment software companies worldwide, and is the sixth largest console software vendor. Infogrames currently develops and distributes award-winning computer and video games for the PlayStation(R) game console, Nintendo(R) 64, Nintendo(R) Game Boy Color, Sega(R) Dreamcast(TM), and personal computer platforms. Infogrames North America's headquarters are located in San Jose, Calif. For more information, visit the company's web site at www.infogrames.net.
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