''Hey You, Pikachu!'' is a

virtual pet A virtual pet (also known as a digital pet, artificial pet, or pet-raising simulation) is a type of artificial human companion. They are usually kept for companionship or enjoyment, or as an alternative to a real pet. Digital pets have no conc ...

spin-off Spin-off, Spin Off, Spin-Off, or Spinoff may refer to: Entertainment and media *Spinoff (media), a media work derived from an existing work *''The Spinoff'', a New Zealand current affairs magazine * ''Spin Off'' (Canadian game show), a 2013 Canad ...

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for the

Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on June 23, 1996, in North America on September 29, 1996, and in Europe and Australia on March 1, 1997. As the successor to the Super Nintendo E ...

developed by Ambrella and published by

Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...

. It was released in Japan on December 12, 1998, and in North America on November 6, 2000. The player is asked to help Professor Oak test the PokéHelper, a device that lets humans communicate with Pokémon. The game is set in the Kanto region between Pewter City and Viridian City, where the player is introduced to a wild Pikachu. The player is able to communicate with a 256-word database through the Voice Recognition Unit (VRU), a Nintendo 64 hardware accessory that, when paired with a microphone, can comprehend and analyze human speech. Along with speaking with Pikachu, the VRU allows the player to move around and gather items. ''Hey You, Pikachu!'' is one of only two games to utilize the VRU, with the other being ''Densha de Go! 64'', the Japan-exclusive N64 port of '' Densha de Go! 2 Kōsoku-hen''. The game had a mixed reception from critics. Though no direct sequels have been made, the virtual pet game '' Pokémon Channel'', first released for the

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in 2003, resembles ''Hey You, Pikachu!'' and shares similar gameplay, with the exception of the microphone peripheral.

Gameplay

The main character is asked to test out the PokéHelper, a new device of Professor Oak's that is used to talk to Pokémon. The player then meets a wild Pikachu and befriends it. Once the player earns Pikachu's trust, it will come and live in the player's house. There are three different activity days: Pikachu's Daring Days, Discovery Days, and Play Days. Each day has a different objective (e.g. collecting food, going fishing) and the player can earn Pika Points, the currency used at Abra's Shop to unlock new items. After 365 gameplay days, Professor Oak notifies the player that Pikachu, still a wild Pokémon, must be released. The player ventures to the woods to find Pikachu and repeatedly says "goodbye", upon which Pikachu realizes it must return to the wild. After the credits, while the player looks around the front yard and reminisces, Pikachu returns, and the game continues as if Pikachu was never released.

Development

''Hey You, Pikachu!'' was first demonstrated at

Nintendo Space World formerly named and was an annual video game trade show hosted by Nintendo from 1989 to 2001. Its three days of high-energy party atmosphere was the primary venue for Nintendo and its licensees to announce and demonstrate new consoles, accesso ...

'97. Originally, the game was to be titled ''Pikachu VRS'' in North America, but it was changed for marketability reasons.

Reception

''Hey You, Pikachu!'' received "mixed" reviews according to the review aggregation website

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

. ''

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''s Dustin Packwood commented that fans of the anime would enjoy this game. '' NextGen''s Greg Orlando, however, said that the game "tastes just like chicken made of glucose." ''

GamePro ''GamePro'' was an American multiplatform video game magazine media company that published online and print content covering the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software. The magazine featured content on various video ...

'' stated, "If you're a little kid or a big kid with a little kid's love for ''Pokémon'', ''Hey, You, Pikachu'' is calling for you." In Japan, ''

Famitsu , formerly , is a line of Japanese Video game journalism, video game magazines published by Kadokawa Game Linkage (previously known as Gzbrain), a subsidiary of Kadokawa Corporation, Kadokawa. ''Famitsu'' is published in both weekly and monthly f ...

'' gave it a score of 30 out of 40. '' Retronauts'' cited the game as an example of a terrible ''Pokémon'' console game. ''

UGO Networks UGO Entertainment, Inc. was a website that provided coverage of online media in entertainment, targeting males aged 18–34. The company was based in New York, New York, United States. History The company started in 1997 as Unified Gamers Online ...

'' listed the game on their list of the "Top 50 Games That Belong On the 3DS", stating "Using the 3DS' built-in microphone should make it simple to speak and interact with the wild Pokémon." The game was nominated for the " Console Family" award at the

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; that award ultimately was given to '' Mario Tennis''.

Legacy

A spiritual sequel to ''Hey You, Pikachu!'', '' Pokémon Channel'', was first released on the

in 2003 and was also developed by Ambrella. Another spiritual sequel, '' PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure'', was first released on the

Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America, and in December 2006 for most other regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major home game console, f ...

in 2009, which in turn had its direct sequel, '' PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond'', first released in 2011.

Notes

References

External links

Official Nintendo Japan ''Hey You, Pikachu!'' site
* {{Pokémon 1998 video games Ambrella games Creatures (company) games Microphone-controlled video games Nintendo 64 games Nintendo 64-only games Pokémon spinoff games Single-player video games Video games about mice and rats Video games developed in Japan