Press Release: “Josh’s World To Be Released 2002”

Click Here for a Full Color Brochure of Josh's World

Yachats, OR - Microcomputer Resources, Inc. (MRI) announces the release of Josh's World, a CD-ROM based African American children's game for the PC. In an effort to create a positive, non-violent game that includes more diverse characters, Josh's World, a CD-ROM interactive computer game for children ages 2-9, is one of the few computer games featuring a positive African American role model for young children. Josh's World, in a clear, uncontrived fashion provides African American children the fun and delight of engaging in a 3D interactive play land they can explore with Josh there to provide help and companionship along the way.

Josh's World, which runs on Windows 98/ME/XP, offers kids who like to discover through exploration an open world mode where they can play all the games and activities found in Josh's World. There is also a complete game mode for children who prefer play through gaming. A single player can play Josh's World on a PC or two players can play against each other on the same PC. Josh's World includes a Print and Play feature. Print and Play generates activities and games kids can enjoy when they are away from the computer.

As Josh's World's Executive Producer, Robin Murphy stated, I had been a computer teacher in an elementary school and I knew what piqued children's interest. It definitely wasn't the drill and practice software that flooded the market at the time. The kind of software that interested them were open-ended games encouraging them to become actors rather than reactors; We wanted to create a magical 3D world for these little people where they could explore different environments and at the same time offer options to those children who preferred to play games. The real world Josh is Joshua Brown, the son of Michelle Blackmon who performed with the Oregon Shakespearean Festival in the 1995-1996 seasons. Joshua endeared himself to our family and inspired us to create a game for young children.

Josh’s World was designed with children from age 2 - 9 in mind.

Microcomputer Resources, Inc. is a privately held Oregon Corporation based in Ashland, Oregon. The company mission is to produce and publish quality titles and carry that excellence through the various distribution channels to the parents who buy our games and the children that play them.

If you would like to receive an evaluation copy of Josh’s World upon its release, please call or e-mail Verin G. Lewis at the contact information below.

In an effort to bring quality video games to a more diverse market, TryMedia and Microcomputer Resources, Inc. have entered into a distribution agreement to provide on-line users the opportunity to purchase "Josh's World," an African-American children's computer game, from trysoftware.com. A trial version or full version can be downloaded from trysoftware.com, and the trail version can be easily converted to a full version.

"Josh's World" is a delightful game that is consistent, simple to use and colorful. Joshua himself appears throughout the game, interactively engaging children in activities like Music Hall, Josh's House, Toy Room, Art Studio and Green House. The game runs on Windows 98/ME/XP. A single player or two players competing on the same PC can play it. The game also includes a print and play feature so kids can do the activities away from the computer.

"Josh's World," developed by a husband-and-wife team, was released in 2002 after several years of planning and production. According to Verin G. Lewis, developer and producer, "Josh's World" is a CD-ROM based, non-violent, three-dimensional game for children two to nine years old and one of the few computer games featuring a positive African-American role model for young children. The game is produced by Microcomputer Resources, Inc., a privately held company based in Yachats, Oregon, and is the company's first title in what Lewis expects to be a string of games for children.

According to the research that has been done on gaming and ethnic minorities in the U.S., African Americans are among the most avid players of video games. Phoenix Marketing International's most recent market research study reveals that Minority Gamers spend almost twice as much as Caucasian Gamers on monthly electronic gaming purchases. According to David Pluchino, Senior Research Manager, "the results indicate that Gamers spend approximately $34 per month on software and/or hardware/accessories." Asians are spending the most, while Caucasians are spending the least amount of money on video games. Phoenix Marketing International is one of the premier marketing services firms serving the travel & entertainment, financial services, consumer packaged goods, and automotive sectors. For this study, Phoenix Marketing International conducted more than 18,000 completed interviews.

This robust sample yields a 95% confidence interval with an error margin of +/- 0.7%.

Researchers have hailed video, PC (personal computer) and online games as a new entertainment culture that integrates animation, movies, books and toys. A recent national study commissioned by America Online (Digital Marketing Services, Inc.) revealed that playing games online is one of the top three activities for African-Americans.

African-Americans represent a huge segment of the video and PC game market. Target Market News reports in its 2002 report that black households earn $631 billion annually and that they spend $1.9 billion of that yearly on toys, games and pets.

TryMedia and Microcomputer Resources, Inc. are excited to have "Josh's World" available at trysoftware.com. Offering such titles as "Josh's World" to the African American community helps companies build franchises and loyalty in a community that can be tapped in future launches.

In fact, African Americans are much more likely (12%) to play educational titles than whites (5%). Initiatives throughout the African American community to improve local schools dovetails perfectly with one of these
community's favorite pursuits: gaming. Microsoft and others are starting to spend a lot of time and money exploring the school and educational market and starting to see how classic game design skills apply.

Direct Contact Information:

Verin G. Lewis
Chief Knowledge Officer
Microcomputer Resources, Inc.
P.O. Box 267
Yachats, Oregon 97498
Tel: (541) 547-5418
E-Mail: robin55@peak.org