NTDOY Nintendo Co Ltd (PK)

TOKYO—Amazon.com Inc. has offered a clue to the release date in Japan of the optional hand-held device for playing the "Poké mon Go" smartphone game.

"Poké mon Go" created a frenzy in the U.S. after its debut last week, frustrating Japanese fans who have been forced to wait for its release, with no news of the date.

However, a preorder page on Amazon's Japanese-language site on Wednesday listed the release date for the hand-held device as July 29. The page disappeared a few hours later after The Wall Street Journal asked the company about its contents.

An Amazon spokesman later declined to comment on the page and why it was removed, but confirmed that the page was created by Amazon, not a third-party retailer.

Nintendo Co., which manufactures and sells the $35 device, declined to comment.

The smartphone game is sold through Apple and Android application stores, and in Japan could be released on a separate date to the hand-held device, which is called Poké mon Go Plus.

"Poké mon Go" uses augmented reality to blend digital images with the user's view of the real world through a smartphone camera, enabling players to chase virtual monsters through real-life city streets. The game's explosive popularity in the U.S. and the handful of other markets in which it has been released have given Nintendo its first mobile-gaming hit.

Though "Poké mon Go" is based on a Nintendo character, it was developed by Poké mon Co. and Niantic Inc., a spinoff from Google Inc. parent Alphabet Inc. Nintendo owns minority stakes in Poké mon Co. and Niantic.

Poké mon Co. declined to comment on the Amazon page.

Poké mon Go Plus may eliminate some of the safety concerns raised by "Poké mon Go." The device can be worn on the wrist, and will vibrate when a monster is nearby, meaning it doesn't require players to be constantly looking at the world through their smartphone screens.

On Amazon, Poké mon Go Plus was listed at ¥ 3,780 ($36.2), which matches the product's announced Japanese price of ¥ 3,500 and an 8% consumption tax.

Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto, who has created company franchises including Mario Bros., said last month that Poké mon Go Plus would be available in July. The company hasn't announced an exact launch date.

The Amazon page is no guarantee of the launch date, though. It is possible it was created purely for design purposes and included random information. Amazon's U.S. site also has a preorder page for Poké mon Go Plus, but doesn't list a release date.

Write to Takashi Mochizuki at takashi.mochizuki@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 14, 2016 01:35 ET (05:35 GMT)

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