Bandai set to launch Bubble "edutainment" gaming system
Bandai is set to enter the competitive world of preschool gaming with the Bubble, a DVD-based console that will feature games based on popular kids' TV characters including the Teletubbies and Thomas the Tank Engine. The system uses a Leap Pad-like console that communicates wirelessly over an IR link to a standard DVD player. The Bubble — expected to retail in the U.K. for £60 when it launches later this summer — will compete in the increasingly crowded "edutainment" market, where players like VTech, LeapFrog, and Fisher-Price are increasingly trying to grab young gamers with titles that have an educational edge. (Of course, while that may appeal to parents, we know the kids are really grabbing their older siblings' consoles to play GTA when nobody's looking.)
