New from Next Generation: Detective Tom Making model railways fun again! Virtual 1:87 scale thief hunt Interactive gaming fun with 'Detective Tom' and smart model railway locomotives Gone are the days when model railways were only for well-off collectors or detail-obsessed senior citizens. A new generation of extremely intelligent H0 locomotives is well and truly gathering speed and is putting children back 'on the right track' with huge amounts of interactive gaming fun: under the name 'Next Generation', model railway manufacPhoto: www.nextgeneration.eu turer Roco has developed the first railway game to combine virtual and real game worlds and, as such, is breathing new life into a traditional toy. Smart locomotive drivers from the age of 6 can now use their tablet or smartphone to control an interactive train through exciting stories and fantastic adventures which can be downloaded as an app (available for Apple iOS and Android). 'Action Points' integrated into the tracks, which are wirelessly accessed and which influence the course of the game, provide lots of activities and variety. Tasks assigned in the virtual world have to be solved in the real world, and so the train plays along too. If the task is successfully completed, i.e. if the real train stops with pinpoint accuracy, if it was fast enough and was driven precisely, the virtual story will continue. The occasional monotony of watching a train just travel round and round in a circle on traditional model railways is finally a thing of the past ... In the basic set of the same name from Roco's 'Next Generation', the virtual hunt for an antiques thief takes 'Detective Tom' and his sister Anna all around Germany for example, and presents young locomotive drivers (from the age of 8) with new surprises and tasks on their digital device. 1 The basic set contains an interactive and robust classic H0-scale locomotive, an open goods wagon and an open stake car, an oval track with three 'Action Point' tracks and a mains adapter. It costs EUR 149. Virtual railway detectives can download and activate the 'Action App' on their wireless device. Anyone wishing to extend the thief hunt can do so with the extension set (priced at approx. EUR 30) which offers more stories, games and tracks. So the journey through Europe can continue! For more information, visit www.nextgeneration.eu and YouTube. Detective Tom | Fun Park – virtual/real model railway gaming Authors: Ulrich Blum/Daniel Danzer Age: from age 8 (Detective Tom) | from age 6 (Fun Park) Players: 1 – several players Manufacturer: Roco Sales: Modelleisenbahn München GmbH Price: EUR 149 Authors: Ulrich Blum is from Zurich but lives in Cologne. Having previously worked as a chef and actor, he has been a full-time games author since 2011. He specialises in hybrid games, i.e. physical games with digital elements. On working on 'Next Generation' he says: "The work was above all exciting because we had the opportunity to take the classic model railway to the next level with digital technology, creating an intense gaming experience. These are not superficial gimmicks. What we have done is actually fuse the physical and the digital game worlds." Daniel Danzer has worked as a stage director and scriptwriter (primarily series for children and teenagers) for a long time and now works as a media teacher and games author in Stuttgart. In 2007 he and his wife received a Europe-wide script prize for a children's series concept. Then in 2013, he was awarded second place in the Hippodice game author competition. For him, 'Next Generation' means 'the challenge of innovatively creating a game world with strong stories for children and teenagers' and therefore combining two of his professional focusses. 2 Notes for editors With its head office in Bergheim near Salzburg (Austria), the Modelleisenbahn Gruppe is the European market leader in the DC sector and is the second largest model railway business in Europe with its two brands Fleischmann and Roco. It currently employs 750 workers in four countries and has turnover of EUR 50.5 million (2014). The company has a multi-brand strategy. Whilst Roco is famous for its digital innovations and strong international product range, Fleischmann is considered to be the iconic German DC model railway brand with a history spanning more than 125 years. In contrast, the new 'Next Generation' business segment offers a game world for model railways and is aimed at children aged 6 to 12. Contact person Modelleisenbahn München GmbH, Inga Pietsch Plainbachstraße 4, A-5101 Bergheim, Tel. +43-57626-1600 E-mail: [email protected] www.modelleisenbahn-holding.com, www.fleischmann.de www.roco.cc, www.nextgeneration.eu Copy requested! January 2015 3