Seaman PC-bound

[12.20.00] » Vivarium's virtual pet comes to the PC, but don't expect too many similarities to the Dreamcast version.

   Vivarium yesterday announced a PC version of its hit Dreamcast virtual pet title Seaman. But while the Seaman character may be appearing , the "game" functions very differently. Seaman PC runs in the background, appearing only as a small Seaman character "swimming" around your desktop. It evolves at a slower pace than its Dreamcast cousin and does not appear in an actual fish tank.

   PC Seaman will interact with the computer's other software. Seaman messages can be sent through e-mail attachments and chat clients to be read by other Seaman PC users. Seaman can even read documents, such as an address book, aloud.

   The PC version's voice recognition capabilities will be provided by IBM's Via-Voice Easy Snap software. Vivarium will distribute the software for free via ISAO.net, a network provider owned by Sega's parent CSK.

   Seaman for Windows Version 1.0 will be released in Japan in the first quarter of 2001; no North American release has been announced. That won't be the only time Seaman appears on PC, however. Vivarium is already planning a Version 1.2 to be released the following quarter. The company even plans to add support for wireless devices and phones further in the future.