the 2009 Pokémon World Championships, Nintendo stated that HeartGold and SoulSilver would be released in North America between the months of January and March, Europe sometime around May and June, and Australia in April. "Announcing these much-anticipated game launches at The Pokémon World Championships allows us to give the news directly to the legions of fans who represent the true heart and soul of Pokémon," a spokesperson said. As the games approached release, from February 27 to March 13, 2010, North American video game retailer GameStop hosted a promotion in which players of Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, or Platinum could use the games' "Mystery Gift" function to download a free Jirachi Pokémon to their game. A "Pikachu-colored Pichu" could be downloaded using Wi-Fi that, when taken to the Ilex Forest in-game, unlocked a "Spiky-eared Pichu". The games were released in North America on March 14, 2010, in Australia on March 25, 2010, and in Europe on March 26, 2010 except in the Netherlands and Dutch speaking Belgium where they released on April 2, 2010. Audio a three-disc soundtrack featuring music scored by Junichi Masuda, Go Ichinose, Hitomi Sato, Shota Kageyama, and Takuto Kitsuta, was released in Japan on October 28, 2009. Reception Pre-release In response to the news confirming the development of HeartGold and SoulSilver, fans posted their reactions and commentary on the Internet. In particular, IGN editor Jack DeVries reasoned that the primary reason for the updated games was to be compatible with Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, allowing players to collect old Pokémon species that were previously unobtainable in the new games. He also expressed skepticism that the new titles could match the quality of the originals; stating, "For me, Gold and Silver were amazing because they introduced so many new features that have since become standards for the series. It was the first, and only, time the Pokémon games have made such a significant expansion. These days we're lucky if we get a new feature that invisibly changes the strategic elements of the game." He reminisced over the qualities that made Gold and Silver truly unique, including the full color support, internal clock, Pokémon breeding, and PokéGear. Several months later, after DeVries had played through some of the game, he wrote, "so far I like what I see, even if it all feels very familiar and formulaic at this point." Critical response The games' reception has been positive, holding