ArtsFebruary 27, 202613 min read

Pokémon: The Story of Japan's Greatest Pop Phenomenon

From Satoshi Tajiri's insect-hunting childhood to a planetary empire: the Pokémon saga, the highest-grossing franchise ever and icon of Japanese culture.

La rédaction Kotoba

Studio éditorial

In the suburbs of , west of Tokyo, in the early 1970s, a ten-year-old, , hunts insects: he catches beetles, dragonflies and cicadas, sorts and counts them, maps the grounds where he observes them. Thirty years later, he will turn these memories into the highest-grossing franchise in history, ahead of Mickey Mouse, Star Wars, Marvel and Hello Kitty. is a living encyclopedia of 1,025 creatures.

The Genesis: Satoshi Tajiri, Ken Sugimori and Game Freak#

A Child Obsessed with Insects#

Born on August 28, 1965 in Machida, Satoshi Tajiri grew up surrounded by fields, ponds and forests disappearing under concrete. His childhood nickname was . He dreamed of becoming an entomologist until urbanization wiped out his childhood playgrounds, the root of Pokémon.

As a teenager, he turned from insects to the , pouring 100-yen coins into Space Invaders, Pac-Man and Donkey Kong. At seventeen, he founded a fanzine, Game Freak, devoted to arcade tips. Through it he met his future closest collaborator, , an illustrator who wrote in to offer help.

From Game Freak to Their First Game#

In 1989, the fanzine became a company, Game Freak Inc., founded by Tajiri, Sugimori and a few others. Their first success, Quinty (1989, released in the West as Mendel Palace), published by Namco, funded a more ambitious project.

The Pokémon idea took shape around 1989 to 1990, when Tajiri discovered the Game Boy (Nintendo, 1989) and its Game Link Cable, which let two consoles connect. That electronic exchange evoked his childhood insect trades: what if you caught creatures to exchange via the cable?

Development, titled Capsule Monsters then Pocket Monsters, took six years. Game Freak came close to bankruptcy and Nintendo threatened to pull the plug. Pokémon saw the light thanks to , creator of Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda, who defended Tajiri internally. As executive producer, Miyamoto suggested two versions, Red and Green, each with exclusive creatures to push kids to trade.

The Creative Team and the Birth of the First Monsters#

The team that designed the original 151 creatures fit in a small Game Freak room in Setagaya, Tokyo. Ken Sugimori drew the majority, with credited with . composed the music.

The Kanto Pokédex rests on biological coherence: each Pokémon has a type (fire, water, grass, electric, psychic), an ecological niche, evolutions echoing insect metamorphosis, and weaknesses and resistances forming a miniature ecosystem.

Red and Green, 1996: A Thunderclap on the Game Boy#

and launched in Japan on February 27, 1996 on the Game Boy. These two cartridges revived a console deemed near the end of its life and set off the biggest Japanese cultural phenomenon since Dragon Ball.

The Concept That Changed Everything#

In the Kanto region (関東), inspired by the area around Tokyo, the player takes on an eleven-year-old who leaves to become a Pokémon Master: catch the 151 creatures of the , defeat the eight gym leaders, face and beat the four Elite Four of the Pokémon League.

Trading made the game unique in 1996. Thirteen Pokémon, including the starters , and , plus evolutions like Alakazam or Dragonite, can only be obtained by trading with another player. Completing your Pokédex meant meeting friends in the schoolyard, cable in hand: a social game before its time.

A Slow Start, Then an Explosion#

The first weeks were disappointing: modest sales, concept misunderstood. Then, in spring 1996, kids discovered the game in Japanese schoolyards and traded their creatures. Word of mouth sent sales soaring, and the Game Boy found a second life. In 1998, a third version, , launched in Japan, followed by , starring the electric mouse already a global mascot.

Red and Green sold 10 million copies in Japan in two years. With Pokémon Red and Blue in North America (September 1998) then Europe (1999), the total reached 31 million copies worldwide.

The Mysterious 151st Creature: Mew#

, the 151st Pokémon, was not in the official Pokédex. A Game Freak developer, , slipped it into the source code a few weeks before release, in a tiny leftover memory slot, as an internal Easter egg never meant to reach players. The rumor spread, and Nintendo turned it into a 1996 promotional event, distributed to winners of a CoroCoro magazine contest. Mew became the prototype of all mythical Pokémon.

The Anime, the Cards, the Plushies: Media Explosion#

Pokémon's success rests not only on the games but on the , which turns a game license into a cultural galaxy.

The Pokémon Anime: Ash, Pikachu and the Eternal Journey#

On April 1, 1997, TV Tokyo aired the first episode of Pocket Monsters, produced by OLM Inc. and Shōgakukan Pro. It follows , a ten-year-old who leaves Pallet Town to become a Pokémon Master, with Pikachu, an electric Pokémon who refuses to enter his Poké Ball.

The anime became one of Japan's most-watched cartoons, and Pikachu, with his "Pika Pika!" cries, its icon. The first season ran more than 80 episodes; the series continued over 25 years, until the retirement of Ash and Pikachu announced in 2023 after more than 1,200 episodes, with new protagonists Liko and Roy in Pokémon Horizons.

The Porygon Incident and Media Responsibility#

On December 16, 1997, the episode Dennō Senshi Porygon (でんのうせんしポリゴン, "Electric Soldier Porygon") aired a scene with rapid red and blue flashes. Within minutes, 685 Japanese children were hospitalized for photosensitive epilepsy seizures, headaches and vomiting. The most serious incident ever caused by a TV broadcast in Japan suspended the anime for four months and pushed global networks to adopt stricter standards. The episode was never re-aired, and Porygon, though it was actually Pikachu who triggered the flashes, has almost never reappeared.

The Trading Card Game#

The Pokémon Trading Card Game, created in 1996 by Media Factory under designer , became a phenomenon as powerful as the games. Rare cards like the 1998 Pikachu Illustrator (printed in only 39 copies for a contest) reach millions at auction: one sold for 5.275 million dollars to Logan Paul in 2022.

Distributed since 1998 in the West by Wizards of the Coast, then directly by the Pokémon Company since 2003, the TCG has shipped more than 64 billion cards in 93 countries and 14 languages, the best-selling collectible card game in history, far ahead of Magic: The Gathering.

Plushies, Merchandise, Collaborations#

From 1996, Nintendo of Japan and soon the Pokémon Company (founded in 1998, restructured in 2000) orchestrated commercial exploitation unmatched in scale: Pikachu plushies, keychains, stationery, clothing, kitchenware, the Pokémon Jet of All Nippon Airways (the first decorated in 1998), themed Pokémon Cafés in Tokyo and Osaka, Pokémon Centers in major Japanese cities since 1998, then in New York, Toronto, London, Paris, Seoul and Singapore.

Pokémon in the West: Global Poké Mania#

Arrival in the United States, 1998#

Pokémon Red and Blue launched in the United States on September 28, 1998. The marketing campaign, led by Gail Tilden and Pokémon Company International, was massive, and the slogan Gotta Catch 'Em All! became a mantra. Within six months, Poké Mania exploded: the anime on WB Kids hit record audiences, American schools banned cards due to fights, and lines stretched outside stores receiving rare cards.

Time magazine put Pikachu on the cover on November 22, 1999, headlined "Beware of the Poké Mania." For the first time, a Japanese cultural product, neither reduced nor adapted to local tastes, won over American children, opening the way for the J-pop and anime wave of the 2000s.

Movies in Theaters: Mewtwo Strikes Back#

The first feature, Pokémon: The First Movie: Mewtwo Strikes Back (ミュウツーの逆襲), released in Japan on July 18, 1998 and in the US on November 10, 1999. Dark and philosophical for a kids' animation, raising questions of identity through the artificial clone Mewtwo, it became the biggest global success for a Japanese animated film at the time, grossing $163 million in the US amid lines, free Mewtwo cards and sold-out screens for weeks.

The franchise has since produced more than 25 animated films. In 2019, Detective Pikachu, mixing live action and animation with Ryan Reynolds voicing Pikachu, marked Pokémon's entry into live-action Hollywood and grossed $433 million worldwide.

Pokémon in France and Europe#

The French release, in 1999 for the anime (on TF1 then Canal J) and in October 1999 for the games, triggered the same wave. The French theme song, composed by Yves Hasselmann and performed by Jean-Marc Anthony, became an intergenerational hit. Merchandising flooded Hachette Collections, Auchan and European supermarkets. In Spain, the UK, Germany and Italy, the pattern repeated.

The Successive Generations: Evolution of a Formula#

Since 1996, the franchise has been structured around generations of games, each with a new region inspired by a real place, a new bestiary and new mechanics.

Generation II: Gold and Silver (1999 to 2000)#

and launched in Japan on November 21, 1999 on Game Boy Color, in the Johto region inspired by Kansai (Kyoto, Osaka, Nara). One hundred new Pokémon brought the total to 251. The game added a day-night cycle, Pokémon eggs, breeding, Shiny Pokémon (rare alternate-color variants), two new types (Dark and Steel) and the return to Kanto after the Pokémon League. Fans often cite these as the franchise's peak.

Generations III to V: Ruby-Sapphire, Diamond-Pearl, Black-White (2002 to 2010)#

Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire (2002, Hoenn inspired by Kyushu) introduced double battles, abilities and held items. Pokémon Diamond and Pearl (2006, Sinnoh inspired by Hokkaido) brought the franchise to Nintendo DS with Wi-Fi battles and the Global Pokémon Network. Pokémon Black and White (2010, Unova inspired by New York) introduced 156 new Pokémon at once, the biggest generational leap, and a more mature narrative around Team Plasma.

Generations VI to VIII: X/Y, Sun/Moon, Sword/Shield (2013 to 2019)#

Pokémon X and Y (2013, Kalos inspired by France, with a Prism Tower echoing the Eiffel Tower) marked the move to 3D on Nintendo 3DS and introduced Mega Evolutions. Pokémon Sun and Moon (2016, Alola inspired by Hawaii) replaced traditional gyms with island trials. Pokémon Sword and Shield (2019, Galar inspired by the United Kingdom) arrived on Nintendo Switch and introduced Dynamax, growing Pokémon to giant size during battle.

Generation IX: Scarlet and Violet (2022)#

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet (2022, Paldea inspired by the Iberian Peninsula, Spain and Portugal) offered the first true open world, with the player choosing their order of progression between three narrative arcs (the Victory Road, the Path of Legends, the Starfall Street). Sales exceeded 10 million copies in three days, Nintendo's fastest launch ever.

By the end of 2025, the franchise counts 1,025 official Pokémon across nine generations and several spin-offs (Pokémon Mystery Dungeon, Pokémon Ranger, Pokémon Colosseum, New Pokémon Snap, Pokémon Legends: Arceus).

Pokémon GO and the New Mobile Era#

On July 6, 2016, Pokémon GO, developed by Niantic (an American studio spun off from Google, led by John Hanke) with the Pokémon Company and Nintendo, launched in the United States, Australia and New Zealand. It uses augmented reality and GPS geolocation to turn the real world into a hunting ground: players visit PokéStops (monuments, churches, artworks) to collect items and catch creatures appearing on their map.

A Planetary Summer Frenzy#

Within two weeks, Pokémon GO became the phenomenon of summer 2016. Millions went out into parks, streets and cemeteries. Videos of crowds gathering in New York's Central Park for a wild Vaporeon circulated worldwide. In one month, the app hit 500 million downloads and Nintendo's market cap doubled in days.

Pokémon GO was the first game to get players out of the house en masse and create spontaneous gatherings in public space. Cities latched on: Paris hosted official events, Kyoto's city hall added PokéStops to its temples, and some Japanese cities used the app to revitalize deserted shopping centers.

Surprising Longevity#

Contrary to predictions, Pokémon GO did not collapse after summer 2016. It still generates over $8 billion to date, with more than 60 million monthly players in 2025. Community Days and yearly GO Fests in Chicago, London and Tokyo still draw tens of thousands of participants.

Cultural Legacy: Why Pokémon Is the Highest-Grossing Franchise in History#

According to studies including TitleMax in 2018 and Pokémon Company updates in 2023, Pokémon is the highest-grossing media franchise of all time, with cumulative revenue over $110 billion, ahead of Hello Kitty (about $84 billion), Mickey Mouse (about $80 billion), Winnie the Pooh ($75 billion) and Star Wars ($70 billion).

Balanced Revenue Mix#

Unlike Star Wars (films and toys) or Marvel (films), Pokémon earns relatively balanced revenue from:

Merchandise and spin-off products (clothing, plushies, utensils): about 40 percent
Trading cards: about 15 percent
Video games: about 15 percent
Anime, films and video: about 10 percent
Events, parks and tourism: about 10 percent
Mobile apps (including Pokémon GO): about 10 percent

This diversification protects the franchise from the fashion cycles that break other licenses: when games cool down, cards surge; when cards plateau, the anime rekindles interest.

Three Generations of Fans#

Pokémon has reached three successive generations while keeping each. Children of 1996 to 1999, now adults aged 30 to 40, still buy new games and pass the passion to their children. Those of 2006 to 2010 live Pokémon through social media, speedruns and e-sports. Those of 2016 to today discover it through Pokémon GO, YouTube card openings and theatrical films. This cross-generational transmission is one secret of its longevity.

Japanese Soft Power#

Pokémon has become a main vector of Japanese soft power, alongside manga, anime, Japanese cuisine and matcha. The Japanese government named Pikachu Goodwill Ambassador during the Tokyo 2020 Olympics (held in 2021 due to the pandemic). The Pokémon Wonders park in Yokohama (opened in 2023) and the future Pokémon Park announced in Dubai reflect its tourism dimension.

Pokémon and Esports#

The Pokémon World Championships, held yearly since 2004 by the Pokémon Company (Honolulu in 2024, Anaheim in 2025), gather thousands of players across the Video Game Championship (VGC), the TCG and Pokémon GO. Less publicized than League of Legends or Counter-Strike, the scene is one of the oldest and most enduring, with champions like Wolfe Glick, Paul Ruiz and Japanese player Shohei Kimura.

Pokémon is not a video game, nor an anime, nor a card game. It is a parallel universe that has grown up alongside three generations of children, teaching them, without ever saying so, to love observing, collecting, trading and persevering.

Back to the Roots: Pokémon Legends: Arceus and Tajiri's Spirit#

In January 2022, Pokémon Legends: Arceus launched on Nintendo Switch, set in Hisui (ancient Sinnoh, inspired by a pre-industrial Japan close to the Meiji era), several centuries before the other games. For the first time, the player studies Pokémon scientifically: observing them in the wild, approaching stealthily, photographing them, documenting behaviors. The Pokédex becomes a scientific database.

Legends: Arceus was seen as a return to Tajiri's original idea: Pokémon as a modern entomologist's game, where capture is a gateway to knowledge of the living world. It sold more than 15 million copies and inspired a sequel, Pokémon Legends: Z-A (announced for 2025, set in Kalos). Thirty years after turning his insect passion into a video game, Tajiri sees it become again a contemporary form of that passion.

Pokémon is the story of a solitary child who wanted to share his passion with the world. Satoshi Tajiri, who has since disclosed being on the autism spectrum and remains notoriously private (one or two interviews a year), achieved what no other video game creator has matched: a universe hundreds of millions of children consider a core part of their childhood, where catching creatures means discovering them rather than dominating them, where battles happen between friends, where the journey matters more than the destination. From the 1996 Game Boy to the 2025 Nintendo Switch 2, Pokémon has crossed thirty years of technological revolutions without losing its soul, which comes down to a few words: Gotta Catch 'Em All!

Photo credits: images used in this article come from Pexels and Unsplash and are royalty-free.

Anime: Japanese animation, from feature films to TV series, often adapted from manga.
Game Freak: Japanese video game studio, developer of the core Pokémon series.
Pokémon: Japanese franchise born from video games, now one of the most lucrative in the world.
Satoshi Tajiri: Japanese creator of Pokémon, inspired by his childhood passion for collecting insects.