This article is about Pokémon, also known as Pocket Monsters, as a series. For other uses of the words, seePokémon (disambiguation).

Pokémon (Japanese:ポケットモンスターPocket Monsters,ポケモンPokémon for short), sometimes shortened to^P_K^M_N, is an overarching media franchise owned byNintendo,Creatures, Inc., andGame Freak. First appearing in 1996 with the release of itsfirst entries on theGame Boy,^[2] thegame series has since inspired an array of media, including ananimated series, acard game, numerousmanga, and variousspin-off games.

The series focuses on the creatures known asPokémon, as well as their inhabitedworld, full of legends, tales, and adventures. Severalinterpretations of the world explore different themes and elements. Most commonly, Pokémon coexist withhumans and can becaught,trained, and used inbattles and other activities.Trainers, along with their Pokémon, travel across diverselands aiming to make their dreams become reality, and the bond — love and trust — between Trainers and their Pokémon is often cited as the key to success.

The Pokémon franchise is the highest-grossing media franchise of all time.

Etymology

Much as happens with many otherwords and phrases borrowed from English, the Japanese name for the series, Pocket Monsters, became contracted into "Pokémon" during the development of the original games, likely as much for convenience when referring to it as to save on-screen real estate, considering the small size of theGame Boy's screen. The initial romanization of Pokémon, "Pockémon", used by official Japanese media prior to the English localization was derived from the contraction ofPocket andMonsters, and can be seen explicitly inIsland of the Giant Pokémon andPrimeape Goes Bananas,^[3] even in the English dub.

The "Pokémon" name used today came about during the translation of the games for an English or international audience during 1997 and 1998, which was derived from the contraction ofPocket andMonsters. This was suggested byAlfred R. Kahn, at the time the CEO of4Kids Entertainment, who believed "Pocket Monsters" sounded too similar to the names of other monster collection games.^[4] Despite this, the fact that Pokémon is short for Pocket Monsters has been referenced in English, with a non-playable character (NPC) inPokémon Diamond, Pearl, andPlatinum asking the player what Pokémon is short for after thinking about the name of thePokétch, itself a contraction; as well as on the back of a DVD set containing thefirst,second, andthirdmovies.

Franchise

Main article:History of Pokémon

Pokémon, as a series, was originally conceived bySatoshi Tajiri as a way to instill in children of the modern, more urbanized Japan the same enjoyment that he felt as a young boy collecting insects and other bugs near his hometown ofMachida. Initially calledCapsule Monsters, or CapuMon for short, Tajiri pitched the series to Nintendo after being inspired by theGame Link Cable; he pictured an insect crawling across it between two Game Boy systems.

With help fromShigeru Miyamoto, the series began development, with the concepts of the original games,Pokémon Red and Green, going into production between 1990 and 1995. At last, in early 1996, the first games in the series were released in Japan, and Tajiri's dream had become reality. Compared to other games of its time, Pokémon was very limited, with comparatively poor graphics and sound. The series was an overnight success though, and Red and Green were quickly followed by an upgradedthird version,Pokémon Blue.

Ananimated series was produced, to cover the journey players took through theKanto region in the games over the course of a year and a half. About halfway through the show's run in late 1997, tragedy struck, andan episode of the series was found to be responsible forepileptic seizures in more than 600 children due to a flashing strobe effect. No one died of these seizures, and after an investigation was put into place, the series was put on hiatus for four months, later returning to the air to complete the Kanto run in April 1998.

Encouraged by the games' success in Japan and their upcoming release in the United States,Game Freak began development on sequels to them. Rather than releasing the sequels immediately, however, Game Freak instead chose to draw from the story of the animated series (which differed from the games in that its protagonist was given aPikachu instead of the standard Kantofirst partner Pokémon) and created a fourth game,Pokémon Yellow, to buy some more time for development on the announced sequels.

Severalmanga series were also produced in this early period, includingPokémon Adventures, which Tajiri has stated is closest to his original idea of theworld the series takes place in.

The much-awaited sequels were released in 1999 in Japan and 2000 in the US.Pokémon Gold and Silver revamped the Pokémon world, bringing it into full color, introducing one hundrednew Pokémon and addressing many of the issues that had been present in the original games. For example, two newtypes were introduced to address type imbalances. The animated series, manga, and other aspects of the franchise followed suit, bringing their characters into thesecond generation.

Even after the initial worldwide hype for the series died down, the Pokémon franchise remained strong. A third version was produced for Generation II, focusing on theLegendary PokémonSuicune. WithPokémon Crystal, afemale player character was finally introduced, and the games became fully dependent on theGame Boy Color, abandoning the now long-outdatedGame Boy.Generation III was announced for the newGame Boy Advance, and at least amongfans, the hype returned.

Despite this, whenPokémon Ruby and Sapphire were initially released many people considered them, and Generation III in general, a disappointment.Misty,Ash's longtime companion in the animated series, left the show and a new girlMay joined him. Although 135 new Pokémon were introduced, the games, unlike the Generation II games, were completely incompatible with their predecessors, making 184 of the 251 previously released Pokémon unobtainable withoutcheating. This issue was addressed with the unprecedented release ofremakes of the original pair of games,Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, which included many of the Pokémon missing from Ruby and Sapphire. In addition, an enhanced version of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire,Pokémon Emerald, was released and introduced theBattle Frontier and many other features that would be enjoyed by those who battled Pokémon competitively, as well as including even more of the Pokémon missing from the prior Generation III games.

Much like the previous generations,Generation IV was highly anticipated.Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, released in 2006 in Japan and 2007 in the US, received much praise. These games brought with them many enhancements from Emerald, and for the first time, Pokémon could be played online to battle against and trade with other players across the world. This generation was also noted for introducing thephysical/special damage category split, another improvement which would be enjoyed by those who battled Pokémon competitively. 107 new Pokémon were added as well, bringing the total to 493.

With the precedent set by the earlier release of remakes for the original pair of games, this generation saw much speculation for a remake of the now-outdated Generation II games, and hidden data in the games seemed to indicate that remakes were planned. A third version,Pokémon Platinum, was released two years after Diamond and Pearl. Due to this, as well as the delay in the release, many became discouraged that the remakes would never come. However, after five years of speculation,Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver were finally released in 2009 in Japan and in 2010 elsewhere.

Generation V constituted a "reboot" similar to that of Generation III. The highly anticipatedPokémon Black and White were set far away from the previous games in a region based onNew York City calledUnova. Initially in the game, only the 156 new Pokémon introduced in this generation were available before beating thePokémon League, forcing veteran players to rethink old strategies. The games did have the capacity to connect to older games however, and maintained the international connectivity introduced in the fourth generation. The animated series,Pokémon Trading Card Game, and manga series also embraced the new generation with releases of tie-in media. Breaking the traditional format, Pokémon Black and White were followed by two direct sequels,Pokémon Black and White Versions 2, which included many Pokémon from different regions.

Generation VI started withPokémon X and Y, which were released worldwide on the same day in October 2013, a first for the franchise. The games introduced many new features, such as fully 3D gameplay including 3D models for every Pokémon,Mega Evolution, the introduction of theFairytype,Trainer customization,Pokémon-Amie, and new battle formats (such asSky Battles andInverse Battles). The games'Kalos region was chosen to be based onFrance partly because French culture is known for its art and beauty—the main theme of the game. The newSuper Training feature offered a simple way to monitor a Pokémon'sEVs. New ways to improve the player's chance of findingShiny Pokémon were also introduced, such as the introduction of chain fishing and the return of thePoké Radar. With the addition of 72 new Pokémon, the total number of Pokémon in Generation VI is 721.

Although there were no remakes in Generation V, Generation VI saw the release ofPokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire worldwide in November 2014, remakes of Generation III's Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire. Similar to Pokémon X and Y, Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire were released around the same time worldwide, although the games were released in Europe a week after the rest of the world. In addition to being remakes of the Generation III games, the games included new Mega Evolutions and introducedPrimal Reversion.

Generation VII began with the release ofPokémon Sun and Moon in November 2016; like Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, these games were released on the same day worldwide except in Europe, where the games' release was delayed a few days. This generation introduced 81 new Pokémon, taking the total up to 802. The games were released on the year of the20th anniversary of the franchise. They are notable for being the first in the core series to lack Gyms, Badges, and HMs. They are also notable for introducingregional variants, Pokémon species that have unique adapted to the region and have taken on new appearances, types, and on some occasions Abilities.Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, enhanced versions of Pokémon Sun and Moon, were released worldwide in November 2017. These are the first games to introduce new Pokémon during a generation, excludingMythical Pokémon that were already present in the older games' data, bringing the total to 807.Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!,remakes ofPokémon Yellow, were released worldwide in November 2018. These are the first core titles for theNintendo Switch, and the first time a core title has switched to a new system mid-generation.

Generation VIII started with the release ofPokémon Sword and Shield for the Nintendo Switch worldwide in November 2019. This was the first generation not to feature all Pokémon and moves from previous games, and when it was announced that not all Pokémon were usable in the new games, a controversy started within the fanbase. Another 84 Pokémon were introduced in this game, bringing the total up to 893. With the release of thetwo downloadable content (DLC) expansions, known asThe Isle of Armor andThe Crown Tundra, 5 more Pokémon were introduced, including more Galarian Pokémon, fused Pokémon, and Legendary and Mythical Pokémon, bringing the total up to 898 Pokémon. In November 2021,Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl came out. In January 2022,Pokémon Legends: Arceus came out, it introduced 7 new Pokémon, and nineteen new forms.

Generation IX began with the release ofPokémon Scarlet and Violet on the Nintendo Switch worldwide in November 2022. This generation continued the trend of not including every Pokémon and moves. This generation was the first to include seamless open-world gameplay and multiplayer. 105 new Pokémon were introduced in this game, bringing the total to 1010.Two DLC expansions were released in 2023, namedThe Teal Mask andThe Indigo Disk, introducing 15 more Pokémon to bring the total up to 1025 Pokémon. In October 2025,Pokémon Legends: Z-A was released, introducing 26 new Mega Evolutions.

Creatures

Main article:Pokémon (species)

The creatures themselves, which are based on various plants, animals, objects, and other concepts, inhabit virtually every corner of theworld, no matter which canon's interpretation is seen. Many make their homes in forests and on ruralroutes stretching across the various regions, while still others are native to cities and other urban centers. Currently, there are 1025 known as Pokémon.

Typically, Pokémon that are owned by a person are kept inPoké Balls, which allow for them to be quickly sent into battle or to perform a task while keeping them safe and making them easier to transport, with the balls typically being able to fit into a pocket. Many Pokémon owned by Trainers, however, choose to remain outside of their Poké Ball and travel with their Traineron foot.

Pokémon begin their lives by hatching fromEggs (with the exception of mostMythical andLegendary Pokémon), and many of them willevolve to grow stronger and larger during their lives. Most Pokémon are not immortal, as can be seen from the Pokémon gravestones found in variousburial grounds. Though their abilities far surpass those of normal animals, the majority of Pokémon are not immortal (as those who do not follow the series as closely may deduce).

Many Pokémon are much more powerful than others, and some, due to this, havepassed into legends that are told in the Pokémon world. It has not been consistently illustrated whether or not these Pokémon really do have the power that their legends state, though the general consensus is that, in the wild, a Pokémon's abilities are truly those of the legends, while a Trainer who captures one in a Poké Ball will limit its strength.

Many Pokémon may also be influenced byyōkai, which are special creatures in Japanese folklore with strange abilities, sometimes even created from inanimate objects.

In other languages

Pokémon

Pocket Monsters

See also

• History of Pokémon
• List of Pokémon
• Satoshi Tajiri: The Man Who Created Pokémon

References

External links

Official websites

• Pokémon.com(English)
• Pokémon.co.jp(Japanese)
• Pokémon Global Link

Official social-media website accounts

• Pokémon onFacebook(English)
• Pokémon onInstagram(English)
• Pokémon onThreads(English)
• Pokémon onX (Twitter)(English)
• Pokémon onTumblr(English)
• Pokémon onYouTube(English)
• Pokémon onTwitch(English)
• Pokémon onFacebook(Japanese)
• Pokémon onX (Twitter)(Japanese)
• Pokémon onYouTube(Japanese)

• Pokémon meta