Pokkén Tournament[a] is a 2015fightingvideo game developed byBandai Namco Entertainment. The game combines gameplay elements from Bandai Namco'sTekken series and other fighting games, such as 3D and 2D movement,[3] with characters from thePokémon franchise.[4] It was released for Japanesearcades in July 2015 and worldwide for theWii U in March 2016. An enhanced port for theNintendo Switch,Pokkén Tournament DX, was released in September 2017. The arcade version was published by Bandai Namco, the Japanese console versions were published byThe Pokémon Company, and the console versions outside of Japan were published byNintendo.
Pikachu hitting Weavile with his Burst Attack in the Nintendo Switch version
Pokkén Tournament is a fighting game in which two fighters battle against each other using various Pokémon, with gameplay shifting between "Field Phase" where the Pokémon move freely around the arena similar toPower Stone andNaruto: Ultimate Ninja Storm, and "Duel Phase" where they move relative to each other similar to theTekken games. Unlike most arcade fighting games, which use a traditional joystick and buttons, the arcade version is played using console-style controllers, which are designed so that players who are not used to arcade sticks can get into the game more easily.[5]
The game focuses more on action, as opposed to the more technical gameplay ofTekken, allowing both hardcore and casual fans to enjoy it. As such, players can perform various techniques taken from thePokémon series, such as special moves and Mega Evolutions (which can be built up from attacks using a "Synergy Gauge").[6] Players can also use Support Pokémon to give them special benefits such as buffs in attack or defense.
First-print Wii U copies of the game were packaged with a Shadow MewtwoAmiibo card, which immediately unlocked the character for use.[7] The title also features online play, where players can compete in two types of online battle modes called friendly battles and ranked battles, including matches between players with registered friend codes and players who enter the same VS Code as each other.[8][better source needed]
Pokkén Tournament was first teased during aPokémon Game Show event held in Japan in August 2013, with trademarks for the game filed the same month.[9] It was officially announced at an event held byFamitsu on August 26, 2014.[10]The Pokémon Company CEOTsunekazu Ishihara,Tekken series producerKatsuhiro Harada, andSoulcalibur producer Masaaki Hoshino attended the event, which was broadcast onNiconico, stating the collaboration came about from brainstorming ideas of new ways to playPokémon.
The title,Pokkén (Japanese:ポッ拳,Hepburn:Pokken), is aportmanteau ofPokémon[b] andTekken.[c] The Japanese charactersポッ拳 appear in the game's logo in both the Japanese version and the localized versions released in North America and Europe. The officialGerman-language title of the game isPokémon Tekken.[11] The title change may be due to the similarity betweenPokkén and the German word forsmallpox,Pocken.[12]
As the game was being developed, Ishihara wanted to feature primarily fighting-type Pokémon in the game, but Hoshino pushed back, and the game was released with Pokémon of many different types featured.[13]
At the2015 Pokémon World Championships, it was announced that the game would be coming to the Wii U. A demo of the game was available for attendees to play at the tournament.[14] In December 2015, Hori announced that a dedicated arcade controller would be released alongside the game in Japan.[15] The game is known asPokémon Tekken in Germany and Austria.[16] In April 2016, Nintendo announced that another controller, inspired by Pikachu, would be released in Japan in June.[17] In May 2016, GameStop announced that the Pikachu controller would be released in North America in August of that year in "limited quantities".[18]
In June 2017, an enhanced Nintendo Switch port was announced under the titlePokkén Tournament DX, which was released worldwide on September 22, 2017.[19] The port includes the last four fighters added in the arcade version, along with an additional exclusive fighter and new game modes. In January 2018, two DLC packs were announced for theDX version. In Pack One, Aegislash is a fighter along with Mega Rayquaza and Mimikyu as support Pokémon, which was released on January 31, 2018. In Pack Two, Blastoise is a fighter along with Mew and Celebi as support Pokémon, which was released on March 23, 2018.[20]
In January 2021, Harada, in a response to a follower onTwitter, stated that while he would like to make a sequel toPokkén, it was up to Nintendo and The Pokémon Company to decide.[21][22][23]
Amusement Fantasista, a video arcade inKurashiki,Japan, planned to removePokkén Tournament machines in November 2015 due to lack of profitability.[50] Chris Carter ofDestructoid noted that in the arcade version, one game credit could last a player 45 minutes, yielding low profits for each machine.[51][52] The Wii U version entered theMedia Create sales charts as the highest-selling game in the region during its debut week, with 69,675 copies sold, and was credited for a marked increase in Wii U hardware sales in the same period; 13,000 units sold compared to the previous week's 4,000.[53] The Switch version ofPokkén Tournament sold 53,395 copies within its first week on sale in Japan, which placed it at number one on the all format sales chart.[54]
Western reviews of the console version were mostly positive, earning a 76 out of 100 average score from aggregate review websiteMetacritic.[49] In the United States, theNPD Group reported thatPokkén Tournament outsoldStreet Fighter V by the end of April 2016.[55] In August 2016, Bandai Namco announced that the game had shipped over one million copies worldwide.[56]
The Nintendo Switch version received similar or slightly better reviews than the Wii U version, with praise towards the new characters and new modes, but criticising the new split screen mode, which had framerate issues.[59][60] It had sold over a million copies by March 2018.[61]
