Pokémon Ruby

is a Japanese media franchise consisting of video games, animated series and films, a trading card game, and other related media. The franchise takes place in a shared universe in which humans co-exist with creatures known as Pokémon, a large variety of species endowed with special powers. The franchise's primary target audience is children aged 5 to 12, but it is known to attract people of all ages.

The franchise originated as a pair of role-playing games developed by Game Freak, from an original concept by its founder, Satoshi Tajiri. Released on the Game Boy on 27 February 1996, the games became sleeper hits and were followed by manga series, a trading card game, and anime series and films. From 1998 to 2000, ''Pokémon'' was exported to the rest of the world, creating an unprecedented global phenomenon dubbed "Pokémania". By 2002, the craze had ended, after which ''Pokémon'' became a fixture in popular culture, with new products being released to this day. In the summer of 2016, the franchise spawned a second craze with the release of ''Pokémon Go'', an augmented reality game developed by Niantic. ''Pokémon'' has since been estimated to be the world's highest-grossing media franchise and one of the best-selling video game franchises.

''Pokémon'' has an uncommon ownership structure. Unlike most IPs, which are owned by one company, ''Pokémon'' is jointly owned by three: Nintendo, Game Freak, and Creatures. Game Freak develops the core series role-playing games, which are published by Nintendo exclusively for their consoles, while Creatures manages the trading card game and related merchandise, occasionally developing spin-off titles. The three companies established the Pokémon Company (TPC) in 1998 to manage the ''Pokémon'' property within Asia. The ''Pokémon'' anime series and films are co-owned by Shogakukan. Since 2009, the Pokémon Company International (TPCi), a subsidiary of TPC, has managed the franchise in all regions outside Asia.

Name

The original full name of the franchise is , which has been commonly abbreviated to since its launch. When the franchise was released internationally, the short form of the title was used, with an acute accent (´) over the ''e'' to aid in pronunciation. As a Japanese word composed of English loanwords, the word ''Pokémon'' is an example of a ''wasei-eigo''.

''Pokémon'' refers to both the franchise itself and the creatures within its fictional universe. As a noun, it is identical in both the singular and plural, as is every individual species name; it is grammatically correct to say "one Pokémon" and "many Pokémon", as well as "one Pikachu" and "many Pikachu".

General concept

The ''Pokémon'' franchise takes place in a shared universe in which humans co-exist with creatures known as Pokémon. ''Pokémon Red'' and ''Blue'' contain 151 Pokémon species, with new ones being added in subsequent games; as of January 2024, 1,025 Pokémon species have been introduced. Most Pokémon are based on real-life animals or mythical creatures from folklore. For example, Pikachu are a yellow, mouse-like species with tails shaped as lightning bolts, able to blast powerful electric jolts through the air.

The player character takes the role of a Pokémon Trainer. The Trainer has three primary goals: travel and explore the Pokémon world; discover and catch a specimen of each Pokémon species in order to complete their Pokédex; and train a team of Pokémon and have them engage in battles. Most Pokémon can be caught with spherical devices known as Poké Balls. Once the opposing Pokémon is sufficiently weakened, the Trainer throws the Poké Ball against the Pokémon, which is then transformed into a form of energy and transported into the device. If the catch is successful, the Pokémon is tamed and under the Trainer's command from then on. If the Poké Ball is thrown again, the Pokémon re-materializes into its original state. The Trainer's Pokémon can engage in battles against opposing Pokémon, including those in the wild or owned by other Trainers. Because the franchise is aimed at children, these battles are never presented as overtly violent and contain no blood or gore. Pokémon never die in battle – they faint upon being defeated, and can then be rejuvenated at a Pokémon Center.

When a Pokémon wins a battle, it gains experience points. After gaining a certain amount of them, the Pokémon levels up, and its statistics rise. As its level increases, the Pokémon learns new offensive and defensive moves to use in battle. Furthermore, many species can undergo a form of spontaneous metamorphosis called Pokémon evolution, and transform into stronger forms. Most Pokémon will evolve at a certain level, while others evolve through different means, such as exposure to a certain item or trading with another trainer.

History

Origins

The main idea behind ''Pokémon'' was conceived by Satoshi Tajiri. Tajiri was born on 28 August 1965, and grew up in Machida, a suburb of Tokyo. As a child, he enjoyed discovering and catching insects and other small creatures in the various ponds and fields that surrounded his town. During Japan's economic miracle, many cities, including Machida, were significantly expanded. As a consequence, Machida's nature was largely destroyed. In his second year of junior high school, an arcade hall opened in Tajiri's neighborhood, introducing him to video games. While studying electrical engineering at , Tajiri began publishing a ''doujinshi'' magazine titled ''Game Freak''. The title was inspired by the 1932 film '' Freaks'', which Tajiri was fascinated with at the time. He self-published the first issue of the magazine in March 1983, at the age of 17.. At the time, magazines specializing in video games did not yet exist in Japan, allowing ''Game Freak'' to fill a gap in the market. Sometime later, Tajiri was contacted by aspiring manga artist Ken Sugimori, who became ''Game Freaks illustrator. ''Game Freak'' folded in the late 1980s, by which point Tajiri had become a respected game journalist in Japan's fledgling video game industry.

Tajiri's knowledge of video games brought him into contact with Tsunekazu Ishihara. Ishihara had studied Arts and Science at Tsukuba University, and was trained in CGI. After working in advertising for two years, Ishihara joined a company named Sedic in 1983, which created video graphics and software,. including one video game, '' Otocky'' (1987). As video games grew in popularity, Sedic also produced a number of game-related television shows for Fuji Television's late-night slot. In his job as a TV producer, Ishihara befriended Tajiri, as well as Shigesato Itoi, who would later become CEO of Ape, Inc.. Ishihara was also the general director of the world's first gaming encyclopedia: . Journalist Kenji Hatakeyama wrote that, at the time, Ishihara was probably the most well-connected man in the industry.. , who would later play a vital role in ''Pokemon'', wrote that Ishihara possessed a knowledge of games that was "beyond comparison". Ishihara was also interested in playing cards, and contributed to the development of at least three simple card games designed by Itoi and published by Ape.

In 1986, Tajiri, Sugimori, and a few other enthusiasts started an informal development team called Game Freak, named after the magazine it grew out of. Over the next few years, they independently developed the puzzle game '' Quinty'', working on it alongside school or their regular jobs. However, no one within the group knew how to make the game's music. After consulting all his contacts, Tajiri got in touch with Junichi Masuda, who became the group's composer. ''Quinty'' was finished in 1989, and published by Namco. Tajiri officially incorporated Game Freak Co., Ltd. on 26 April 1989.

1989–1995: Development of ''Red'' and ''Green''

Tajiri started to think of what was to become ''Pokémon'' while completing ''Quinty'', and before he officially founded Game Freak. Around this time, Nintendo announced the upcoming release of the Game Boy, a handheld console that would revolutionize the gaming industry. Tajiri learned that the device would have a link port, and with the corresponding Game Link Cable, two Game Boys could be linked together. Sometime later, Tajiri remembered an incident while playing ''Dragon Quest II'' (1987), a role-playing game (RPG) for the Famicom ( NES). The game features randomly appearing items of varying rarity, including an extremely rare item called Mysterious Hat. Tajiri did not encounter any, while Ken Sugimori, who was also playing the game, encountered two. Upon recalling this experience, Tajiri realized that the cable now made it possible to transfer things from one cartridge to another. He noted that, until then, the Game Link Cable was only used for competing, but not for something else. Combining this inspiration with his memories of catching insects and other small species, Tajiri's idea would eventually evolve into a virtual recreation of his boyhood experiences, and an attempt to "regain the world that he had lost". He would later state that the game represents "the story of a boy's summer day".

Tajiri and his Game Freak staff began pondering over a game centered on capturing creatures of differing rarity. Since the Game Boy is a portable device, these creatures could then be exchanged with other players in real life using the link cable. Once the player has caught a creature in-game, it was to be stored in miniaturized form in a special capsule. This facet of the game was inspired by ''Ultraseven'', a ''tokusatsu'' show that Tajiri had enjoyed as a child. The series' titular character owns a number of capsules containing miniaturized ''kaiju'' (monsters), which come out and return to their original sizes when the capsule is thrown into mid-air. ''Kaiju'' media in general were an important influence on ''Pokemon'', as many Game Freak staff members had grown up with them. Other influences that have been cited by Tajiri include: ''gashapon'', capsules with toy figures in them that can be drawn from vending machines; collectible cards, such as baseball cards, ''Ultraman'' cards and '' menko''; ''The Final Fantasy Legend'' (1989), the first RPG for the Game Boy;
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and petting in Japan, with Tajiri noting that having Pokemon is similar to having pets. Tajiri initially named his project ''Capsule Monsters'', which GF's staff commonly shortened to ''Capumon''.. However, it later turned out that the term ''Capsule Monsters'' could not be trademarked, and it was subsequently decided to call the game ''Pocket Monsters'', which became ''Pokemon''. Former GF staff member Akihito Tomisawa wrote that the phrase "Capsule Monsters" was already registered. According to journalist Kenji Hatakeyama, the word "capsule" could not be used in the trademark. Tomisawa wrote that the Game Freak staff then came up with several alternatives, before someone within the team suggested "Pocket Monsters".

In March 1989, Nintendo co-founded Ape, Inc. with Itoi. Ape's principal work was ''Mother'' (1989), a role-playing game written by Itoi, but it was also founded with the intent to give outside talent a chance to pitch new, innovative games. At the time, Ape was housed in the same Kanda-Sudachō office building as Nintendo, located in Tokyo. Ishihara, a friend of both Itoi and Tajiri, was involved with Ape's management (and would become its vice-president in 1991). Tajiri's relationship with Ishihara prompted Tajiri to present his idea for ''Pocket Monsters'' at Ape's office.
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Present during Tajiri's pitch was Takashi Kawaguchi, who worked at Nintendo's General Affairs Department and was also a manager at Ape. Kawaguchi brought the idea to Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi, who reportedly said: "This is it. This is the idea I've been waiting for." By pure coincidence, Ishihara had come up with an idea for a game similar to that of Tajiri, and around the same time was discussing it with Ape. This game, ''Toto'', involved "using the Game Boy as an insect cage". Ishihara emphasized, however, that the idea of trading creatures with the link cable was Tajiri's. GF and Ape agreed to merge their projects together.. According to Tajiri, the two teams initially collaborated on the game, but the work proved difficult, one of the reasons being that Ape was busy developing ''EarthBound''.. Tajiri eventually figured that "rather than working with Ape, we had to do something on our own, or the project would never get finished". Ape, Inc. is not credited on the final product.

The development contract was signed at the beginning of 1990, with a planned delivery of the game in October.. Tajiri directed the project, working under Ishihara. Ishihara was the producer – he managed the budget, staff, and work schedule, monitored the game's overall progress, and served as a liaison between Game Freak and Nintendo. Ishihara also contributed ideas to the development, and helped with debugging. Sugimori was in charge of the graphics and character design. Masuda created all music and sound effects, and did part of the programming. The budget that Nintendo granted to Game Freak was low; thus, ''Pocket Monsters'' was initially planned as a small, compact game, based primarily around Tajiri's core idea of exchanging. However, as development progressed, GF's ideas and ambitions for ''Pokemon'' grew. They soon realized that the game they were beginning to envision would not be easy to make. Sugimori admitted that, at the time, no one at GF had much knowledge of RPGs. "We thought we could handle it, but as we began working, we realized it was going to be tough", he acknowledged. ''Pocket Monsters'' was suspended indefinitely, and GF turned their focus on other titles (see ).

After the game's initial development phase in 1990 and 1991, the staff "tinkered with it from time to time", as Sugimori put it. For instance, by October 1992, a large number of Pokemon had been designed, and a poll was held that month among all staff members to gauge the popularity of the different species. Several more such votes followed to determine collectively which Pokemon should be included. Still, development had mostly come to a halt until the summer of 1994, after the release of the platform game '' Pulseman'', upon which Tajiri decided it was time to make a serious effort towards finishing ''Pocket Monsters''. By this point, Game Freak's experience had grown considerably. Over the years, a number of new staff members had been added to the company. One of them was Atsuko Nishida, a graphic artist who created Pikachu, among others. Ishihara used his knowledge of card games to add more depth to the battle system, and among other things suggested Pokemon types. Ishihara also came up with the idea of the Pokedex, a portable encyclopedic device which players can use to keep track of the Pokemon they caught. Throughout the years, Tajiri had several conversations with Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo's top game designer who Tajiri described as a mentor figure. Although, in a 2018 retrospect, Miyamoto downplayed his role in advising Tajiri, and stated that his contributions to ''Pokemon'' were in fact limited. Miyamoto did, however, suggest the use of different colored cartridges for the game, in response to Tajiri's and Ishihara's musings about making each playthrough slightly different, as to 'individualize' the player's experience.. According to Tajiri, "five or seven colors" were considered, but they eventually settled on two: ''Red'' and ''Green''. Otherwise identical, each had Pokemon not found in the other, encouraging players to socialize and trade to complete their collection.

Ishihara aspired to create video games of his own. As ''Pocket Monsters Red'' and ''Green'' were nearing completion, Ishihara founded Creatures, Inc. on 8 November 1995. Upon founding, the company was housed in the same office building as Nintendo in Tokyo. Co-ownership of the ''Pokemon'' property, which Ishihara helped create, was subsequently assigned to Creatures. This resulted in ''Pokemon'' having three legal owners: Game Freak, the main developer; Creatures, representing producer Ishihara; and Nintendo, the publisher. Anne Allison wrote that Nintendo also bought the property after ''Red'' and ''Green'' were finished. Kenji Hatakeyama noted that the ownership structure of ''Pokemon'' is uncommon. He wrote that "Pokemon is probably the only property in the world today for which the original rights are not concentrated in a single company", like The Walt Disney Company does with their IPs. Tajiri and Ishihara did consider merging Game Freak and Creatures at one point. However, Tajiri decided against it because he feared it would erase what he had built up since he was a teenager. "I felt threatened by the idea of changing how Game Freak was operating, and starting back over with Mr. Ishihara", he said. "It was an identity problem. If Game Freak ceased to exist, then so would I". Tajiri noted that, since Game Freak and Creatures both focus on ''Pokemon'', it sometimes felt more like different departments than different companies.

''Pocket Monsters Red'' and ''Green'' were finally finished in December 1995. A release date of 21 December that year was announced, but missed. After sufficient cartridges, manuals and packages had been manufactured, the pair of games ended up being published on 27 February 1996. However, the property was copyrighted in 1995, and "©1995" is shown on the title screens and cartridges. This year is since used on the copyright notice seen on many ''Pokemon'' products, even though no actual ''Pokemon'' product was released in 1995.

1996–1998: Rise in Japan

Release of ''Red'' and ''Green''

Nintendo had no high expectations of ''Pocket Monsters Red'' and ''Green'', and media largely ignored the game(s). By 1996, the seven-year-old Game Boy console was considered yesterday's news and near the end of its lifecycle. On the other hand, new Game Boys continued to be manufactured and sold. The console was widespread and, due to its age, affordable to children. Also, the Game Boy had experienced a small revival in Japan in 1995 due to the success of ''Mario's Picross''. Coincidentally, this game was directed by Ishihara, and co-developed by Ape. The popularity of ''Mario's Picross'' incited Nintendo to develop the Game Boy Pocket, a slimmer and improved version of the Game Boy, released in Japan on 21 July 1996. Because of the timing and naming, some were under the impression that the Game Boy ''Pocket'' was made to promote ''Pocket Monsters'', but this was in fact a coincidence that would end up benefiting both.

''CoroCoro'' manga, Mew lottery

Two media channels that would play important roles in the ''Pokemon'' franchise were the ''CoroCoro Comic'', released monthly, and its sister magazine ''Bessatsu CoroCoro Comic'', released bi-monthly. Both manga magazines are published by Shogakukan, a long-time business partner of Nintendo, and have featured manga based on Nintendo properties (e.g. ''Super Mario-kun'', '' Kirby of the Stars'', ''Donkey Kong''). At the time of ''Pokemon''s release, the main ''CoroCoro'' magazine was read by one in four elementary school students. ''CoroCoros deputy editor-in-chief was . On Ishihara's suggestion, Kubo commissioned the creation of a manga adaptation. Written and illustrated by , its first chapter was featured in the March/April issue of ''Bessatsu CoroCoro Comic'', released on 28 February 1996, the day after ''Red'' and ''Green''s release. Shogakukan, which frequently surveys their target groups, determined that the ''Pocket Monsters'' manga was well received.

To further promote ''Red'' and ''Green'', the May issue of ''CoroCoro'', released on 15 April 1996, announced the "Legendary Pokemon Offer", centered around a mysterious, secret Pokemon called Mew.
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Mew was a last-minute addition to ''Red & Green''. It is unobtainable in the game(s) through usual means, and was intended to be used at a later point in some post-launch activity. To participate in the promotion, ''CoroCoro'' readers had to send in a postcard, and from the entrants, 20 were selected at random. The winners then had to send in their cartridge so that Mew could be uploaded onto it. The lottery was a success and increased word-of-mouth. By September, sales of ''Red'' and ''Green'' had surpassed 1 million units.

''Blue Version''

After the release of ''Pokemon Red'' and ''Green'', Game Freak continued to grow, and a number of new employees were hired. For training purposes, they were ordered to study and make bug fixes to the source code of ''Red & Green'', and to create new sprites for it; the test was later dubbed '' Pocket Monsters Blue''. It was originally not meant to be sold. Only a small number of handmade copies were made, intended as a special gift to "20 to 100 people". After Kubo learned of it, he encouraged Tajiri and Ishihara to allow an official release of ''Blue''. President Hiroshi Yamauchi initially rejected this, fearing it would confuse people into believing it was an entirely new ''Pokemon'' game. Kawaguchi then suggested an alternative, which Yamauchi agreed with: ''Blue'' would not receive a normal retail release, but would instead be made available only through mail order for a limited time as a special offer. It was announced in the November issue of ''CoroCoro'', which explicitly stated that ''Blue'' was not a new game, but rather a special, limited edition to celebrate 1 million sales of ''Red'' and ''Green''. The offer was a surprisingly big success: 300,000 units were expected to be sold, but over double was ordered.

Trading Card Game

The '' Pokemon Trading Card Game'' was one of the first collectible card games (CCGs) developed in Japan. Its creation was influenced by '' Magic: The Gathering'', the first CCG in history...: "香山は続けて岩崎に、米国 WOC 社製「マジック・ザ・ギャザリング」というトレーディングカードゲームが米国で大人気であること、石原たちが開発した「ポケットモンスター カードゲーム」は「マジック・ザ・ギャザリング」をヒントにしているが、純国産のオリジナルトレーディングカードゲームであることを教えた。そして今の所、声をかけた、幾つかの大手卸問屋から取り組みを拒否されていることも岩崎に伝えた。" ("Kayama went on to tell Iwasaki that a trading card game called "Magic the Gathering" made by WOC izards of the Coastwas very popular in the United States, and that the "Pokemon Card Game" developed by Ishihara and his colleagues was inspired by "Magic the Gathering". However, it was a completely original trading card game made in Japan. He also told Iwasaki that, so far, several major wholesalers he had approached had rejected the project.") Indeed, the ''Pokemon Trading Card Game'' can be considered a simplified version of ''Magic''. First released in the United States in 1993, ''Magic'' had gained popularity not just in North America and Europe, but also in Asia. Ishihara was fond of playing cards, and had contributed to the development of at least three simple card games designed by Shigesato Itoi and released through Ape, Inc. At the time, Ishihara was particularly interested in ''Magic: The Gathering''. While developing the ''Pokemon'' RPG, he realized that the concept behind it could be adapted into a ''Magic''-like CCG. The ''Pokemon Trading Card Game'' was designed by Ishihara, Akihiko Miura, Kōichi Ōyama, and Takumi Akabane. All were former staff members of Ape and had previously worked on ''EarthBound'' (1994): Miura was the game's main designer, Ōyama was its art director, and Akabane was one of its chief debuggers.

While card games have a long history in Japan, a collectible card game was a relatively new concept there, and at the time not widely known. Because of this, Ishihara had difficulties finding distributors. Sometime in 1995, Ishihara pitched the card game to Nintendo. They agreed to have the cards manufactured, subcontracting an unidentified printing company. However, Nintendo did not want the hassle of having to develop a distribution system from the ground up, i.e. finding retailers willing to sell a CCG. Ishihara was then contacted by Satoshi Kayama, director of a small firm called Media Factory. Like Ishihara, Kayama was a fan of card games. He felt that CCGs would soon rise to prominence in Japan, and had been gathering information on the possibility of developing such a game in some form. When Kayama heard that Creatures had developed a CCG, he contacted Ishihara and offered to distribute it, signing the contract near the end of 1995.

''CoroCoro'' again proved a valuable information channel. The ''Trading Card Game'' was first announced in the November issue, the same one that announced ''Pokemon Blue''. The issue came bundled with two promo cards: one of Purin ( Jigglypuff) and one of Pikachu. Surveys showed that they were respectively the most and second-most popular Pokemon at the time. On 20 October 1996, the first card set was released. Booster packs were launched the same day, containing 10 randomly inserted cards. In the West, the booster packs contained 11 cards. The original set would be titled the Base Set in English. Many more sets would follow. Despite being ignored by the media, except for ''CoroCoro'', the cards became an instant success upon release. 87 million ''Pokemon'' cards were shipped by the end of March 1997, six months after its launch, and one month before the debut of the next big installment of the franchise: the ''Pokemon'' anime. The success of the TV series would cause the cards' sales figure to explode: by March 1998, a total of 499 million cards had been produced in Japan..

Anime production launches

By August 1996, Kubo had become convinced of ''Pokemon''s potential, and believed Shogakukan should create an anime adaptation. Nintendo was hesitant, noting that if the anime would flop, it would negatively affect the popularity of the game. Ishihara initially opposed the idea, because he thought it would overly hasten the 'consumption' of the property: he feared that if the series would end, people would assume that ''Pokemon'' has ended, and move on to the next thing. At the time, Creatures and Game Freak were planning the sequel(s) to ''Red'' and ''Green'', ''Pokemon Gold'' and ''Silver'', and Ishihara did not want the anime to end before they could release their new games. Kubo was ultimately able to resolve the concerns of all parties involved. An important aspect of Kubo's bargaining power was the then-ongoing Mini 4WD craze and its accompanying hit series ''Bakusō Kyōdai Let's & Go!!''. Kubo had an important role in the creation of both, which impressed the stakeholders. To appease Ishihara, Kubo promised him that the anime would last for at least a year and a half. This was unusually long for a debuting anime, and required a big investment. Kubo's proposal for ''Pocket Monsters'' was officially approved on 26 September 1996. For Nintendo of Japan, it was the first time they licensed a TV series. Kubo assigned independent producer to lead the project.

Shogakukan Productions, commonly called ShoPro, was Shogakukan's production company. The animation company they commissioned was OLM, Inc. (Oriental Light and Magic), on Kubo's suggestion. Kunihiko Yuyama, one of OLM's founding members, became the anime's director. ShoPro assembled a team of five writers, plus two supporting writers. All key people involved with the production of ''Pokemon'' were well-experienced and had proven track records within Japan's anime industry. Yoshikawa felt that the team got lucky. "The probability of so many great people coming together at the same time is very low", he said.. Per Tajiri's explicit condition, every anime team member had to play the game extensively, including the illustrators and voice actors. The anime staff "unanimously agreed that the game was interesting" and "felt connected with each other through the world of ''Pokemon''", feeling positively challenged to make an anime that would match the game's quality.

A production council was formed to produce the anime. Different people appeared at different meetings, but four individuals usually present were Ishihara of Creatures, Sugimori of Game Freak, Yuyama of OLM, and independent producer Yoshikawa. Yoshikawa had the final say. The council decided on the anime's worldview, characters, general storyline, and various important details. The early meetings, which were also attended by Tajiri, usually started with a Q&A session in which Tajiri and Ishihara were asked about the Pokemon universe. The council was careful to have the anime be in concordance with the video game. Inevitably, there had to be differences between the two, but all agreed that the overall worldview as envisioned by Tajiri should not be disturbed. At the start of the video game, the player has to choose one of three starter Pokemon: Fushigidane, Hitokage, or Zenigame ( Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle). The council didn't want to unfairly popularize any of them, and wanted the protagonist to start out with a different Pokemon. Kenji Hatakeyama, who interviewed various people involved with the creation of ''Pokemon'', wrote that, by coincidence, three people independently suggested to the council that a Pikachu should be a main character in the anime: Kubo, Yuyama, and Keisuke Iwata of TV Tokyo's Film Department. In the end, all council members agreed that Pikachu should be one of ''Pocket Monsters'' central icons, as they expected Pikachu to appeal to both boys and girls, as well as their mothers. This would expand the franchise's audience, which was considered a core objective of the anime.

During the council's first meeting, Yoshikawa brought up the issue on whether the Pokemon in the anime could talk, and if not, how they could communicate. In the video games, each has a specific cry. In Anakubo's ''CoroCoro'' manga, most could speak. At first, the council believed there should be a mixture of Pokemon that could talk and some that could not. However, this idea was eventually discarded: the Pokemon had to make a specific cry. The council agreed that Pokemon were like animals, and while they and humans should be able to understand each other in the series, they should not speak each other's language. It was decided that Pikachu would repeatedly say its own name in various intonations. The role of Pikachu was given to Ikue Otani. During try-outs, Yuyama had Otani voice Pikachu in normal Japanese, as well as in 'Pikachu talk', in which it only said the syllables of its name. Yuyama realized that, even in the latter style of limited communication, Otani was experienced enough to still convey the messages and emotions needed.

ShoPro paid half of the production cost of ''Pokemon''. TV Tokyo