At the end of last month, TV Tokyo and The Pokémon Company announced they will be producing a new live-action drama entitled Pocket ni Bōken wo Tsumekonde (Pack Your Pocket With Adventure - ポケットに冒険をつめこんで), a story about a young woman rediscovering her love for Pokémon, to air on Japanese television from October 20th. A new press release has now revealed the full list of main cast members for the upcoming show, along with their thoughts on the series and the Pokémon franchise.

The developers of Pokémon Sleep have given players a list of features and issues that are currently receiving development attention, acknowledging several new bugs and issues that they hope to resolve in coming updates. Another a free gift bundle of handy in-game items is also being distributed to early adopters.

An update on the Pokémon Trading Card Game's official Japanese homepage has revealed all remaining new cards for the Raging Surf expansion for the Scarlet & Violet Series of the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Cards from this set are expected to be released internationally as part of the Scarlet & Violet: Paradox Rift expansion later this year. Also revealed were a selection of cards from the upcoming Terastal Starter Sets. Both the Raging Surf subset and the Terastal Starter Sets will released in Japan at the end of next week, on September 22nd

In the previous article, I discussed my initial reaction to the whole “open world” gimmick in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. While I understood the developers hopes of bringing a bit of fresh air into what many considered to be a stale franchise, I had plenty of concerns concerns with Pokémon trying to hop aboard this particular train. Now, it's time to talk about how that open world actually ended up in practice.

Have you dreamed of illustrating your very own Pokémon Trading Card Game card? Well, now you can compete for the opportunity to make it happen. The Pokémon Company International have announced the Pokémon TCG Illustration Contest 2024, where budding artists will have an opportunity to share their talent and passion for Pokémon by depicting "Magical Pokémon Moments" in art.

The Long Speedrun Summit (LSS) are hosting their 2023 speedrunning marathon from September 15th to September 24th. Amongst other non-Pokémon titles, Pokémon Platinum, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky, and PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure will feature as part of the event, in which runners each attempt to complete a game, or an objective within the game, as quickly as possible. The event can be watched from their official Twitch channel.

The official Pokémon Trading Game website for Indonesia has announced the upcoming release of Kilau Hitam (Black Shine), the first catch-up set for the Asian Scarlet & Violet Era of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, which is being released exclusively in Indonesia on October 27th. This set combines the Japanese Ruler of the Black Flame expansion (the counterpart to the international Obsidian Flames expansion) and the upcoming Raging Surf subset, and introduces type-shifted Tera Pokémon ex cards to the Indonesian market for the first time.

Pokémon Masters EX's latest High Score Event, Electric-Type Masters, is launching today alongside two new Scouts featuring Electric-type Sync Pairs. Both the event and these scouts will run through to September 26th, at 10:59pm (PDT). The official Pokémon Masters EX account on X (formerly Twitter) has also confirmed Palmer will be making their debut later this week in their own Poké Fair Scout.

The Pokémon Company International has been collaborating with McDonald’s almost every year since 2011 to put toys or cards in Happy Meals, and this year’s set of 15 cards is now available in the U.S. This promotion has already been run in Germany, Austria, and the U.K. earlier this summer, and is currently also running in Australia, so a full list of cards, as well as which ones are available printed in the usual Happy Meal confetti holofoil, is already available. Just like the 2022 Happy Meal cards, this set is entirely comprised of reprints of cards from other available sets.

Today's livestream on the Pokémon Trading Card Game's official Japanese YouTube channel has revealed a new Special Art Rare version of the Larry supporter card, which will be released in Japan at the end of next week on September 22nd as part of the upcoming Raging Surf subset for the Scarlet & Violet series of the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Cards from this set are expected to be released internationally as part of the Scarlet & Violet: Paradox Rift expansion later this year.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet received an update to Version 2.0.1 today alongside the release of The Hidden Treasure of Area Zero Part 1: The Teal Mask. This update makes a significant number of changes, including for players who have not yet purchased the DLC, with the addition of new Pokémon, a selection of new quality of life features, some adjustments to other game features, and the implementation of some minor bug fixes.

Niantic has released details on this year's Psychic Spectacular event, that was first announced at the end of July. An annual event in Pokémon GO, the Psychic Spectacular will this year run from September 20th, at 10:00am to September 24th, at 8:00pm local time. Shiny Solosis will be making its Pokémon GO debut as part of this event.

While The Pokémon Company International has kept the details sparse, a new promo on The Official Pokémon YouTube channel has given fans their first look at an upcoming collaboration between Pokémon and the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. The video shows Pikachu and Eevee frolicking through the Dutch countryside surrounded by Vincent Van Gogh’s quintessential sunflowers - which then turn into Sunfloras.

A brand new Egg Event is making its debut today in Pokémon Masters EX, showcasing Pokémon from Pokémon Scarlet and Violet's Paldea region. A pair of Costume Scouts, featuring a selection of Sync Pairs associated with past Costume Events, are also now live as part of the continuing celebrations of the game's 4 Year Anniversary. Both the event and these scouts are available now, and will run through until September 25th, at 10:59pm (PDT).

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet have been out for almost nine months now, and, with the imminent release of the first DLC, I figured it was about time for a bit of reflection on the base games themselves.

Detective Pikachu Returns’ release date is just around the corner on October 6th, and a new range plushies, stationary, and more to go with it have been announced by Pokémon Center in Japan. The determined-looking detective will feature as a talking plushie for ¥3,960 (~$27.00 USD), as well as on mugs, document protectors, and a mousepad. A selection of t-shirts are also planned for release, though the designs for these have not yet been revealed.

Following on from the reveal of the Ancient Roar and Future Flash expansions during the Pokémon Champions League tournament in Yokohama over the weekend, an update on the Pokémon Trading Card Game's official Japanese homepage has revealed an additional selection of cards from the upcoming sets, which will be released in English later this year as part of the Scarlet & Violet: Paradox Rift expansion.

As part of the Day 2 live stream for this weekend's Pokémon Champions League tournament in Yokohama, Pokémon TCG fans have received their first official look at the upcoming Ancient Roar and Future Flash expansions for the Pokémon Trading Card Game. These sets together are the Japanese counterpart of the Paradox Rift expansion that was officially revealed last month, and will release in Japan on October 27th.

The Super Tour Guide Rosa Costume Event is making a return to Pokémon Masters EX this week, together with a Costume Scouts for its featured sync pair, Rosa & Shaymin. Both the event and scout will be available until September 23rd, at 10:59pm (PDT).

Pokémon Café ReMix's latest hospitality event, Lechonk the Foodie, is giving players the opportunity to get Lechonk's attention towards the Café and recruit them to their staff! Snivy's Picnic is now also available through Special Delivery in Pelipper Delivery, while a new Special Pass has Flareon's return along with many rewards, including the return of the of the Farm Fresh Pack featuring Pikachu in its Farm Fresh outfit. New orders are also available as well!