Game Freak: Difference between revisions

| headquarters = Kanda Square, 2-2-1 Kandanishiki-cho, Chiyoda, Tokyo

'''Game Freak, Inc.''' (Japanese: '''株式会社ゲームフリーク''' ''{{wp|Kabushiki gaisha}} Game Freak''), officially stylized as '''GAME FREAK inc.''' or less commonly as '''GAMEFREAK inc.''', is a Japanese game development company founded on April 26, 1989 by [[Satoshi Tajiri]], [[Ken Sugimori]], and [[Junichi Masuda]]. Game Freak is responsible for the development of the [[core series]] [[Pokémon]] games, as well as the free-to-play spin-off game {{g|Quest}}.

Game Freak shares ownership of [[The Pokémon Company]] with [[Creatures, Inc.]] and [[Nintendo]]. The company currently employs a staff of 169 as of March 2022,<ref>[https://www.gamefreak.co.jp/company/about/ ''Company'' - Game Freak]</ref> while Satoshi Tajiri serves as its current CEO. Its headquarters are on the 7th floor of {{wp|Kanda Square}} in {{wp|Chiyoda, Tokyo}}, {{wp|Japan}}.

Game Freak acquired the mobile development company Koa Games in October 2015.<ref>[https://gamebiz.jp/news/151524 ''Game Freak, known as "Pokémon" development company, merged with smartphone game development company Koa Games...'' - gamebiz.jp]</ref>

==Early History==

===Satoshi Tajiri's background===

The origin of the name "Game Freak" refers to a nickname used in Japan to refer to avid arcade game fans during the 1980s. At this point, competitive players including children used the term Urawaza (Japanese: 裏技, ''Secret Technique'') in the context of video game strategy, although {{wp|Masanobu Endo}} (creator of {{wp|Xevious}} himself) was not a fan of the potential conflict at the arcades (this atmosphere is also covered in Satoshi Tajiri's 1990 book about his youth as an arcade game fan "[https://www.amazon.co.jp/パックランドでつかまえて―テレビゲームの青春物語-田尻-智/dp/4880638242 A Catcher in Pac-Land]" (Japanese: パックランドでつかまえて), as this included video game secrets that were proven to be false (such as the Xevious Star (Japanese: ゼビウス星)) and their veracity was subject to heated debate. He also did not want players to be spreading falsehoods and reportedly got angry regarding an interview about Xevious Star, but at the same time settled fans down from arguing during a visit. Another issue is that some of these techniques were (sometimes unknowingly) actually bugs (glitches) in the code.<ref>[https://www.kinephanos.ca/2015/game-freaks-who-play-with-bugs/ The Game Freaks Who Play With Bugs – Discussions on the Video Game Xevious] (Japanese: ゲームフリークはバグと戯れる―ビデオゲーム「ゼビウス」論) (Nakazawa Shinichi) (1984) (Translations from Jérémie Pelletier-Gagnon and Tsugumi Okabe for Geemu Media Mix Volume 5, Issue 1, December 2015, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada)</ref>

Furthermore, Tajiri stated in a May 2000 interview at Game Freak headquarters that the concept for the Pokémon {{p|Mew}} (although [[Shigeki Morimoto]] programmed and designed it into the game) as an "illusory Pokémon" was inspired by rumors at the arcades (including from the Game Freaks), specifically a hidden/unused F4 phantom fighter ship in Xevious. This was republished for a Japan-exclusive December 2000 book called [https://www.amazon.co.jp/ポケモン・ストーリー-畠山-けんじ/dp/4822241998 Pokémon Story].<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=esIL1W_QBns Mew's Origins: A Story of Secrets, Rumors & Legends Ft. maxmoefoe (Pokémon) - DidYouKnowGaming?]</ref>

===GAME FREAK magazine===

The game features the earliest known work by [[Junichi Masuda]], who composed the entirety of the soundtrack, being aided in sound-effects by Yuji Shingai and Akihito Koriyama. The soundtrack is generally rather upbeat, with a couple of songs that appear to sound much like Masdua's later work - most notably the track '''Battle! (Boss)''' being similar to a combination of '''A Rival Appears''' from [[Pokémon Red & Pokémon Green: Super Music Collection|Pokémon Red and Green]] and '''A Rival Appears!''' from [[Pokémon HeartGold & Pokémon SoulSilver: Super Music Collection|Pokémon Gold and Silver]]. In 2017, Masuda explained that at the time, GAME FREAK didn't possess any official development equipment, so they had to effectively hack the Famicom to understand how it worked in order to begin work on the game.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20201112022755/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2017/08/09/game-freaks-origins-and-non-pokemon-games.aspx</ref> Since Nintendo wasn't interested in Quinty due to GAME FREAK not yet being a formal development company, Tajiri reached out to {{wp|Namco}}, who agreed to have a contract surrounding the game so long as GAME FREAK was an incorporated company.

[[Ken Sugimori]] would provide illustrations for both the box-art and manual, as well as a long-running Quinty manga that released in regular intervals for a few years following the launch of the game. Towards the manga's conclusion, a variety of characters would later resemble designs used in Pokémon, (albeit likely unintentionally) such as the [[Generation I]] [[Roughneck (Trainer class)|Cue Ball]] or [[Swimmer (Trainer class)|Swimmer]]. It was later localized as {{wp|Mendel Palace}} for its North American release in 1990, which had all of its promotional artwork by [[Ken Sugimori|Sugimori]] redrawn for the western market, as well as a change in almost every character name.

Quinty Box Art.png|Box-art of Quinty, drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Quinty Box Art NA.png|North American Box-art of Quinty

</gallery>  

===Jerry Boy===

To help finance their work on [[Capsule Monsters|what would later become Pokémon,]] GAME FREAK created a variety of games for other consoles whilst they worked on [[Generation I]] for over six-years. The first of these games was a cutesy 2D-platformer known as Jerry Boy (Japanese: ジェリーボーイ) for the Super Famicom in 1991. According to the credits, this job was shared with {{wp|System Sacom}}, who handled the actual programming whilst the game design was done at GAME FREAK. The player controls a young boy named Jerry, who is transformed into a blob by an evil wizard at the behest of his jealous brother, Tom, who has a crush on the young princess Emi.

The artwork was sketched in the style of 2D-animation before being translated to game sprites, as opposed to the typical process of drawing the sprites first. Tajiri mentioned that Jerry's design would probably resemble {{wp|Akira Toriyama}}'s design of a Slime from the {{wp|Dragon Quest}} series for those already familiar with games, so the team decided to make him appear cuter to appeal to women or young children.<ref name=TSI1993JerryBoy/> Both Sugimori and Tajiri lamented the lack of difficulty for the final release of the game, with the bosses being highlighted as an example of poor balancing. When brought to the Super Nintendo as {{wp|Smart Ball}} in 1992, all content relating to the story and every village section was strangely removed, with the game's box-art and promotional material again being redrawn from Sugimori's original work.

Jerry Boy Box Art.jpg|Box-art of Jerry Boy, drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Jerry Boy Box Art NA.png|North American Box-art of Jerry Boy

===Jerry Boy 2===

Some time between 1994 and 2000, a near-finished prototype of a Jerry Boy sequel, known as Jerry Boy 2 was released online. <ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20230411163827/https://snescentral.com/article.php?id=1107</ref> According to {{wp|Electronic Gaming Monthly}}, the game was set to be released in September of 1994, but went on to be cancelled for unknown reasons. Although Ken Sugimori remained as character designer on the sequel, Tajiri only supervised the project, which was largely co-produced, much like the original game. Takashi Fukushima took upon the role of the game's director suggesting that the co-production may have been with {{wp|Telenet Japan}}'s Team Riot, of which many members would leave to form {{wp|Media.Vision}} during the game's development, something that may have played a part in its cancellation. Another leading presumption among fans is that the falling out between [[Nintendo]] and {{wp|Sony}} was to blame, (given the time period) but this is also speculation. The story was written by new GAME FREAK recruit Ryosuke Taniguchi, who would go on to become a scenario writer on {{wp|Pulseman}} and [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Pokémon Red & Green.]]

Despite its cancellation, the only playable ROM of the game is largely complete, with the exception of some minor bugs, such as the credits theme ending improperly as loud noise.{{fact}} The plot follows a new main character known as Marine, who goes to visit "Jelly Land" with his four best friends and dog. They are halted by the evil wizard from the original Jerry Boy, and turned into different colored blobs. Determined to get their original bodies back, the cast ventures throughout the mysterious amusement park, facing the wizard at the very end. The game has had a complete overhaul from the original, with each character having various abilities, and are unlocked progressively after saving them from a boss. Also unlike the original, the player has the choice to choose from multiple levels at a time, instead of a linear adventure. Jerry Boy's 2 soundtrack was composed by Yoshinori Sunahara, Tetsuya Furumoto and Takafumi Fujisawa, the final of whom would go onto create the console start-up jingle for the {{wp|PlayStation}}, {{wp|PlayStation 2}} and {{wp|PlayStation 3.}}

''Yoshi'' was the first collaboration between GAME FREAK and [[Nintendo]] as a publisher, which would play a big part in helping to finance their development on [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Pokémon Red & Green]]. The project was offered by Nintendo<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20201112022755/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2017/08/09/game-freaks-origins-and-non-pokemon-games.aspx</ref> and suggested by Tajiri's friend, [[Tsunekazu Ishihara]], then member of Ape Inc..<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20151113010805/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/nom/0007/taidan1/page02.html</ref> Yoshi was developed in six months, and directed by Tajiri.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20151113010805/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/nom/0007/taidan1/page02.html</ref>

Ken Sugimori acted as both a game designer and as a graphic artist on the project, which was largely unknown for some time given that the game has no ending or credits. The score was handled solely by [[Junichi Masuda|Masuda]], who returns from his absence on the co-developed Jerry Boy titles. Despite being part of the existing {{wp|Super Mario|Super Mario series}}, all of Masuda's compositions on ''Yoshi'' are purely original, and are not arrangements of any Mario music. Masuda also mentioned that GAME FREAK wanted to add in a realistic sounding Yoshi voice to the game, but Nintendo disapproved.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20210109201340/https://www.siliconera.com/game-freak-director-junichi-masuda-on-the-making-of-yoshi-and-pokemon/</ref>

Yoshi Box Art JP NES.jpg|Yoshi's Japanese Famicom Box-art drawn by {{wp|Yōichi Kotabe}}

Yoshi Box Art US NES.jpg|Yoshi's North American NES Box-art drawn by {{wp|Yōichi Kotabe}}

Yoshi Box Art JP GB.jpg|Yoshi's Japanese Game Boy Box-art drawn by {{wp|Yōichi Kotabe}}

Yoshi GB (US).jpg|Yoshi's North American Game Boy Box-art drawn by {{wp|Yōichi Kotabe}}

===Magical Tarurūto-kun===

Magical Tarurūto-kun is a Japanese-only 2D-platformer developed by GAME FREAK for the {{wp|Mega Drive}}, released on April 24, 1992, and {{wp|Magical Taruruto|based on the anime of the same name.}} The game was directed and designed by [[Ken Sugimori|Sugimori]], whilst [[Junichi Masuda|Masuda]] worked on the soundtrack. You play as Tarurūto, and must thwart the evil Raivar by the end of the linear story. Tarurūto's abilities include the power to wield inanimate objects as makeshift weapons to use to his advantage, and to glide through levels with large pink wings.

Most of Masuda's compositions are relatively new here, though some stand out by virtue of being tied to the television anime that the game is based on. The game begins with the {{wp|SEGA}} jingle arranged by Masuda but with the voice of {{wp|Tarako}}, who voices the titular character of Tarurūto. Additionally, the '''Title Screen''' song is an arrangement of the first opening of the TV series, composed by {{wp|Kenji Yamamoto (composer, born 1958)|Kenji Yamamoto}}, {{wp|Yukihide Takekawa}} and [[Dai Satō]], the final of whom would join the Pokémon team over 30 years later as the lead scriptwriter of [[Pokémon Horizons: The Series|Pokémon Horizons.]] The song '''Battle! (Raivar)''' bears a striking resemblance to much of Masuda's later work on Pokémon, with several similarities to '''Battle! (Giratina)''' which he composed for [[Pokémon Black 2 & Pokémon White 2: Super Music Collection|Pokémon Platinum]].

Magical Taruruto-kun Box Art.png|Box-art of Magical Tarurūto-kun drawn by {{wp|Shigeyasu Yamauchi}}

===Mario & Wario===

On August 27th, 1993, GAME FREAK released a puzzle game exclusively in Japan, known as Mario & Wario. Directed by Satoshi Tajiri, the player must guide Mario to the end of each stage under the control of the player character known as Wanda, who is controlled with the {{wp|Super Famicom Mouse}} accessory. Mario & Wario appeared to have a variety of planned releases across the United States, Canada, Europe and Brazil as seen within magazine coverage from the era, planned to be sometime between September of 1993 and January of 1994, though no worldwide release was ever made. <ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20230412145036/https://www.sm128c.com/mario-and-wario-western-release-0176</ref>The reason for this is unknown, though it should be noted that the entire game is in English, with an unused Japanese title screen being accessible by editing bytes within the game data, suggesting that a planned worldwide release was scrapped very late on in development.<ref>https://tcrf.net/Mario_%26_Wario</ref>

[[Motofumi Fujiwara]] makes his GAME FREAK game debut as an artist, who would go on to become instrumental in designing various Pokémon from [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Pokémon Red & Green]] until [[Pokémon Scarlet and Violet|Pokémon Scarlet & Violet]], such as {{p|Eevee}}, {{p|Jolteon}} and {{p|Flareon}}. [[Junichi Masuda|Masuda]] returns as the sole composer for Mario & Wario, with tracks that would resemble his later work in [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Pokémon Red & Green]], namely the '''Credits''' theme sounding similar to '''Victory! (Wild Pokémon)''' from [[Pokémon Red & Pokémon Green: Super Music Collection|Pokémon Red and Green]].

Although the game released using the mouse accessory, the original idea was to control the game using the {{wp|Nintendo Super Scope}}, though [[Junichi Masuda|Masuda]] mentioned that it was scrapped after being too difficult to work with for a variety of reasons. Initially, the player was to use the Super Scope to shoot nets at monsters to capture, but the size of televisions at the time, as well as the general inaccuracy of the Super Scope recognizing the edges of the screen would ultimately force the team to use the mouse accessory. <ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20201112022755/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2017/08/09/game-freaks-origins-and-non-pokemon-games.aspx</ref>

Mario & Wario Box Art.jpg|Box-art of Mario & Wario drawn by {{wp|Yōichi Kotabe}}

===Nontan to Issho: KuruKuru Puzzle===

Nontan to Issho KuruKuru Puzzle Box Art.png|Box-art of Nontan to Issho: KuruKuru Puzzle drawn by {{wp|Sachiko Kiyono}}

The game also received three officially licensed cover based on the game's soundtrack by Junichi Masuda, and were arranged by a variety of musicians. All three were released exclusively in Japan. The first was '''Electrace Pulseman''' on August 1st, 1994, which was supervised by ''Stereotype'', comprised of Satoshi Tajiri, Dai Sato of White Base and Yoshinori Sunahara. It contains ten tracks in total.

Pulseman Box Art.jpg|Box-art of Pulseman

==1996-1999==

===[[Generation I]]===

Though the idea for what would become the Pokémon games had existed in Tajiri's mind for a while, actual development of the Pokémon idea began as [[Capsule Monsters]] on July 5th, 1990.<ref>https://archive.is/giRE5</ref>

 

Tajiri pitched the idea to Ape ([[Creatures, Inc.]]) and Nintendo, with a contract to finish it in October; however, it was rejected, and issues trademarking the name led Tajiri to change it, first shortening it to CapuMon, then changing it to Pocket Monsters. Additionally, according to the official book [[Game Freak Asobi no Sekai Hyoujun o Nurikaeru Creative Shuudan]] written by [[Akihito Tomisawa]], [[Tsunekazu Ishihara]] states [[Creatures, Inc.]] had their own prototype for a game called "Toto" with a similar creature collecting concept; so Creatures, Inc. rejected it out of respect for Tajiri.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOkpD6uqsxI YouTube video by DidYouKnowGaming? citing the book]</ref> With further revision of the idea, Tajiri pitched it again to Nintendo, and with the confidence of [[Shigeru Miyamoto]] swaying the decision, development was finally greenlit. Miyamoto was also the one responsible for splitting the games into two different versions after hearing Tajiri's enthusiasm about kids trading Pokémon between each other, those being [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Pokémon Red]] and [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Pokémon Green]].<ref>https://www.switchaboo.com/satoshi-tajiri-the-man-behind-pokemon/</ref>

As a result, [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Red & Green]] had the longest development history of any game in the series, requiring a significantly larger team than in past titles. Although she first began as a graphic artist on Pulseman, [[Atsuko Nishida]]'s biggest contribution at this point was creating many of the original 151 creature designs, (including the eventual series mascot, {{p|Pikachu}} amidst both company veterans such as [[Ken Sugimori]] and [[Motofumi Fujiwara]], as well as newcomers like [[Shigeki Morimoto]]. Morimoto's known contributions ({{p|Mankey}}, {{p|Diglett}} and {{p|Tauros}}) are all remarkably close to each other using their [[List of Pokémon by index number (Generation I)|internal index number,]] which may provide evidence of when he first appeared. His most infamous design, {{p|Mew}}, was always planned to be a part of the game's story but its actual inclusion as a usable in-game Pokémon was very last minute, leading to a strange placement in the index list away from the rest of Morimoto's designs.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20230416080242/https://helixchamber.com/2018/09/11/internallist/</ref> This is presumably because it was thrown in the game after the debugging period, and simply replaced the first [[MissingNo.|missing slot.]] Sugimori and Nishida were in charge of designing ever non-Pokémon human character, the former being responsible for every single [[Gym Leader]]<ref>https://twitter.com/SUPER_32X/status/610807764617539587</ref>.

Junichi Masuda composed and arranged the entirety of [[Generation I|Generation I's]] [[Pokémon Red & Pokémon Green: Super Music Collection|soundtrack]], where he wrote a program that allowed for {{wp|PCM}} sampled playback to be converted for use on the [[Game Boy|Game Boy.]]<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20140516042339/https://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2014/05/13/pokemon_2700_s-music-master-the-man-behind-the-catchiest-songs.aspx</ref> All of Masuda's contributions to the soundtrack would be arranged by different composers for various media, with the '''Title Screen''' song being used as the main theme of the [[anime]] to this very day. The melody from the track '''Battle! (Wild Pokémon)''' continues to be referenced in every future [[core series]] entry battle against a [[Wild Pokémon]], and his digitized [[Cry|cries]] personal to each Pokémon served as the basis for their sounds in [[Pokémon Stadium (Japanese)|Pokémon Stadium]] as well as their revised cries from [[Pokémon X and Y Versions|Pokémon X & Y]] onwards.

The games finally launched on February 27, 1996, though when initially released in Japan, [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Red & Green]] had a sluggish start to sales, a stark contrast to the launch of [[Pokémon Red and Blue Versions|Red & Blue]] in the west. <ref>https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Iwata-Asks/Iwata-Asks-Pokemon-HeartGold-Version-SoulSilver-Version/Iwata-Asks-Pokemon-HeartGold-Version-SoulSilver-Version/1-Just-Making-The-Last-Train/1-Just-Making-The-Last-Train-225842.html</ref>

Red JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Pokémon Red]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Green JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Pokémon Green]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Blue JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Blue Version (Japanese)|Pokémon Blue]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Yellow JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Yellow Version|Pokémon Yellow]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

===Bazaar de Gosāru no Game de Gosāru===

Bazaar de Gosaru no Game de Gosaru Box Art.jpg|Box-art of Bazaar de Gosāru no Game de Gosāru

===Bushi Seiryūden: Futari no Yūsha===

Bushi Seiryuden Futari no Yusha Box Art.jpg|Box-art of Bushi Seiryūden: Futari no Yūsha drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

===Click Medic===

Click Medic Box Art.jpg|Box-art of Click Medic

===[[Generation II]]===

Gold JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Gold and Silver Versions|Pokémon Gold]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Silver JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Gold and Silver Versions|Pokémon Silver]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Crystal JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Crystal|Pokémon Crystal]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

==2000s==

===[[Generation III]]===

Ruby JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire Versions|Pokémon Ruby]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Sapphire JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire Versions|Pokémon Sapphire]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

FireRed JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Versions|Pokémon FireRed]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

LeafGreen JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Versions|Pokémon LeafGreen]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Emerald JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Emerald|Pokémon Emerald]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

===Drill Dozer===

Drill Dozer JP Box Art.jpg|Japanese Box-art of Drill Dozer, drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Drill Dozer US Box Art.jpg|North American Box-art of Drill Dozer, drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

===[[Generation IV]]===

Diamond JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Diamond and Pearl Versions|Pokémon Diamond]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Pearl JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Diamond and Pearl Versions|Pokémon Pearl]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Platinum JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Platinum Version|Pokémon Platinum]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

HeartGold JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver Versions|Pokémon HeartGold]]

SoulSilver JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver Versions|Pokémon SoulSilver]]

===[[Generation V]]===

Black JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Black and White Versions|Pokémon Black]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

White JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Black and White Versions|Pokémon White]] drawn by [[Ken Sugimori]]

Black 2 JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 Versions|Pokémon Black 2]]

White 2 JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 Versions|Pokémon White 2]]

==2010s==

===[[Harmoknight]]===

HarmoKnight.png|Key Art of Harmoknight drawn by [[James Turner]]

===Pocket Card Jockey===

Pocket Card Jockey Key Art.jpeg|Key Art of Pocket Card Jockey

Pocket Card Jockey Ride On Key Art.jpg|Key Art of Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On!

Pocket Card Jockey Ride On iOS Icon.png|App Icon of Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On!

===[[Generation VI]]===

The names for [[Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire Versions|Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire]] were chosen by [[Masafumi Nukita]].<ref>https://archive.is/tS5lL</ref>

X JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon X and Y Versions|Pokémon X]]

Y JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon X and Y Versions|Pokémon Y]]

Omega Ruby JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire Versions|Pokémon Omega Ruby]]

Alpha Sapphire JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire Versions|Pokémon Alpha Sapphire]]

===Cancelled {{wp|PlayStation 4}} RPG===

An unknown Gear Project RPG made by GAME FREAK was planned for the {{wp|PlayStation 4}}, between August 2014 and January 2015, but was later scrapped.<ref>https://archive.is/tS5lL</ref> It would have been directed by [[Masafumi Nukita]].

===Tembo the Badass Elephant===

Tembo the Badass Elephant Key Art.png|Key Art of Tembo the Badass Elephant drawn by [[James Turner]]

===[[Generation VII]]===

Sun JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Sun and Moon Versions|Pokémon Sun]]

Moon JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Sun and Moon Versions|Pokémon Moon]]

Ultra Sun JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon Versions|Pokémon Ultra Sun]]

Ultra Moon JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon Versions|Pokémon Ultra Moon]]

Lets Go Pikachu EN boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!|Pokémon Let's Go, Pikachu!]] drawn by [[Megumi Mizutani]]

Lets Go Eevee EN boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!|Pokémon Let's Go, Eevee!]] drawn by [[Megumi Mizutani]]

===Giga Wrecker===

Giga Wrecker Key Art.jpg|Key Art of Giga Wrecker

Giga Wrecker Alt Switch Box Art.jpg|Giga Wrecker Alt.'s [[Nintendo Switch]] Box-art

Giga Wrecker Alt PS4 Box Art.jpg|Giga Wrecker Alt.'s {{wp|PlayStation 4}} Box-art

===[[Pokémon Quest]]===

Pokémon Quest icon mobile.png|English App icon of [[Pokémon Quest]]

Pokémon Quest icon mobile CN.png|Chinese App icon of [[NetEase|NetEase's]] [[Pokémon Quest]]

===Little Town Hero===

Little Town Hero Switch Icon.jpg|Little Town Hero's Nintendo Switch Icon

Little Town Hero Steam.jpg|Little Town Hero's Steam Banner

===[[Generation VIII]]===

Sword JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Sword and Shield Versions|Pokémon Sword]]

Shield JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Sword and Shield Versions|Pokémon Shield]]

The Isle of Armor Key Art.png|Key Art of the [[The Isle of Armor]]

The Crown Tundra Key Art.png|Key Art of the [[The Crown Tundra]]

Legends Arceus JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Legends: Arceus]]

==2020s==

===[[Generation IX]]===

Scarlet JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Versions|Pokémon Scarlet]]

Violet JP boxart.png|Box-art of [[Pokémon Scarlet and Violet Versions|Pokémon Violet]]

The Teal Mask Key Art.png|Key Art of the [[The Teal Mask]]

The Indigo Disk Key Art.png|Key Art of the [[The Indigo Disk]]

===Project Bloom===

On May 9th, 2023, GAME FREAK announced an action-adventure game known as Project Bloom, directed by [[Kota Furushima]] in joint collaboration with Private Division, alongside a concept art reveal drawn by [[Kazuma Koda]].<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20230509205901/https://www.privatedivision.com/2023/05/09/private-division-announces-publishing-partnership-with-game-freak/</ref> It is scheduled for a release between 2025 and 2026.

In September 2018, Game Freak announced {{wp|Little Town Hero}}, (originally announced as simply ''Town'') a deck-building RPG unrelated to Pokémon. It was released for the [[Nintendo Switch]] on October 16, 2019, as well as on the {{wp|PlayStation 4}} and Windows computers the following year.-->

* [[Satoshi Tajiri]] (田尻　智), founder, CEO, chairman of the board

* [[Ken Sugimori]] (杉森　建), board member, art director

* [[Jun'ichi Masuda]] (増田順一), board member, head of development

* [[Takenori Ōta]] (太田健程)

* [[Shigeki Morimoto]] (森本茂樹)

* [[Motofumi Fujiwara]] (藤原基史)

* [[Kōji Nishino]] (西野弘二)

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