Pok?mon 20 year celebration kicks off with a Super Bowl 50 ad, New 3DS bundle

Just in time for its big 20th anniversary, The Pok?mon Company is spending big bucks to celebrate the Pok?mon brand’s latest milestone

The company has a whole lot of festivities planned, but they are kicking it off with a high visibility Super Bowl 50 commercial next month. Afterwards, there will be tons of special events, a New 3DS Pok?mon bundle, a Pok?mon TCG update, new merchandise and animation releases and apparently much more.

Read on or head over to the new official site.

Pok?mon is thrilled to announce that 2016 will be a year-long celebration of the past, present, and future of the 20 year-old brand. First introduced in Japan in 1996 with the video games Pok?mon Red andPok?mon Green for the Game Boy system, Pok?mon has delighted fans of all ages around the world for two decades. With more than 275 million video games sold worldwide, 21.5 billion TCG cards shipped to 74 countries, and an animated series spanning 18 seasons, Pok?mon is one of the most successful entertainment brands in the world.

To kick start the celebration, The Pok?mon Company International announced today that it will air a new ad during Super Bowl 50 on Sunday, February 7, which will encourage fans to Train On. In that spirit, fans are encouraged to share their favorite Pok?mon memories on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube using the hashtag #Pokemon20. On Pok?mon Day, February 27, fans can join in on the fun at special events at participating retail locations across the country. More details can be found at Pokemon.com/20. Fans visiting the site throughout the year will find information about monthly Mythical Pok?mon character distributions, retail events, special products, messages from some of Pok?mon?s biggest fans, and the upcoming Pok?mon Photo Booth app.

In addition to all of the great ways to celebrate 20 years of Pok?mon, there is much more to come in 2016. This spring, Pokk?n Tournament (Pokemon.com/PokkenTournament) for the Wii U console will bring Pok?mon to life in a way never seen before, where Pok?mon battle in direct response to the player?s actions. Pok?mon GO (Pokemon.com/GO), a ground breaking mobile game that will encourage fans to search far and wide in the real world to discover Pok?mon, launches later this year. To coincide with Pokemon Day on February 27, Nintendo will also make some of their best-selling Pok?mon amiibo available again, at select retailers only. Fans should be on the look-out for Charizard, Jigglypuff, Greninja, and Lucario to join Pikachu at stores nationwide.

VIDEO GAMES
In a fitting tribute to where it all began, Pok?mon Red Version, Pok?mon Blue Version and Pok?mon Yellow Version will be released as digital downloads on the Nintendo eShop for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems on February 27 . Pok?mon Red Version and Pok?mon Blue Version will also be included in a New Nintendo 3DS bundle. The New Nintendo 3DS Pok?mon 20th Anniversary bundle will come withPok?mon Red Version and Pok?mon Blue Version pre-installed, two unique cover plates featuring artwork from the original Pok?mon Red Version and Pok?mon Blue Version game boxes and the Pok?mon 20th logo, and a download code for an exclusive Nintendo 3DS Pok?mon HOME Menu theme. The commemorative New Nintendo 3DS bundle will be available on February 27 at retail locations.

POK?MON TCG
Pok?mon TCG fans can celebrate 20 years of Pok?mon with the Pok?mon TCG:Generations expansion Pokemon.com/20. This special expansion covers every stage of a Trainer?s journey, from the choice of a first partner Pok?mon to the most elite of Trainer battles. Featuring Pikachu, Snorlax, Ninetales-EX, and Jolteon-EX, plus Mega Charizard-EX, Mega Blastoise-EX, and Mega Venusaur-EX, the Generationsexpansion will be available in February. Generations booster packs will be available within specially labeled and designed Pok?mon TCG products released as part of the Pok?mon 20th celebration, starting with the first Pok?mon TCG: Mythical Pok?mon Collection coming in late February. A total of 11 Mythical Pok?mon Collections will be released throughout 2016, each containing two Generations booster packs. In addition, four Pok?mon TCG: Red & Blue Collections focused on the original superstars of the Pok?mon world, each containing four Generations booster packs, will be released in 2016.

RETAIL
The celebration continues with special retail events. Four Mythical Pok?mon video game character distribution events will take place at participating GameStop locations throughout 2016, with one being distributed each quarter. Fans will need to have Pok?mon Omega Ruby, Pok?mon Alpha Sapphire, Pok?mon X, or Pok?mon Y, and a system from the Nintendo 3DS family to receive Mew, Darkrai, Arceus, and Genesect.

On Pok?mon Day, February 27, at participating Toys?R?Us locations, fans can receive special foil Pok?mon TCG cards featuring Pikachu and Magikarp from the Generations expansion, a Pok?mon activity book, and a poster of the original 151 Pok?mon, while supplies last. Toys?R?Us will also have an exclusive Generations-themed folio available for purchase to collect the new expansion.

ANIMATION
Beginning in January and continuing throughout the year, 12 full-length Pok?mon feature films will be available for digital download from iTunes, Google Play, and Amazon. The first two releases will be Pok?mon: The First Movie and Pok?mon the Movie 2000, both digitally remastered. In addition, Pok?mon TV, available on Pokemon.com, Roku, Chromecast, and Amazon Fire platforms, will feature one film title per month to align with other Pok?mon brand activities. The first three Pok?mon films will also be available in both DVD and Blu-ray formatted bundles from licensee Viz Media.

A 48-page interactive digital reader will accompany Pok?mon: The First Movie and can be viewed on any device that supports iBooks, including Mac, iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch.

MERCHANDISE
Fans can celebrate 20 years of Pok?mon in style with new apparel, accessories, and souvenirs available only at PokemonCenter.com. They can find everything from a special Pok?mon 20th baseball cap by New Era to a commemorative pin and lanyard set. Pok?mon 20th TCG accessories, such as card sleeves, deck boxes, playmats, and much more, are available for fans of all ages. Limited-edition Pok?mon 20th figures and plush items from TOMY International, Pok?mon?s master toy licensee, will also be available at participating retail locations.

Pok?mon. Twenty years. Train On.