Julia Stoll
Research expert covering TV and video media
Pokémon gaming - Statistics & Facts
In its 29-year history, the Pokémon Company has sold close to 500 million units of the game’s series, with every new addition taking the video game industry by storm. After numerous video games and various spin-offs, Pokémon’s debut series Red/Green/Blue remains the franchise’s best-selling console game to date, with over 31 million units shipped worldwide.
The next game in the series, due to be released in late 2025, is Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It is a sequel to Pokémon X and Y (2013), and the second Legends game with real-time instead of turn-based combat. In 2024, together with Tokyo-based developer ILCA, the Pokémon Company launched a new joint venture, Pokémon Works. The first project of this joint venture is the upcoming game Pokémon Champions , a multi-platform title focused on turn-based strategy multiplayer gameplay.
The last animated film, Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle, was released in December 2020. Breaking the annual Pokémon movie release cycle which had been going strong since 1998, there has been no animated Pokémon movie since 2020 , with no new film in sight. Pokémon Detective Pikachu, the first official live-action Pokémon film, was released in May 2019 and was met with commercial success, placing as the second highest-grossing video game film adaption off all time.
The Pokémon animated series is currently wrapping up its 27th season, which is called Pokémon Horizons – The Search for Laqua. The series includes the new Paldea region from the 2022 Pokémon Scarlet and Violet games. Since April 2023, the iconic duo Ash and Pikachu have been retired as main characters, and this season is the second to feature new protagonists Liko and Roy.
The Pokémon franchise has also used the mobile platform to dip into other gaming genres – Pokémon UNITE (MOBA), Pokémon Masters EX (free-to-play gacha RPG), Pokémon Quest (adventure) and Pokémon Café ReMix (puzzle) are some of the more successful examples.
However, these apps are eclipsed by Pokémon TCG Pocket, a free-to-play mobile app version of the original Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG). Upon its October 2024 release, Pokémon TCG Pocket was an immediate hit and generated over 30 million downloads during its first month after launch. Over six million people had pre-registered for the game worldwide.
With regular new mainline games, a steady stream of remakes, and innovative mobile games, the Pokémon gaming franchise seems to go from strength to strength while closing in on its 330-year anniversary in 2026.
Current Pokémon titles for consoles
The core Pokémon series games are released in generations, each with different monsters to tame, characters to encounter, and sometimes new regions to explore. The most recent mainline titles and the first games of the ninth Pokémon generation were launched in November 2022. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet were instant bestsellers, selling over ten million worldwide copies in the first three days after release and reaching over 26 million units in lifetime sales at the end of 2024. In 2022, the franchise also published its first open-world Pokémon game, Pokémon Legends: Arceus, which represented a departure from the series’ classic gameplay mechanics. The Switch-exclusive title outsold other recent Pokémon game launches in Japan (until it was eclipsed by Scarlet/Violet) and moved more than 6.5 million units in its first week of global sales.The next game in the series, due to be released in late 2025, is Pokémon Legends: Z-A. It is a sequel to Pokémon X and Y (2013), and the second Legends game with real-time instead of turn-based combat. In 2024, together with Tokyo-based developer ILCA, the Pokémon Company launched a new joint venture, Pokémon Works. The first project of this joint venture is the upcoming game Pokémon Champions , a multi-platform title focused on turn-based strategy multiplayer gameplay.
A media empire
Apart from being a global gaming giant, Pokémon has also become one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time. Today, the brand’s empire encompasses a popular anime series with over 1,322 episodes, a trading card game, merchandise, and several movies that continuously draw fans to the theater.The last animated film, Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle, was released in December 2020. Breaking the annual Pokémon movie release cycle which had been going strong since 1998, there has been no animated Pokémon movie since 2020 , with no new film in sight. Pokémon Detective Pikachu, the first official live-action Pokémon film, was released in May 2019 and was met with commercial success, placing as the second highest-grossing video game film adaption off all time.
The Pokémon animated series is currently wrapping up its 27th season, which is called Pokémon Horizons – The Search for Laqua. The series includes the new Paldea region from the 2022 Pokémon Scarlet and Violet games. Since April 2023, the iconic duo Ash and Pikachu have been retired as main characters, and this season is the second to feature new protagonists Liko and Roy.
Pokémon games on mobile
With the launch of Pokémon GO, a location-based augmented reality (AR) mobile game, the franchise managed to create a global sensation. Nine years after its initial release, Pokémon GO still enjoys great popularity across the globe. It is one of the leading free-to-play (F2P) game titles worldwide and generated over 544 million U.S. dollars in IAP revenues in 2024, and ranking as one of the highest grossing mobile games worldwide.The Pokémon franchise has also used the mobile platform to dip into other gaming genres – Pokémon UNITE (MOBA), Pokémon Masters EX (free-to-play gacha RPG), Pokémon Quest (adventure) and Pokémon Café ReMix (puzzle) are some of the more successful examples.
However, these apps are eclipsed by Pokémon TCG Pocket, a free-to-play mobile app version of the original Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG). Upon its October 2024 release, Pokémon TCG Pocket was an immediate hit and generated over 30 million downloads during its first month after launch. Over six million people had pre-registered for the game worldwide.
With regular new mainline games, a steady stream of remakes, and innovative mobile games, the Pokémon gaming franchise seems to go from strength to strength while closing in on its 330-year anniversary in 2026.
