Who Created Pokemon?
Pokemon exploded onto the American stage in the 1990s after taking Japan by storm. The premise of the game was, and still is, to collect cards depicting different Pokemon and use them to battle collectors of other cards. Pokemon's history is based in the quiet hobby of a shy Japanese man.
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History
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Satoshi Tajiri loved collecting bugs as a child. His endless search for new kinds of bugs garnered him the nickname of "Dr. Bug" by his childhood friends. Satoshi Tajiri grew up to be a video game designer, but his passion for insect collecting remained. He created the Pokemon card game in the 1990s as a part of his passion, though only a few Pokemon are "bug" types.
Significance
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Pokemon was transported onto the hand held video game device, Gameboy, by Nintendo almost as soon as it came out as a card game. In the game, the player takes on the persona of the game's hero, a Pokemon Trainer. Unlike other games, the Pokemon games' heroes were not adults, but children of around 10 years old when they started their journeys. The hero left the comforts of the city or village and ventured out to the wilderness to capture Pokemon in the wild. This premise is a direct result of Satoshi Tajiri's desire to promote exploration of the wild places of the world among children.
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Function
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Pokemon's main attractiveness is the constant battles between the hero and enemies, rivals, and wild Pokemon. Satoshi Tajiri said that he never used his captured bugs to fight each other, though some ate each other nonetheless. To Satoshi Tajiri, the competition aspect isn't as important in the game as the social interaction and the desire to collect more and more Pokemon.
Types
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Nintendo has used the electronic franchise to increase its appeal to children and teenagers (and some adults) Variations were named after colors or precious materials and include Red, Green, Blue, Silver, Gold, Crystal, Ruby, Sapphire, Diamond, FireRed, LeafGreen, Emerald, Diamond and Pearl. On the Gamecube and Wii platforms, Pokemon has appeared under the title of Pokemon Colosseum, XD Gale of Darkness, and Battle Revolution. Pokemon Snap and Pokemon TV use the characters of Pokemon, but differ in the premise. Pokemon has also evolved into a cartoon television series and several feature-length movies. The Pokemon card game was acquired by Wizards of the Coast in 1999.
Considerations
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Since its debut, Pokemon has generated almost as much controversy as it has popularity. Among religious Christians and Muslims, Pokemon has been accused of promoting gambling, or worse, demon-worshiping. Additionally, one particular episode in the first season of the Pokemon cartoon series caused epileptic fits among children who watched the episode's quick-paced battle. Since that airing, the episode "Electric Soldier Porygon" has never been aired again for fears of inducing more fits.
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