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Pokémon: 30 Years of Game Art Arrive in Three Artbooks
The three volumes together span roughly 1,500 pages and also include concept and setting material that has never been published before.
To mark the 30th anniversary of the Pokémon game series, three large-format Visual Art Books with roughly 1,500 pages combined will be released on December 18, 2026. The books document the development of Game Freak's titles, from "Pokémon Red and Green" to "Pokémon Legends: Z-A – Mega Dimension Rush."
The Japanese publisher Overlap unveiled the covers of the three volumes on September 15. According to the official announcement, the books contain pixel art, 3DCG, illustrations, promotional artwork and setting material from the main games developed by Game Freak. In addition, previously unpublished concept materials are included.
Three Volumes of Roughly 500 Pages Each
BOOK1 covers the early generations, from "Pokémon Red and Green" to "Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver." BOOK2 begins with "Pokémon Black and White" and runs through "X and Y" up to "Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon." BOOK3 covers the newer Switch generations, from "Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Eevee!" through "Pokémon Sword and Shield" and "Pokémon Scarlet and Violet" to "Pokémon Legends: Z-A" and its expansion.
The three volumes will be published in B5 format and fully in color. GAME Watch lists a price of 5,500 yen for each volume. Each volume also includes a lengthy interview at the end with creators from Game Freak. The project is supervised by The Pokémon Company and Game Freak, and the responsible editor is Shusuke Motomiya.
The project is part of the numerous releases marking the 30th anniversary of Pokémon. Recently, aninew.de published, among other things, the 22-minute music video featuring all 1,025 Pokémon names and the worldwide Spotify release of new Pokémon Sleep music. The anniversary also continues in anime: a new cinema film, "Pokémon: Wildcard," has been announced for 2027.