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Game director Atsushi Nagashima on why Pokémon Trading Card Game is still so popular

Atsushi Nagashima (Pomemon TCG)
Atsushi Nagashima (Pomemon TCG)

Cast your mind back to the autumn of 1996 - if you can. Football had just come home, a young Tony Blair was terrorising the Conservative Government and a new collectable card game had just been launched.

The Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG), based on Nintendo’s Pokémon franchise of video games, went on to storm the world. It has sold over 30 billion cards and has been translated into 13 languages.

In the classic game, players adopt the role of a Pokémon trainer and use those Pokémon to fight their opponents.

While more interactive products such as Pokémon Go have taken the headlines in recent years, the card game’s popularity remains striking. In 2017, it accounted for 82 per cent of the trading card market in Europe. Sales in the UK grew by nearly half.

Its latest expansion pack, Vivid Voltage, is the fourth expansion in the Sword & Shield series.

The Evening Standard spoke with Atsushi Nagashima, Game Director of Pokémon TCG at Creatures Inc, about his work in the design of the much-loved game.

Evening Standard: How did the Pokémon TCG get started and did you think back then the game would have such an impact?

Atsushi Nagashima: The Pokémon TCG was initially born from the video game series. Ishihara-san, President of The Pokémon Company, loved tabletop/card games and wanted to create a card game which would act as a 'Physical' Pokédex and give players another way to experience the Pokémon brand.

The idea of a trading card game fit perfectly in line with Pokémon's tenants of play, trade and collect. It also encourages face-to-face play which has been key to the product's success and longevity.

Back in the early days, I don't think anyone could have predicted the global success of the brand as a whole and its cultural impact. My role and that of my colleagues at Creatures is to keep innovating and ensure Pokémon TCG remains fun for existing fans and newcomers alike.

ES: Can you walk us through the design and production process of the cards?

AN: We start by looking at how the world is depicted in the Pokémon video games. Our inspiration for new elements in the TCG comes from the video games, which we use to build the underlying framework of a product or series.

We begin by selecting four or five main Pokémon, keeping in mind issues such as Pokémon types in the existing game environment. Based on that selection, we begin exploring the broader worldview of the series. At this point, we start creating simple illustrations.

Next we create our mix of Pokémon, looking at issues such as type balance, evolution balance, character popularity and play mechanics, and from there work on data and illustrations for each individual card. When it comes to the design of each card, we aim to capture something that defines that Pokémon's character, type and abilities in a single image.

It can be a tough assignment, especially with the introduction of brand new Pokémon, but luckily we have many talented artists who we work with. The design will naturally go through some rounds of feedback and editing until we settle on the final image.

We also need to look at how a card plays and what mechanics it fulfils in a gameplay environment. It is crucial that any new expansion is balanced and we have an internal team of testers who play TCG continuously, gathering as much data as they can on how a card performs.

The card data that comes from play-testing is then used to tweak and develop each card to ensure it remains at the correct power-level and is balanced for the play environment. This is especially true with new gameplay mechanics, such as VMAX, which was introduced in the Sword & Shield TCG and incorporates the Dynamax mechanism from the Sword & Shield video game.

Each card varies on the amount of development time required. The highlight cards in a set, for example, VMAX Charizard in Darkness Ablaze, generally take longer to create when compared to a basic Pokémon card. Trainer cards can also take quite a long time to produce as their role in the game allows many other cards to be 'viable' in gameplay and therefore require a longer testing period to get right.

Pokemon TCG
Pokemon TCG

ES: Tell us about the Sword and Shield expansion.

AN: Sword and Shield – Darkness Ablaze, the third expansion in this series, was released in the summer. In addition to Eternatus VMAX, one of the legendary Pokémon from Sword and Shield, Darkness Ablaze will also have Charizard VMAX - as the fan favourite, Charizard makes its Gigantamax form debut in the Pokémon TCG.

In terms of cards to look out for, there are a lot of cards we're really looking forward to seeing how players will use, such as Crobat V and Vikavolt V. There are also some secret rare cards in this set which I think are some of the most visually beautiful cards we have ever created.

Generally, I'm involved in the direction of overall game mechanics, such as game environment design and game logic, but I'm also somewhat involved in art direction.

ES: How have the mechanics of the game changed over the years to stay relevant in an increasingly digital world?

AN: One of the key things which we feel has led to the popularity/longevity of the Pokémon TCG is the face-to-face aspect of play paired with the brand's core values of friendship/togetherness/friendly competition.

There have of course been many mechanics added to the TCG over the years which have helped keep the game feeling fresh and different for players. The strength of the game though is the face-to-face social connections which it creates.

I often visit tournaments/leagues and see people who have been playing the game since they were kids now playing with their own kids. I have known some of these players for many years and the community has continued to grow which is just amazing to experience.

In my opinion, you just don't get the same feeling with digital-only products and that's what makes the Pokémon TCG so special and mean so much to its players. Our current focus remains on creating the best physical product that we can for our players, but of course, we are always exploring new ideas, not specifically as a way to counter the impact of digital entertainment, but rather to remain relevant to the current fan base and appeal to new fans across the globe.

ES: Why do you think the game has remained so popular?

AN: We are fortunate that the Pokémon brand as a whole continues to flourish and every year we see new fans begin their Pokémon journey, be it through the video game, animated series, apps like Pokémon GO or indeed the TCG.

The video games do a great job of introducing new mechanics and Pokémon with each release, and that's a big part of their popularity. The Pokémon TCG, meanwhile, is based on the core charm of the franchise – collecting, trading and battling Pokémon – and you can enjoy the fun of Pokémon in a physical way.

We also have a very welcoming community for those who want to actively play the game - starting at a grassroots level with leagues and tournaments at toy and hobby stores, all the way to our annual World Championships - and we have seen many long-lasting friendships formed over the years.

The Pokémon brand continues to innovate in order to keep our existing fans excited, but also to draw in new players and collectors. Honestly - there has never been a better time to be a Pokémon fan or join the amazing community we have.