Pokémon will be celebrating its 20th anniversary this year with any number of commemorative events throughout 2016, starting with a big-budget commercial during February 7’s Super Bowl 50.
This is an extended cut of the 30-second spot set to air during the Super Bowl 50 telecast and whips rapidly around the world, reflecting the series’ massive global impact. We see a number of trainers from multiple walks of life before landing in a giant stadium filled with cheering fans and CGI Pokémon like Pikachu and Charizard ready to duke it out.
The trailer ends with the address for the Pokémon 20 website which is full of rather lovely fan posts regarding the series, their adoration for it and their favourite memories from the last 20 years. Adding to this are posts from real-world celebrities (or “featured trainers”)
Pokémon will officially reach its 20 year milestone on February 27 and Nintendo will be marking the occasion by releasing the original Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow Game Boy titles onto the 3DS Virtual Console. You’ll also be able to grab yourself a red or blue faceplate for your 3DS in stores the same day.
20 years of trying to catch ’em all. Hell of a thing. Let’s all pay our respects with the One True Pokémon Anthem.
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