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Pokémon's 30th Anniversary: Key Findings
Campaign Snapshot
Pokémon is marking 30 years with a prompt that every fan already knows by heart, “What’s your favorite?”
This question anchors a yearlong global campaign from The Pokémon Company International, launched during Super Bowl LX.
It invites fans to publicly claim their favorite Pokémon and share it with the wider community.
The effort turns the attention to the fans, tapping into decades of debates, nostalgia, and personal identity tied to the franchise.
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The one-minute ad features a wide mix of well-known Pokémon fans, including:
- Lady Gaga
- Trevor Noah
- Jisoo
- Charles Leclerc
- Maitreyi Ramakrishnan
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Each appears briefly, championing their favorite Pokémon and showing how personal it can get for fans.
"It’s a question that sparks passionate discussion and reminds fans that no matter who they are, there is a Pokémon for them,” said Kenji Okubo, president at The Pokémon Company International.
“As we gear up for a year packed full of fan-focused celebrations, we thank Trainers around the world for being part of our diverse, global and multigenerational community," he added.
Overall, Pokémon is building its brand marketing strategy around participation. In doing so, Pokémon reinforces its place as a shared language across the globe.
From Screens to the Streets
Every fan wants to know their favorite artist's favorite Pokémon, and the company's Super Bowl spot wastes no time revealing this. For Lady Gaga, it's Jigglypuff.
"She has a twelve octave vocal range," the "Born This Way" singer explains, as she sings the Pokémon's iconic jingle in the studio.
As for Trevor Noah, it's Psyduck. He shares that every single time he meets a new Pokémon, it's like "you met a new part of yourself."
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Meanwhile, Eevee is Jisoo's choice, due to its ability to transform into many forms. Not to mention, she believes the Pokémon resembles her a bit.
The spot ends with each star directing the attention to the viewers, asking them the question: "What's Your Favorite?"
Plenty of surprises are set to grace the fans after the Super Bowl spot.
Starting this month, fans can create and share “What’s Your Favorite?” snapshots using a new camera feature inside Pokémon GO, which itself is celebrating its 10th anniversary.
The tool lets players photograph their chosen Pokémon in real-world locations and share those images using the #Pokemon30 hashtag.
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Pokémon has also announced a slate of “Day Out” and “Night Out” events aimed at bringing fans together offline.
Day Out experiences will skew family-friendly, while Night Out events are positioned for longtime fans who grew up with the franchise.
Details are still forthcoming, but the intent is to turn everyone's personal preferences into a social activity to enjoy.
This year, Pokémon retains its position as the highest-grossing media franchise of all time, with lifetime revenues exceeding $147 billion.
After years of sitting alongside the games and cartoons, the Pokémon Trading Card Game surged back into the spotlight in 2025.
Demand for the Scarlet & Violet: Prismatic Evolutions set drove sellouts, secondary-market spikes, and renewed attention on in-person play and collecting.
Pokémon’s 30-Year Fan Play
Pokémon constantly keeps it fresh, offering a practical reference point for brands that want to stay relevant. Here are some lessons we can learn as marketers from its most recent efforts:
- Invitation-based campaigns age better than announcements, as seen with Pokémon, Disney100, and Hello Kitty’s anniversary strategy.
- Letting real fans speak for the brand can help it appear more authentic and fan-driven.
- A single flexible idea can power TV, social, live events, and gaming without fragmenting the message.
The real test will come later this year, when Pokémon’s live experiences roll out, and the campaign moves fully into the physical world.
Our Take: Does Pokémon Even Need a New Idea?
Game announcements aside, I don't think a franchise as big as Pokémon necessarily needs to reinvent the wheel when it comes to brand campaigns.
Sometimes, knowing your favorite artist's choice is enough to reel you back into the world of Pokémon you grew up loving.
If I’m being honest, this is what 30 years of relevance looks like.
Letting the fans speak. Listening to what they want to see. And lastly, giving them things to look forward to in your wide variety of favorite IPs.
In other news, Marvel has skipped this year's Super Bowl advertising, putting full trust in the hype people have for its upcoming films.
Find the teams driving growth and engagement across every platform. Check out the top digital marketing agencies in our directory.
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