20 years ago this very week of February, the first Pokémon games, Red and Blue, debuted on the original Gameboy. To celebrate this anniversary, Nintendo and The Pokémon Company are eschewing the traditional china and instead giving fans a number of events to commemorate the series.
Starting today the new Pokémon Photo Booth app is available for free from the App Store, and fans can use it to edit an customize photos and add captions to give their pictures a classic Pokémon touch:
The photos can then be posted on social media or used as profile photos. For those who do not have an Apple device, don’t worry! The app will also be coming to Google Play.
Following that on February 26, 2016 at 7 AM PST there will be a special Pokémon themed session of Nintendo Direct, which you can view at the official Nintendo website on Friday.
Then on Saturday, Nintendo NY store will be hosting a giant Pokémon 20th anniversary party and all fans are invited to attend from noon to 3 PM EST to get a photo with Pikachu and participate in various Pokémon-related activities. For those of you not in New York City, a Pokémon event will be hosted on Twitch starting at 10 AM PST, where “Pokémon discussion, gameplay, and other activities” are planned for most of the day, followed by a 24 hour Pokémon animation marathon starting at 6 PM PST, featuring the Pokémon movies, animation specials, and some episodes of the TV show.
In addition to these various Pokémon events, Toys R’ Us will also be getting in on the fun, dishing out Pokémon goodies in the form of a Pokémon activity book, and a poster of the original 151 Pokémon, and special foil Pokémon TCG cards featuring Pikachu and Magikarp from the Pokémon TCG: Generations expansion (of course, while supplies last). Gamestop will also be giving out a Mythical Pokémon poster with purchase of any Pokémon item.
For more details on the events, visit http://www.pokemon20.com/.
