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| :''Pocket Monsters redirects here. For the first installment of a gag manga series based on the franchise, see [[Pocket Monsters (manga)]]. For the IRC channel, see [[Pocketmonsters|#pocketmonsters]].''
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| ----
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| [[Image:Pokémon_logo_English.png|200px|thumb|right|The logo of the Pokémon franchises]]'''Pokémon''' (Japanese: '''ポケットモンスター''' ''Pocket Monsters'', or '''ポケモン''' ''Pokémon'' for short) is a series of {{wp|video game}}s, and an entire franchise based around those games, that centers around the ability to "catch" and "train" creatures called ''Pokémon'', for which it is named. The term ''Pokémon'' may refer to the video game franchise, an individual Pokémon creature, or a Pokémon species.
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| ==Concept==
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| The basis of Pokémon is reminiscent of insect collecting, which the creator, [[Satoshi Tajiri]], enjoyed as a child.
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| At a glance, most Pokémon species are based off of ordinary animals, and sometimes plants. They are also inspired by ''{{wp|yōkai}}'', which are very popular in Japanese pop culture. This is evident from the extensive powers Pokémon exhibit, as well as their ever-growing, in-game mythology.
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| ==Name and pronunciation==
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| Pokémon is called "Pocket Monsters" in Japan. This would have been the name when transferred to North America, but "Pocket Monsters" would've caused trademarking problems with {{wp|Monster in My Pocket}}, so [[Nintendo]] settled on using the shortened version of the name which is also used in Japan, with the "Poké" coming from pocket and the "Mon" being derived from Monsters.
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| Due to the accent on the name, Pokémon has a specific pronunciation — ''Poke-Ay-Mon''. The emphasis on the '''e''' is from the accent. Other common mispronunciations include ''Poke-ee-man'', ''Poke-ee-mon'', ''Poke-ay-man'' and ''Pock-uh-mon''.
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| ==Franchise==
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| Also called '''Pocket Monsters''' in Japan and some other countries, Pokémon is a mega-franchise including [[Pokémon games|video games]], an {{pkmn|anime}}, a {{pkmn|Trading Card Game}}, many {{pkmn|manga}} series, a [[Pokémon Trading Figure Game|miniatures game]], and much more merchandise. The concept of Pokémon was first created by [[Satoshi Tajiri]] and all Pokémon games are published by Nintendo Inc., Ltd for their video game systems, including the Game Boy, Nintendo 64, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo DS, and Wii. The games include strategy games and RPGs where the player becomes a "{{g|Trainer}}" who encounters, captures, trains, and collects many Pokémon creatures; puzzle games; and pinball games. They were first released in 1996 in Japan, and were first released in the USA in 1998. Since then, as of May 2005 the Pokémon Franchise has sold more than 140 million units worldwide, second only to {{wp|Mario}} with more than 182 million units sold worldwide and leaving even the {{wp|Legend of Zelda}} and {{wp|Donkey Kong}} franchises in the dust with more than 43 million units worldwide each.
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| ==Collectively==
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| Pokémon inhabit virtually every corner of the {{pkmn|world}}: in forests, in deserts, in the sea, in the sky, and even in bustling cities. All Pokémon are hatched from {{pkmn|egg}}s and most can [[Pokémon breeding|reproduce]], save for legendary Pokémon, and other exceptions. In the wild, Pokémon sometimes fight one another. This can be for play, for food, or for defense. Pokémon, like all living creatures, are not immortal, although people new to Pokémon may have that misconception.
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| ==Individually==
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| An individual Pokémon may be [[Wild Pokémon|encountered in the wild]], [[Captured Pokémon|caught]], [[Pokémon training|trained]], and [[Pokémon battle|battled with]]. In the games, individual Pokémon have many characteristics including [[stats]], [[DVs]], [[species]], [[Level]], [[Effort Values|EVs]], [[Nature]], [[personality value]], [[Experience]], and known [[moves]].
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| ==Species==
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| '''Pokémon species''' are "kinds" of Pokémon, such as {{p|Bulbasaur}} or {{p|Zubat}}. Individual Pokémon of certain species can change into some other species by [[evolution|evolving]], such as a Bulbasaur evolving into an {{p|Ivysaur}}. There are currently 492 officially released Pokémon species, while one other species, {{p|Arceus}}, is programmed into the [[Generation IV]] games and is widely known by the Pokémon fan community, but has not yet been officially revealed.
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| Species have certain characteristics inherent to each one. Examples include [[elemental types]], how many [[Effort values|EVs]] are awarded when a Pokémon of the species is defeated, [[base stats]], sprites and [[Alternate coloration|alternately-colored]] sprites, [[moves]] it learns by [[level|leveling up]], use of [[Technical Machine|TMs]] and [[Hidden Machine|HMs]] and by [[Move Tutor]]s, [[experience|base experience]], experience required to level up, and evolution.
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| In the anime, most Pokémon [[cry|speak through syllables of their name]]. For example, Pikachu can only say the syllables Pi, Ka, and Chu. Some Pokémon, like Salamence and Flygon, make other noises, like roaring or growling. There have been instances of Pokémon being able to speak, most notably {{MTR}}, but most of them can only speak telepathically, like {{an|Mewtwo}} and {{an|Lucario}}. Pokémon in the games generally make animalistic noises, although when the player talks to a Pokémon in the overworld, it says its name, or sounds that imitate its cry.
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| Oftentimes, the name of a species can refer to an individual Pokémon of that species instead. For instance, "Bulbasaur is a {{type2|Grass}}" refers to the Bulbasaur species, but "Bulbasaur uses {{m|Vine Whip}}" refers to a single Bulbasaur.
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| Initially, when the [[Generation I]] games ([[Pokémon Red and Blue Versions|Pokémon Red, Blue]], and [[Pokémon Red and Green Versions|Green]]) were released, there were 151 species of Pokémon ({{p|Bulbasaur}} to {{p|Mew}}). This number grew to 251 with the release of {{game|Gold and Silver|s}} of [[Generation II]] a few years later, adding an additional 100 species ({{p|Chikorita}} to {{p|Celebi}}). [[Generation III]] brought another 135 species ({{p|Treecko}} to {{p|Deoxys}}) to the Pokémon world with the release of {{game|Ruby and Sapphire|s}}, bringing the total to 386. The most recent additions, {{game|Diamond and Pearl|s}}, the beginning of [[Generation IV]] introduced 107 new species ({{p|Turtwig}} to {{p|Arceus}}), bringing the overall total to 493.
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| According to the ''[[Electric Tale of Pikachu]]'', biological taxonomies of cellular and genetic structure have revealed that Pokémon are all actually a single species of life form and that the individual differences between each creature are actually subspecies. The DNA of all Pokémon can be traced back to {{p|Mew}}. (This can also explain why Pokémon can variously interbreed with each other.)
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| Several games, especially the Red and Blue versions, have featured various hidden in-game [[Glitch Pokémon]], most notably [[Missingno.]] and [['M]]. There have also been glitches found that are unrelated to individual Pokémon, such as [[Glitch City]].
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| ==See also==
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| * [[History of Pokémon]]
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| * [[List of Pokémon]]
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| [[Category:Pokémon meta]]
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| [[de:Pokémon]]
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| [[fr:Pokémon]]
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| [[ja:ポケットモンスター]]
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| [[pl:Pokémon]]
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| [[pt:Pokémon]]
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