The Pokémon trading card game has been around for about as long as the video games series, and it’s seen a number of rare and expensive cards over the years. One aspect of the process has been a mystery up until now: how the cards are actually made. Thanks to a leaked internal video, we now know the full process.
YouTube channel PokeBeach uploaded the video, which was only meant for employees of the Millennium Print Group. Over the course of 16 and a half minutes, we get to see the entire process from start to finish. It starts with a detailed Excel file — organization is important. After translating the text of each card, Millennium begins working on art. Printing is done by massive machines that can churn out millions of cards in a single day. They come out in sheets, which are then laminated and machine-cut for uniformity. It’s a fascinating process, even if we weren’t ever supposed to see it ourselves.
Millennium Print Group has been manufacturing Pokémon cards since 2015, but it actually operated as an independent partner until recently. It was only in April of this year that The Pokémon Company acquired the group and made things official. Since then, it’s released a new Trick or Trade card set to celebrate the spooky season.
The Pokémon Company itself has stayed busy too. The ninth generation of Pokémon games arrives soon: Scarlet and Violet’s release date is November 8. The Nintendo Switch-exclusive versions will introduce several new features to the franchise. Gym Leaders and story progression work differently, letter players approach their goals in any order. Meanwhile, the Terastallize mechanic will let Pokémon change types in the middle of a battle.
There don’t seem to be any new types introduced in Scarlet and Violet, but we have met plenty of new Pokémon ahead of launch. The most recent addition to the Pokédex is Wiglett, who looks like a quirky relative of Diglett.
