Nintendo Direct livestream coming Friday for Pokémon’s 20th anniversary

Two decades ago, Nintendo unleashed the first Pokémon games in Japan. On Friday, Nintendo celebrates this milestone with fans.

A Pokémon-themed Nintendo Direct livestreaming video event is coming 7 a.m. Pacific time (10 a.m. Eastern) on Friday. This is a chance for the publisher to look back on 20 years of the pocket-monster series and its place a popular-culture phenomenon with games, films, and merchandise — but it’s also an opportunity to reveal some more news about the franchise. The Pokémon brand has generated $45 billion in revenues since debuting in 1996, and Nintendo wants to keep that momentum going so it can rely on that revenue as it transitions to its next dedicated gaming hardware and into mobile games.