On what date did Game Freak, the developer of Pokémon, officially incorporate?

Game Freak, the developer of Pokémon, officially incorporated on April 26, 1989.

The company grew out of Game Freak, a self-published video game magazine created by Satoshi Tajiri. Ken Sugimori later joined as an illustrator, and the pair transformed the magazine project into a game development company.

One of Game Freak’s early games was Quinty, an action-puzzle title published by Namco. The company eventually began developing Pocket Monsters, the project that became Pokémon Red and Green, after Tajiri presented the concept to Nintendo.

The incorporation date is sometimes confused with earlier milestones. Tajiri’s Game Freak magazine began in 1983, while the development company itself was formed in 1989. Pokémon did not debut until 1996, so Game Freak predates the franchise’s public launch by several years.