What date marked the Japanese debut of the Pokémon Trading Card Game?

The Pokémon Trading Card Game debuted in Japan on October 20, 1996. Its first release was the 1st Starter & Expansion Pack, the foundation of the modern Pokémon card game.

The game was developed by Creatures Inc. and originally published in Japan by Media Factory. It adapted the collecting and battling ideas of the video games into a tabletop format in which two players use Pokémon, Energy, Trainer, and other cards.

The first Japanese set depicted the original Pokémon species and included starter products and expansion cards. The English-language release arrived later: Wizards of the Coast launched the Base Set in the United States on January 9, 1999. That difference explains why English-speaking fans sometimes identify 1999 as the card game’s beginning.

The Pokémon TCG was influenced by collectible card games such as Magic: The Gathering, but it developed its own rules, terminology, card layouts, and Pokémon-focused battle system.