What was the original form of Game Freak before it became a video game company?

Game Freak originally existed as a self-published video game magazine.

Satoshi Tajiri created the magazine in 1983 to share arcade-game strategies, reviews, and information with other players. Ken Sugimori later joined as an illustrator after discovering the publication, beginning the creative partnership that would eventually shape Pokémon’s visual identity.

The magazine’s name became the name of a development group and then a formal video game company. Tajiri and Sugimori incorporated Game Freak on April 26, 1989. The company’s early software included the puzzle-action game Quinty, released in North America as Mendel Palace.

This history is easy to overlook because Game Freak is now best known as Pokémon’s developer. The company’s publishing origins also explain why “Game Freak” was already an established name before the Pokémon project began development around 1990.