Ken Sugimori
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese video game designer, illustrator, manga artist
, and director. He is most famous as the character designer and art director for the Pokémon
franchise. Sugimori is also credited with the art direction for other titles, including Pulseman
. Sugimori drew all of the original 151 Pokémon himself. He has worked on the various Pokémon movies, trading cards, and other games like the Super Smash Bros. series.
called Game Freak
, which had been started by Satoshi Tajiri
. Sugimori discovered the magazine in a dōjinshi
shop, and decided to get involved. Eventually, the two decided to pitch an arcade game
design idea to Namco
; they reworked Game Freak
into a development company and produced Mendel Palace
. Sugimori is most famous as the character designer and art director for the Pokémon
franchise and drew all of the original 151 Pokémon himself. He has worked on the various Pokémon movies, trading cards, and other games.
For Pokémon Black and White
, Sugimori directed a team of 17 people in designing new characters for the games, though he always drew the final designs. He drew much of his inspiration from observing animals in aquarium
s and zoo
s. Sugimori has also written and illustrated original manga
, including one which was distributed with pre-orders of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness
. When he begins a new character, his process normally involves making a rough sketch, then tracing it on to film paper while polishing it and making the illustration more professional looking. After that, he draws the character many times, changing its proportions until he is satisfied.
, known in America as the Sega 32X. His twitter
account nickname (@Super_32X) evidences this fact and even himself has said this many times. His favorite videogame consoles are rather obscure, the SEGA Mark III (Master System) with the FM Sound Unit attached (Japan only) and the Super SEGA 32X.
Mangaka
is the Japanese word for a comic artist or cartoonist. Outside of Japan, manga usually refers to a Japanese comic book and mangaka refers to the author of the manga, who is usually Japanese...
, and director. He is most famous as the character designer and art director for the Pokémon
Pokémon
is a media franchise published and owned by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video...
franchise. Sugimori is also credited with the art direction for other titles, including Pulseman
Pulseman
Pulseman is an action platform game developed by Game Freak and published by Sega for the Mega Drive in 1994. The game was released in cartridge format only in Japan, with the North American version being released via the Sega Channel as an "exclusive"...
. Sugimori drew all of the original 151 Pokémon himself. He has worked on the various Pokémon movies, trading cards, and other games like the Super Smash Bros. series.
Career
From early 1981 until 1986, Sugimori illustrated a gaming fanzineFanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
called Game Freak
Game Freak (magazine)
Game Freak was a self-published gaming magazine created by Satoshi Tajiri and Ken Sugimori in the 1980s. Tajiri wrote and edited the text and Sugimori illustrated. In 1989, Tajiri and Sugimori started a video game development company of the same name, which developed games such as Mendel Palace,...
, which had been started by Satoshi Tajiri
Satoshi Tajiri
is a Japanese video game designer best known as the creator of Pokémon and the founder of development company Game Freak, Inc. An avid fan of arcade games, Tajiri wrote for and edited his own video gaming fanzine Game Freak with Ken Sugimori, before evolving it into a development company of the...
. Sugimori discovered the magazine in a dōjinshi
Dojinshi
is the Japanese term for self-published works, usually magazines, manga or novels. Dōjinshi are often the work of amateurs, though some professional artists participate as a way to publish material outside the regular industry. The term dōjinshi is derived from and . Dōjinshi are part of a wider...
shop, and decided to get involved. Eventually, the two decided to pitch an arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
design idea to Namco
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
; they reworked Game Freak
Game Freak
is a Japanese video game developer that currently creates games exclusively for Nintendo. It has developed the Pokémon series of role-playing games and several other games.-History:...
into a development company and produced Mendel Palace
Mendel Palace
Mendel Palace, originally released in Japan as , is a 1989 action/puzzle arcade game co-developed by Game Freak and KID. It was published in Japan by Namco and in North America by Hudson Soft. Mendel Palace was Game Freak's debut title, and the first game designed by Satoshi Tajiri.-Plot:The...
. Sugimori is most famous as the character designer and art director for the Pokémon
Pokémon
is a media franchise published and owned by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video...
franchise and drew all of the original 151 Pokémon himself. He has worked on the various Pokémon movies, trading cards, and other games.
For Pokémon Black and White
Pokémon Black and White
are role-playing games developed by Game Freak and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. They are the first installments in the fifth generation of the Pokémon series of role-playing games...
, Sugimori directed a team of 17 people in designing new characters for the games, though he always drew the final designs. He drew much of his inspiration from observing animals in aquarium
Aquarium
An aquarium is a vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which water-dwelling plants or animals are kept. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, marine mammals, turtles, and aquatic plants...
s and zoo
Zoo
A zoological garden, zoological park, menagerie, or zoo is a facility in which animals are confined within enclosures, displayed to the public, and in which they may also be bred....
s. Sugimori has also written and illustrated original manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
, including one which was distributed with pre-orders of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness
and are a matched pair of Pokémon games for the Nintendo DS. The two games were released in Japan on September 13, 2007, and were released in North America on April 20, 2008...
. When he begins a new character, his process normally involves making a rough sketch, then tracing it on to film paper while polishing it and making the illustration more professional looking. After that, he draws the character many times, changing its proportions until he is satisfied.
Video game
- Pokémon (video game series): Art Director/character designer
- Mendel PalaceMendel PalaceMendel Palace, originally released in Japan as , is a 1989 action/puzzle arcade game co-developed by Game Freak and KID. It was published in Japan by Namco and in North America by Hudson Soft. Mendel Palace was Game Freak's debut title, and the first game designed by Satoshi Tajiri.-Plot:The...
: character design - Smart BallSmart BallSmart Ball is an Action-adventure game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, known as in Japan. A sequel called was in production, but was never actually released.-Gameplay:...
: character design - Jerry Boy 2Smart BallSmart Ball is an Action-adventure game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, known as in Japan. A sequel called was in production, but was never actually released.-Gameplay:...
(canceled game): character designer - Drill DozerDrill Dozeris an action platformer game for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance system, released in 2005 in Japan, and in 2006 in North America. It features a built-in rumble pack.- Story :...
: Director/Game Design - PulsemanPulsemanPulseman is an action platform game developed by Game Freak and published by Sega for the Mega Drive in 1994. The game was released in cartridge format only in Japan, with the North American version being released via the Sega Channel as an "exclusive"...
: character design/Artist - BUSHI Seiryūden Futari no Yūsya: character design
Anime
- PokémonPokémon (anime), abbreviated from , is a children's TV anime series, which has since been adapted for the North and South American, Australian and European television markets...
(TVTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
): character design - Pokémon: The First MoviePokémon: The First MoviePokémon: The First Movie, originally released as , is a 1998 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series. It is the first theatrical release in the Pokémon franchise...
: Original character design - Pokémon: The Movie 2000Pokémon: The Movie 2000Pokémon: The Movie 2000, originally released in Japan as , is a 1999 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama as the second Pokémon feature-length film, complementing the Orange Islands saga of the series and featuring several new Pokémon, including Lugia and Slowking...
: Original character design - Pokémon 3: The MoviePokémon 3: The MoviePokémon 3: The Movie, originally released in Japan as , is a 2000 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama as the third feature-length Pokémon film. It was released in Japanese theaters on July 8, 2000, and the English adaptation, entitled Pokémon 3: Spell of the Unknown was released...
: Conceptual character artistArtistAn artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only... - Pokémon 4EverPokémon 4EverPokémon 4Ever: Celebi - Voice of the Forest, originally released in Japan as , is a 2001 Japanese anime film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama and based on the television series Pokémon. It is the fourth official Pokémon film. It was released in Japan on July 14, 2001. The film was directed in Japan by...
: Conceptual character artistArtistAn artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only... - Pokémon HeroesPokémon HeroesPokémon Heroes: Latios and Latias, originally released in Japan as , is a 2002 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama. It is the fifth film in the Pokémon series, complimenting Pokémon: Master Quest...
: Conceptual character artistArtistAn artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
Manga
- Quinty (Mendel PalaceMendel PalaceMendel Palace, originally released in Japan as , is a 1989 action/puzzle arcade game co-developed by Game Freak and KID. It was published in Japan by Namco and in North America by Hudson Soft. Mendel Palace was Game Freak's debut title, and the first game designed by Satoshi Tajiri.-Plot:The...
) - Jerry Boy (Smart BallSmart BallSmart Ball is an Action-adventure game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, known as in Japan. A sequel called was in production, but was never actually released.-Gameplay:...
) - Valkyrie no Bōken Gaiden: Futari no Megami (The Adventure of Valkyrie Gaiden: Two GoddessValkyrie no Boken: Toki no Kagi Densetsuis a video game software developed and published by Namco. It was released only in Japan for the Nintendo Famicom on August 1, 1986, and for the Wii's Virtual Console on March 20, 2007.-Plot:...
) - Screw Breaker Gōshin Dorirurero (Drill DozerDrill Dozeris an action platformer game for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance system, released in 2005 in Japan, and in 2006 in North America. It features a built-in rumble pack.- Story :...
) - Pokémon Fushigi no Danjon Toki no Tankentai Yami no Tankentai (Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of DarknessPokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darknessand are a matched pair of Pokémon games for the Nintendo DS. The two games were released in Japan on September 13, 2007, and were released in North America on April 20, 2008...
) - Shin Maido Osawagaseshimasu
Trivia
He is a self-declared SEGA fan, he is very fond of past SEGA consoles like the Master System, Mega Drive, Mega CD and SEGA Super 32XSega 32X
The Sega 32X, codenamed Project Mars, is an add-on for the Mega Drive/Genesis video game console by Sega. Its aim was to increase the lifespan of the aging Mega Drive/Genesis system, which was facing stiff competition from the SNES...
, known in America as the Sega 32X. His twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
account nickname (@Super_32X) evidences this fact and even himself has said this many times. His favorite videogame consoles are rather obscure, the SEGA Mark III (Master System) with the FM Sound Unit attached (Japan only) and the Super SEGA 32X.
External links
- Sugimori's blog(Japanese)
- Sugimori's twitter account (mostly Japanese)