These are small cards
You mean specifically about this part of the page?
Various GB Pocket Card ‘punch-out’ sheets have been found and it is unclear if these sheets were available as vending products to consumers, were early prototypes, or if they were examples of the factory or retail process before the product was packaged into the Gashapon capsules.
Some of these ‘punch-out’ sheets include holographic BG Pocket Cards with no printing on the backs and plastic Transparent versions.
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GB Mini Pocket Cards. I worked with a guy named Galactic Muffin to research these things and he eventually made a wiki page. There’s still a lot to find out about them but this is the most comprehensive info we have so far:
Edit: Nevermind. I realized you also shared the link in your original post. XD
If there’s any questions you have, let me know but it won’t be much more than what we compiled here.
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I have an attribute that goes with these, it it a sort of pokedex outline, but these things go inside and you can push them out one by one with a button on the pokedex. I dont know if it is official, but I will try to make a picture when I find it again.
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Ok thanks, so it seems that they are niche.
I’ve only seen the Gameboys and Nintendo 64s. There are also Folders that came from Gen 2 (haven’t found Gen 1 folders) currently not pictured. Let us know if you find the Pokedex as that would be a really neat find.
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It’s them again! Kyodo!
SCREAM IN GASHAPON
Amazing resource, thank you!
I just got a bunch of these as part of a lot of Menkos I ordered from Japan.
Do you happen to have a list of all the mini cards available in the the Base set one (purple background)?
Looking a bit on marketplaces listings, it looks like every 150 first Pokemon are there, and that each seem to be available both in regular and foil versions?
Thanks!
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Some info I have:
Translated by Google Gemini.
Main Section (Left and Center):
Logo (Green and White): ポケットモンスター (Poketto Monsutā) - Pocket Monsters
Large White Text: GBポケットカードアニメバージョン (GB Poketto Kādo Anime Bājon) - GB Pocket Card Animation Version
Smaller English Text: POCKET MONSTERS GB POCKET CARD ANIMATION VERSION (already in English)
Large Yellow Text: 全160種類 (Zen hyaku rokujū shurui) - All 160 Types / Total 160 Kinds
Line with blue dot, next to Pikachu box image: ● ボックス4種類 (Bokkusu yon shurui) - 4 Types of Boxes
Line with blue dot, next to Mewtwo card image: ● カード160種類 (Kādo hyaku rokujū shurui) - 160 Types of Cards
Line with blue dot, next to Game Boy viewer image: ● 本体5色 (Hontai go shoku) - Main unit available in 5 colors (or “5 colors for the main unit”)
Yellow oval at the bottom: 対象年令6才以上 (Taishō nenrei roku sai ijō) - Target age: 6 years and older
Bottom line (center): ゲームボーイ。は任天堂の商標です。(Gēmu Bōi. wa Nintendō no shōhyō desu.) - Game Boy. is a trademark of Nintendo.
©Nintendo・CREATURES・GAME FREAK・TV TOKYO・SHOPRO・JR KIKAKU (Standard copyright, mostly English/Romanized)
In summary, it describes the “GB Pocket Card Animation Version” product line, stating there are 160 types of cards in total, 4 types of boxes, and the card viewer (shaped like a Game Boy) comes in 5 colors.
I also want to mention, the pack (backs) says:
Main text below Blastoise (White): GBポケットカードアニメバージョン (GB Poketto Kādo Anime Bājon) - GB Pocket Card Anime Version
Smaller text below that (White): プリズムカード (シールタイプ) 入り (Purizumu kādo (shīru taipu) iri) - Includes Prism Cards (Sticker Type)
Logo (Green and White, next to Pikachu): ポケットモンスター (Poketto Monsutā) - Pocket Monsters
Main Title (Red and White): GBポケットカードベストシーンセレクション (GB Poketto Kādo Besuto Shīn Serekushon) - GB Pocket Card Best Scene Selection
Smaller English Text Below: POCKET MONSTERS GB POCKET CARD BEST SCENE SELECTION (already in English)
Large Yellow Text: 全56種類 (Zen gojūroku shurui) - All 56 Types / Total 56 Kinds
Line with blue dot, next to film strip box images: ● ボックス4種類 (Bokkusu yon shurui) - 4 Types of Boxes
Line with blue dot, next to cards showing anime scenes: ● カード56種類 (Kādo gojūroku shurui) - 56 Types of Cards
Line with blue dot, next to Game Boy viewer image: ● 本体5色 (Hontai go shoku) - Main unit available in 5 colors (or “5 colors for the main unit”)
Yellow oval at the bottom: 対象年令6才以上 (Taishō nenrei roku sai ijō) - Target age: 6 years and older
Bottom line (center): ゲームボーイ。は任天堂の商標です。(Gēmu Bōi. wa Nintendō no shōhyō desu.) - Game Boy. is a trademark of Nintendo.
©Nintendo・CREATURES・GAME FREAK・TV TOKYO・SHOPRO・JR KIKAKU (Standard copyright, mostly English/Romanized)
Logo: ポケットモンスター (Poketto Monsutā) - Pocket Monsters
Main Title: GBPカードコレクション2 (Jī Bī Pī Kādo Korekushon Tsū) - GBP Card Collection 2
- (GBP likely stands for “Game Boy Pocket” given the viewer’s design)
Left side, under title:
▼カード 49種類 (Kādo yonjūkyū shurui) - ▼ 49 Types of Cards
(Image of red Game Boy viewer with a Lugia card)
対象年令6才以上 (Taishō nenrei roku sai ijō) - Target age: 6 years and older
Middle, under title:
▼ボックス4種類 (Bokkusu yon shurui) - ▼ 4 Types of Boxes
(Image of a card box featuring Ho-Oh)
▲本体5色 (Hontai go shoku) - ▲ Main unit 5 colors
Right side, under title:
▼カードホルダー4種類 (Kādo Horudā yon shurui) - ▼ 4 Types of Card Holders
(Image of a card box featuring Alakazam)
Text above the film strip of cards: ホルダーに入れた状態で勝ち抜き戦が出来るぞ!! (Horudā ni ireta jōtai de kachinukisen ga dekiru zo!!) - You can have elimination battles with the cards in the holder!!
Text below the film strip of cards: 最大10枚対10枚でポイント勝負できます。(Saidai jūmai tai jūmai de pointo shōbu dekimasu.) - You can have a point battle with up to 10 vs 10 cards.
Bottom line of this section: ゲームボーイ。は任天堂の登録商標です。(Gēmu Bōi. wa Nintendō no tōroku shōhyō desu.) - Game Boy. is a registered trademark of Nintendo.
©Nintendo・CREATURES・GAME FREAK・TV TOKYO・SHOPRO・JR KIKAKU (Standard copyright)
発売元 株式会社 共同 (Hatsubaimoto Kabushikigaisha Kyōdō) - Seller: Kyodo Co., Ltd.
〒131 東京都墨田区東駒形2-29-12 (Tōkyō-to Sumida-ku Higashi-Komagata 2-29-12) - Address
ST 0
(社)日本玩具協会 ((Sha) Nippon Gangu Kyōkai) - (Incorporated Association) Japan Toy Association
東京都墨田区東駒形4-22-4 (Tōkyō-to Sumida-ku Higashi-Komagata 4-22-4) - Address
玩具安全基準合格 (Gangu Anzen Kijun Gōkaku) - Toy Safety Standard Passed
4947122 00023 4 (Product/standard code)
Main Logo/Title Section (Top Left):
ポケットモンスター (Poketto Monsutā) - Pocket Monsters
(Smaller English: POCKET MONSTERS™)
GBポケットカード総集編 (GB Poketto Kādo Sōshūhen) - GB Pocket Card Final Collection
(Smaller English: GB POCKET CARD FINAL COLLECTION)
(Images of Blastoise, Charizard, Venusaur in circles)
Product Feature Points (Center to Right):
● ボックス4種類 (Bokkusu yon shurui) - ● 4 Types of Boxes
- (Next to image of a Pikachu card)
● カード151種類 (Kādo hyaku gojūichi shurui) - ● 151 Types of Cards
- (Next to image of a Charizard card box)
● 本体5色 (Hontai go shoku) - ● Main unit 5 colors
- (Next to image of a grey Game Boy viewer with Mew on screen)
Bottom Teal Strip:
Left: 対象年令6才以上 (Taishō nenrei roku sai ijō) - Target age: 6 years and older
Right: ゲームボーイ。は任天堂の商標です。(Gēmu Bōi. wa Nintendō no shōhyō desu.) - Game Boy. is a trademark of Nintendo.
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I was looking at the versions shown in the ’ Pikachu Always Together’ book published way back on 20th of September, 1998 .
Which shows three of them, one being the animation version @Orannge has been seeking information on (can be seen in the middle at the bottom on the right).
However, I have seen a clear view of one of the inserts from the toy. This one has the Japanese ST 4 (safety toy mark) .
As some of you know, that ‘4’ signifies compliance with safety standards for the year 2004, in the context of pokemon.
- 1997
- 1998
- 1999
- 2000
- 2001
- 2002
- 2003
- 2004
Initially, this 8-year gap seemed a bit odd for a gacha-style toy. I couldn’t understand why a toy released around 1998 would be licensed so much later:
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The ST Mark (Safety Toy Mark) indicates the year of the safety standard it meets. So, ‘ST 4’ means it met 2004 standards.
-
The crucial piece of information: Japanese ST certifications are typically only valid for two years. If a company wants to keep selling an older toy design, they must get it re-tested and re-certified to the current standards.
If toys have been accepted and approved in a ST Standard Conformity Test
conducted by Designated Testing Bodies, such result shall remain in effect for
two (2) years from the date of acceptance at the Test.
- Therefore, the most likely scenario is that this particular release of the toy is from a later production run, manufactured (and re-certified) in or around 2004. The design and release is from the '98-era, but this specific item was released later.
But why would they bother re-certifying or doing new production runs of an older gacha toy?
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Cost-Effectiveness of Existing Tooling: For the manufacturer (Kyodo Co. Ltd.), re-using the existing molds and tooling for an old, proven design is significantly cheaper than developing entirely new products. If there’s still demand, it’s an easy win.
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Selling Off Old Stock: It’s also possible they had a large amount of unsold stock from the initial Pokémon boom. To legally sell these through mainstream outlets, items beyond the initial 2-year certification window (perhaps even re-applying for certification a couple of times if stock was substantial), they would need to get them re-certified with the current ST mark. The paper insert with the ST 4 mark would have been added at this later stage. We know that at some point, some of these GB cards, were sold in some capacity as dead stock.
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Sustained Popularity: If it was a “hit” gacha item, the manufacturer would have incentive to keep it available.
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Selling in Parallel: It’s quite common for popular “classic” gacha items to be sold in machines alongside newer series. So, this line might have been available at the same time as brand new releases were happening.
So, while the 2-year re-certification rule is a strong technical reason for the 2004 ST mark, the other factors might explain why the company would choose to continue producing, re-certifying, and having kept them on the market.
There’s always some mystery.
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