Pokemon is introducing a new card game called Pokemon Taruka. The title is a play on a classic Japanese card game, and fans of the Pokemon franchise can get a look at what the card game consists of and how it’s played.
Pokemon card games are extraordinarily popular among the franchise’s fanbase. The Pokemon Trading Card Game has been wildly successful since its introduction in the 1990s, and it’s since spawned mobile takes, like Pokemon Trading Card Game Live and Pokemon Trading Card Game Pocket. This new card game, however, is strictly physical for now, and is quite unlike the standard Pokemon TCG.
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Pokemon is introducing its new Pokemon Taruka game, which is a variant of a classic Japanese card game called Karuta. Pokemon Taruka is, in essence, a matching game that’s played competitively. Three people are necessary for a match. One person has their own set of cards, referred to as a reading deck, while the standard cards are spread out on a table or floor in front of the two competitors. The dealer reads their own card, which the two players must then use to identify the card they need to grab from the collection in front of them. Whoever grabs the correct card first is the winner of that round.
Pokemon Taruka, as the name might imply, changes up the formula from the standard Karuta game. The title is spelled backwards in the Japanese writing system from the standard card game, going from Ka-ru-ta to Ta-ru-ka. It’s not just a naming convention, as the reader of the cards needs to read the cards backward, making it more difficult for the players and the dealer. The cards even cutely show the illustrations of the associated Pokemon dropped on their heads, with some of them looking quite uncomfortable and grumpy at their orientation. The Pokemon Company has shared a video demonstrating how it’s played, albeit in Japanese.
Pokemon Taruka will start appearing in Pokemon Center stores on July 19, 2025. As the cards are written entirely in Japanese, and the Pokemon names are also their Japanese versions, it’s highly unlikely that these cards will be available in Pokemon Center stores outside of Japan. Those who aren’t fluent in the language would need a translated version, and given Karuta isn’t extremely popular or well-known outside of Japan, that seems unlikely. Players who want them to play or collect will likely either need to go to Japan or purchase them from a reseller.
October 16, 2025
Pokemon
October 16, 2025
October 16, 2025
