"To mark the 30th anniversary of the original games, the Pokemon Company has been on an unprecedented promotional nostalgia trip for the entire month: there was a campaign where celebrities gushed about their favourite Pokemon, gifting us the memorable sight of Lady Gaga singing with a Jigglypuff, and Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen (great Game Boy Advance remakes of the original 1996 games) were rereleased on the Nintendo Switch."
"And yet I have been unmoved by most of this, even slightly annoyed by it. This is because, fundamentally, most of these Pokemon celebrations are just stuff. Expensive stuff, at that. I look at this 579.99 Lego set featuring Charizard, Venusaur and Blastoise and think: in this economy?"
"I am horribly aware I am now approaching the Peak Nostalgia period of my life, where every company will be trying to sell me things based on my childhood favourites to buy with my (theoretically) disposable income. My gen X friends all got suckered into giant Star Wars Lego sets, just as I am now being invited to dump my family's weekly food budget on an upmarket Pikachu hoodie."
Pokemon Company launched an unprecedented month-long promotional campaign for the franchise's 30th anniversary, including celebrity endorsements, game rereleases, museum pop-ups, theme parks, and high-fashion collaborations. Despite being the target demographic—a first-generation Pokemon fan approaching 40—the author expresses frustration with the celebration, viewing most offerings as overpriced merchandise rather than substantive experiences. The campaign exemplifies how corporations exploit nostalgia to sell expensive products to adults with disposable income, a pattern the author recognizes across generations, from Star Wars collectibles to luxury Pokemon items.
#nostalgia-marketing #consumer-culture #pokemon-anniversary #merchandise-commercialization #generational-targeting
Read at www.theguardian.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]