The following is part of our 25-day Holiday Countdown Calendar! Every day from December 1st through the 25th, we’re posting a cool game history treat, daily updates from the VGHF, giveaways, and more! To make sure you don’t miss a day, sign up for our email list:
This is all part of our annual Winter Fundraiser donation drive, where we ask those who are able to generously give what they can so that we can continue thriving. If you’re able to make an additional one-time charitable contribution, this really is the best time to do so, as your donations will be DOUBLED thanks to a generous group of sponsors! Head on over to gamehistory.org/donate to learn more and give today.
It was 1999, and Pokémon hype was in full swing. Pokémon Red and Blue were earning rave reviews in the United States. The second Pokémon movie had just been released in Japan. And Nintendo was almost ready to launch the next entries in the series, Gold and Silver.
Today, we’re taking a field trip to the white-hot center of Pokémania: Space World 1999!
Space World was an event Nintendo used to run in Japan where they’d showcase their newest games and hardware. These photos from our archives show off the huge Pokémon presence at Space World ‘99, including one very cuddly Meowth who looks a little overwhelmed by everyone who wants to hug him.
Today’s Sponsor
Today’s sponsor is StudioMDHR! This indie studio is the brainchild behind Cuphead, a run & gun platformer with a retro animation aesthetic.
…are we really explaining Cuphead? You know what Cuphead is.
They’ve offered to DOUBLE every dollar put toward our goal this year, up to an incredible $10,000! As I write this we’re still pretty far from our goal, so if you’ve been waiting to give this year, this would be a really great time. Producing content like this takes a lot of effort, and if you’re able this year, we could really use your support.
The Space World events have become legendary among Pokémon fans for being one of the first places where Pokémon Gold and Silver were shown off in public. Event photos like these can give historians a first-hand look into what it was like to be there.
But we’ll never know for ourselves just how cuddly that Meowth was.
You can see tomorrow’s post right now!
Members of our Patreon who support us at $5 or more per month get to travel through time and see our daily calendar entries one day early! Christmas comes early for our beloved team of time bandits! Memberships at higher tiers also include access to our Discord community, monthly hangout calls with VGHF staff, and more!
Coming tomorrow: A gallery of contemporary character artwork from Mega Man Legends that, as far as we know, is new to the internet. You don’t find gorgeous “lost” art like this from a beloved game very often!