Veteran Pokemon dev explains how Pokemon Go has elevated iconic franchise

We spoke with Eric Araki, Pokemon Go Country Manager for Brazil, discussing the evolution of the franchise since the 2000s and how PoGo continues to be a mainstream sensation around the whole world.

The Pokemon franchise has been a staple of the video game industry for decades, its focus on player experience is one of the foundations for why it has been a leading figure of the space for so long.

Eric Araki, a veteran of the franchise whose affiliation with Pokemon dates back to the print magazine in 2002, has seen the beloved IP evolve before his very eyes. 

Having built up his status in The Pokemon Company over two decades, Araki was approached by Niantic in 2023 to lead the Brazilian team and has been working as the Country Manager ever since.

During Gamescom LATAM, Dexerto sat down with Araki to chat about all things Pokemon Go as well as the globalization of the franchise as a whole. 

How the Pokemon community has grown worldwide

When reflecting on the differences between the Pokemon IP from then to now, the main distinction Araki highlighted was just how much more variety there is today.

“The only connections you had to Pokémon were the original games or the TCG,” he explained.

When discussing the emergence of a greater variety from the franchise, it would be remiss to not mention Pokemon Go. The mobile game is currently celebrating its 8-year anniversary, with global engagement only continuing to rise in new markets.

Pokemon Go has always been a juggernaut in Japan, the United States, and parts of Europe, however, the LATAM community and the Brazilian market are some of the leading regions in terms of growth.

Dubbed a “Pokemon celebrity in Brazil” by colleague and Head of Operations for Pokemon Go in LATAM, Alan Madujano, Akira has pioneered major change when it comes to the way in which Pokemon Go engages with local players.

Araki was quick to call the franchise’s evolution a “dream come true,” adding that he “would never have imagined something like this happening back then in the 2000s.” 

The Pokemon veteran described one moment early on in his career as a great indicator of how Pokemon was quickly becoming a global sensation, breaking away from its popularity in regions such as Japan and the United States.

“One of the greatest things I remember back then is creating the version of the Pokémon League for the VGC back then, so it was attached to the official magazine, and at one of the competitions we had we gathered about 400 people, coming from everywhere in Brazil to Sao Paulo to play in this competition. 

“It was really incredible back then and now we see the competitions with over 4,000 people playing. “ 

The role Pokemon Go plays

While Araki’s involvement in Pokemon dates back decades, his work on Pokemon Go in the past year has been a driving force in expanding the franchise’s reach to the region. LATAM’s competitive nature makes Pokemon Go the perfect experience for players to jump into.

“We’ve noticed that Latin America is very highly competitive. When it comes to usage of the PvP feature, you know the competitive aspect, Latin America, especially Brazil, and Mexico, are quite frequently on top of the world in terms of engagement.

​​”Over 80 celebrations in 65 cities and we gather around 220,000 people every month to play this event.” 

Pokemon Go’s unique challenges in the LATAM region

Araki also highlighted the unique challenges associated with the region, citing phone theft as a major obstacle for Niantic when furthering Pokemon Go engagement in Brazil and other parts of Latin America.

“One thing that we always talk a lot about is security matters, Sao Paulo is the city with the most cell phones stolen, about two cell phones stolen every minute. That’s a huge problem, especially when you have a game where people go out and play with cell phones.  

So one thing that we have been working hard at is getting havens for those players, we have been doing partnerships with more organizations to make sure they are safe and they can get around and do whatever they want.” 

Despite these challenges, the Pokemon Go community in LATAM is bigger than ever, so much so that Niantic revealed the largest in-person event the region had ever had will be arriving later in 2024.