In recent days, rumors about the next generation of Pokémon, supposedly called Winds & Waves, have sparked discussions about cost. According to leaks, the budget is allegedly around $20 million (3 billion yen) — extremely low for a game of this scale.
But former marketing executives at Nintendo of America, Keith Ellis and Krista Yang, clarified that the figures reflect only part of the expenses. They noted:
"These data relate only to game development. And the total budget also includes advertising campaigns and PR, which are of great importance for Pokémon."
Yang added that while working at Nintendo, she did not have access to development budgets, but she knows about the scale of advertising investments:
"For Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, marketing is critical. This includes not only videos and events, but also a constant network of promotions: anime, collectible cards, merchandise, Pokémon GO, and international collaborations."
These factors make the real budget of the game significantly higher than the $20 million that leaked online.
Ellis and Yang emphasized that calling Pokémon Winds & Waves "low-budget" is wrong. The real costs include a global promotion strategy that ensures Pokémon remains the focus of fans around the world.
