Pokémon is once again expanding its universe with a brand-new physical card game — Pokémon Taruka. Inspired by the traditional Japanese game Karuta, this creative twist blends cultural heritage with the franchise’s signature charm, offering fans a totally different experience from the Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG).
Unlike previous mobile spinoffs such as Pokémon TCG Live or Pokémon TCG Pocket, Pokémon Taruka is strictly a physical game — and a unique one at that.
🎴 What is Pokémon Taruka?
Pokémon Taruka draws directly from Karuta, a classic Japanese card game that involves quick reflexes, sharp memory, and poetic listening. In the original version, a “reader” reads from a deck of cards, and two competing players race to identify and grab the correct matching card from an array laid out in front of them.
Pokémon Taruka follows a similar format — but with a twist:
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The game requires three participants: one dealer (reader) and two competitors.
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The dealer reads from a special deck, while the other cards are arranged face-up in front of the players.
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Players race to grab the correct Pokémon card as it’s read aloud.
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The twist? The cards are read backward, both in name and pronunciation, thanks to the “Taruka” (reverse of “Karuta”) theme.
🔄 What Makes Pokémon Taruka Different?
The backward-reading mechanic is more than a gimmick. It significantly raises the difficulty for all players — especially the dealer, who must learn to reverse the pronunciation of Pokémon names when reading their deck. The result? A hilarious and chaotic game full of laughs, confusion, and intense competition.
To complement this change:
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The Pokémon illustrations are also upside-down, showing characters looking disoriented or even comically grumpy.
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The game maintains its match-and-swipe mechanics but adds a layer of puzzle-solving that traditional Karuta doesn’t include.
📺 Gameplay Preview and Launch Details
The Pokémon Company has already shared a gameplay demonstration video (available here), showing how Taruka is played — albeit entirely in Japanese. While no international release has been confirmed yet, the game has stirred curiosity and praise from fans across the globe for its creativity and cultural homage.
🧠 Why Pokémon Taruka Matters
With Pokémon Taruka, Pokémon is doing more than just creating another collectible — it’s introducing fans to a piece of Japanese culture through a reimagined lens. The physical-only nature of the game invites families and friends to gather, play, and engage with Pokémon in a refreshingly analog way.
If you’re a longtime fan of the series or a lover of traditional Japanese games, Pokémon Taruka might be your next must-play tabletop obsession.
Pokémon continues to evolve beyond video games and trading cards, now experimenting with culturally rooted games like Karuta — and flipping them upside-down. Literally. Pokémon Taruka is clever, fun, and uniquely Japanese, proving that even after decades of dominance, the franchise still has new cards to play.