Watch How 'Pokémon' Trading Cards are Made
A start-to-finish look at the process of creating a booster set.
Pokémon TCG fansite PokéBeach recently shared an internal video made for employees of The Pokémon Company and Millennium Print Group card manufacturer showing how cards are made. The start-to-finish look at the process of creating a booster set begins with spreadsheets of names and move sets sent over from OCG Japanese card makers. The information lists are translated into English and meticulously cross-checked for clarity.
The names, move sets, and artwork is then placed on templates in Adobe Suite before being printed and checked for errors. Upon approval, full art cards are then created with textures created from scratch, the entire process takes around three weeks to complete.
The sets are then translated into other languages and dropped onto a CD which is then sent to the printers at Millennium Print Group. Proof sheets are printed to check coloring, and once adjustments are made master plates are created. The master plates are used on the 120 feet long $8.5 million USD printing presses that produce 26.62 million Pokemon cards per day on 121 card sheets. Holofoil cards are printed separately using laminated holofoil card stock. Machines are then used to create the signature edges and employees check for quality manually periodically.
The video finishes off by showing how set packaging and booster pack artwork is created before cards are sorted and packaged to set off into the market.
Watch how Pokémon trading cards are made above.
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