Hironobu Yoshida

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Hironobu Yoshida (left) with Junichi Masuda

Hironobu Yoshida (Japanese: 吉田宏信) is a graphic designer who has been involved with several aspects of the Pokémon franchise for many years. Yoshida has been with Game Freak since 1997 and has had a hand in the development of the majority of main series Pokémon games, both as a graphic and Pokémon designer. Pokémon he is known to have designed include Wobbuffet, Dunsparce, Celebi, Deoxys and Magmortar. He is credited in several of the Pokémon movies within the character design department and has illustrated a handful of cards for the Pokémon Trading Card Game. He also designed the main art for the 2007 and 2011 World Championships.

Additionally, he created an array of unique characters and lent his voice to some of them for the Game Boy Advance game Drill Dozer, another Game Freak title directed by fellow Pokémon designer Ken Sugimori in 2005.

He has also branched into other media, performing a live-action version of the Poké Dude Show (an in-game tutorial featured in Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen), dressing up as Primo, the Poké Dude, and giving advice on how to do various things in the Pokémon games. He reprises this role in the song Teach Me! Older Brother, in which he engages a group of children in the same manner as the in-game character and provides the main vocals.

Works

Games

Title Platform Date Position
Pokémon Yellow Version Game Boy 1998 Pokémon Design
Pokémon Gold and Silver Versions Game Boy Color 1999 Pokémon Design
Pokémon Crystal Version Game Boy Color 2000 Pokémon Design/Pokémon Animation/Graphics Design
Pokémon Stadium 2 Nintendo 64 2000 Original Character Design
Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire Versions Game Boy Advance 2002 Main Graphic Designer/Pokémon & Graphic Designer
Pokémon Box Ruby & Sapphire Nintendo GameCube 2003 Designer
Pokémon Channel Nintendo GameCube 2003 Conceptual Character Design
Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Versions Game Boy Advance 2004 Graphic Designer/Pokémon Designer
Pokémon Emerald Version Game Boy Advance 2004 Graphic Designer/Pokémon Designer
Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness Nintendo GameCube 2005 Pokémon Character Design
Drill Dozer Game Boy Advance 2005 Character Design/Graphic Design/Additional Voices
Pokémon Diamond and Pearl Versions Nintendo DS 2006 Graphic Design/Pokémon Design
Pokémon Platinum Version Nintendo DS 2008 Graphic Design/Pokémon Design
Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver Versions Nintendo DS 2009 Pokémon Design
Pokémon Black and White Versions Nintendo DS 2010 Pokémon Design/2-D Graphic Design (lead)/Battle Graphic Design

Animation

Title Date Position
Pikachu & Pichu 2001 Conceptual Character Artist
Spell of the Unown 2001 Animation Producer
Pikachu's PikaBoo 2001 Conceptual Character Artist
Pokémon Heroes 2002 Conceptual Character Artist
Jirachi: Wish Maker 2003 Conceptual Character Artist
Destiny Deoxys 2004 Conceptual Character Artist
The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon 2006 Conceptual Character Artist
The Rise of Darkrai 2007 Original Character Design
Giratina and the Sky Warrior 2008 Original Character Design
Arceus and the Jewel of Life 2009 Conceptual Character Artist

Music

Title Album Date Label
Teach Me! Older Brother Pokémon FireRed & Pokémon LeafGreen: Super Music Collection 2004 Msi Music, Super D

Work for the TCG

Yoshida's art style has changed noticeably since his first illustrations. Originally, his style was very similar to that of Ken Sugimori, using light shades of color. He was still experimenting during this time, as his Wobbuffet from Neo Discovery and Murkrow from Neo Revelation are noticeably different, having much more defined outlines and solid areas of color. By Expedition Base Set, Yoshida had changed to giving his illustrations more tone definition and using much heavier outlines. He has continued to use this style in the few illustrations he has done since then. For a list of cards he has illustrated, go here.

He also appeared in a photograph on the card Poké Dude, dress as the Poké Dude.