The first set in the Pokémon Frienda Best Tag series was released on July 10, 2025. It consisted of 76 Frienda Picks and was the sixth set overall.
Information
Emulating the release structure of Pokémon Mezastar, the first set of the Best Tag series introduced a new mechanic to Pokémon Frienda: Tag Moves (Japanese: タッグわざ), which allowed two Pokémon to attack simultaneously. Viable Frienda Picks display a Pokémon's tag partner on the obverse and detail the move it can use on the reverse. The tapered edge of these Frienda Picks also features a Tag Move mark alongside the Pokémon's move type icon. If a player used one of these Frienda Picks during gameplay, Tag Move Chance! (Japanese: タッグわざチャンス！) would trigger when the Pokémon attacked for the first time. During this phase, the player was presented with a graphic that contained moving icons of the Pokémon and their tag partner. If the player pressed both console buttons while the icons were in the blue area, they would then be presented with an Attack Roulette for each Pokémon. The bonuses attained from the roulettes would then be added together and applied before the two Pokémon attacked. Players could press the console buttons during the animations to generate stars as they could with a standard attack. Four Pokémon supported the mechanic in this set: Meganium, Typhlosion, Feraligatr, and Nidoking.
More Pokémon supported the Mega Evolution mechanic in this set, after several Wonder Picks debuted it in the previous set. These comprised Grade 5 Super Treasure Pokémon Gengar, Gyarados, and Lucario, plus Grade 4 Treasure Pokémon Heracross, Sableye, and Mawile. Established powered-up mechanics continued to be supported in this set, with a Grade 5 Gallade, a Grade 5 Hydrapple, and a Grade 4 Pikachu able to Terastallize, as well as a Grade 5 Jirachi and a Grade 4 Weavile able to use Z-Moves. Other Super Treasure Pokémon in this set included Mewtwo, Solgaleo, and Lunala, which served as the set's focal Pokémon alongside Mega Lucario, as well as the Mythical PokémonPecharunt.
As the first set of a new series, all upgraded Pokémon Frienda machines featured updated UI graphics. The main hub environment moved from a jungle setting to a beach setting, and the Captain's attire changed to a more holiday-inspired look. Frienda Picks themselves also featured different background artwork. Three bonus features were added in this set, the first of which was Tag Bonus! (Japanese: タッグボーナス！), which could modify certain gameplay mechanics when an adjacent station was in use:
If Pursuit Chance! activated, a Trainer icon would occupy a fail space on the Pursuit Roulette. If selected, a Pokémon belonging to the player on the adjacent station would be summoned to attack.
During Catch Time, all of the Poké Balls on the Ball Roulette would have a chance to change into Master Balls, guaranteeing the capture of all Pokémon present.
The second feature was Weekly Stamp (Japanese: ウィークリースタンプ), a reward system to encourage regular play. From the launch of the set until September 17, 2025, players who scanned their Trainer Pick at least once would earn a stamp. If that player scanned a Trainer Pick with the same profile in a subsequent week before the deadline, they would earn another stamp. Accumulating multiple stamps would unlock different rewards:
The Grass Scope (Japanese: くさむらスコープ) was a new item that could reveal a hidden Pokémon in Bonus! Catch Time. The Super Treasure Sensor (Japanese: スーパートレジャーセンサー) was a returning item that could reveal the Super Treasure Pokémon a player would face in a Climax Battle during Battle and Catch! mode. Players with Trainer Picks could also obtain this earlier into the set's run if they recorded activity between July 12 and 18, 2025. The effect of the Super Treasure Sensor would remain active for eight days inclusive of the day it was obtained.
The third feature was Energy Bonus! (Japanese: げんきボーナス！), which replaced the Perfect Bonus! from the first series. Instead of requiring players to interact with the touchscreen at the start of Battle and Catch! mode, an attack bonus was automatically applied to one of the player's Pokémon after being brought into battle. The Energy Bonus! was also automatically applied to the Attack Roulette, where applicable.
Two more Frienda Circle Present Campaign lotteries were held over the course of this set's operation. The first was open between July 10 and August 13, 2025; the second was open between August 14 and September 10, 2025. Players with Trainer Picks and a linked Frienda Circle account would earn 10 points for every Frienda Pick dispensed. During each lottery period, they could spend 100 points on the Frienda Circle campaign page in attempt to win, and could do so as many times as they were able either until the end of the period or until all prizes had been claimed. Accumulated points could be used in any lottery period, but could not be carried over from a previous set's campaign or to a subsequent one. Players that won a prize were required to submit their details by September 17, 2025. Each lottery offered 250 copies of a golden door keychain, 250 copies of a Pokémon Frienda logo keychain, and 250 copies of a Frienda Box Gold Version. The prizes were distributed at random—those for the first lottery were scheduled to be shipped in late August 2025; those for the second were scheduled to be shipped in early October 2025.[1]
The Legendary Wings Tag Challenge (Japanese: でんせつのつばさタッグチャレンジ) event began on updated machines on July 31, 2025, during which players could obtain Wonder Picks depicting Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres. During the Catch Time or Last! Catch Time phases of Battle and Catch! mode, a Wonder Pick notice could appear underneath the prompt to insert currency while both stations on a machine were in use. This indicated a Wonder Tag Battle (Japanese: ワンダータッグバトル) could occur if a player chose to capture a Pokémon. If a Wonder Tag Battle was triggered, the player on each station could opt to take part. If both players selected to take part, they would challenge one of the legendary birds in a Treasure Tag Battle; if only one player took part, they would challenge it in a Climax Battle without the cooperative features. The Wonder Picks could also be obtained in Catch now! mode. Players with Trainer Picks would unlock an Articuno, Zapdos, or Moltres-themed outfit Dress-up Item upon dispensing the relevant Wonder Pick for the first time; they would also unlock a photograph on their Frienda Circle home page for each one caught.[2]
Legacy Picks (Japanese: レガシーピック) depicting high-Grade Pokémon from past sets were introduced in this set. Starting August 14, 2025, Legacy Pick marks could randomly appear in the middle of the screen when stations were in use, indicating that a Legacy Pokémon could be encountered. In Battle and Catch! mode, a Legacy Pokémon could suddenly appear at the start of a round and take the place of an opposing Pokémon. Legacy Pokémon also had a chance of being captured in Catch now! mode. Legacy Picks feature an "L" in place of the original Frienda Pick's obverse collection number, are gold in color, and have embossed gold foil detailing on their artwork. Koraidon, Miraidon, and Ogerpon were the Legacy Picks available at this time.[3]
A digital Kleavor Support Pokémon Ticket was available to Frienda Circle members that logged in while this set was in operation; digital tickets featuring the final Evolutions of the Paldea first partner Pokémon could also be redeemed at different events held during the set's duration. A ticket for Flutter Mane was also present on the Best Tag set 1 promotional pamphlet, which could be downloaded from the official Pokémon Frienda website.
Physical Support Pokémon Tickets were included in an array of Shogakukan publications. Six tickets depicting Gengar, Vaporeon, Tinkaton, Salamence, Garganacl, and Iron Hands were also distributed at various events throughout the Best Tag series. These were first given away at the CoroCoro Spirit Festival in Tokyo Toy Show 2025 on August 30 and 31, 2025.[4] The next event to distribute these tickets was the Frienda Camp Exploration Tour, which visited all ten Frienda Camps over the space of ten months:[5]
Namco arcade at ÆON Mall Hiroshima Fuchu, Hiroshima on the weekend of September 20 and 21, 2025
Namco arcade at the Sapporo Factory Store, Sapporo on the weekend of October 11 and 12, 2025
Molly Fantasy at the Itami Konyo shopping center, Itami on the weekend of November 8 and 9, 2025
Molly Fantasy at ÆON Mall Kashiwa, Kashiwa on the weekend of December 6 and 7, 2025
These tickets were available again at Pokémon Centers that hosted the Pokémon Frienda Exploration Tour:[6]
Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo on December 27, 2025
Pokémon Center Nagoya on January 11, 2026
Pokémon Center Osaka DX and Pokémon Center Okinawa on January 25, 2026
Available through Frienda Circle from July 10, 2025
The three Trainer Battle opponents in this set consisted of Farmer Natsuki, Kendo Practitioner Taichi, and Master Friender Idein. Players with Trainer Picks that defeated an opponent would unlock a Dress-up Item based on their attire. Defeating all three opponents would also unlock a set-specific Frienda Charm. Players that managed to clear all three challenges for each opponent would unlock another Dress-up Item. The target scores for the score challenges were as follows:
270,000 points for Farmer Natsuki
320,000 points for Kendo Practitioner Taichi
370,000 points for Master Friender Idein
Between August 21 and September 17, 2025, players could challenge Master Friender Rosalie in an online ranked event. This battle could be initiated by touching the event banner on the title screen and inserting ¥100 after the prompt. Players that managed to defeat Rosalie would receive an event-exclusive Frienda Charm. Those with the top 100 scores following the end of the event would become eligible for a certificate, which could be applied for through Frienda Circle.[16]
The Captain could also be faced as a special opponent in Challenge the Captain! Celebi Battle! (Japanese: キャプテンにちょうせん！セレビィバトル), which could be played for the first time at events held while this set was in operation. The CoroCoro Spirit Festival in Tokyo Toy Show 2025 was first event to host this challenge. Only children of junior high school age and below were eligible to play.[4] The next set of events included the Frienda Camp Exploration Tour, as mentioned above, and store-specific events held on weekends between November 1 and 24, 2025. Players that managed to defeat the Captain were given a certificate; if those players had a Trainer Pick, they would also unlock a Frienda Charm on Frienda Circle.[5][17] All Challenge the Captain! Celebi Battle! participants would receive a copy of a promotionalCelebi Frienda Pick after the battle, regardless of the outcome.
