Ken Sugimori From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Ken Sugimori Native name 杉森 建 Born Sugimori Ken January 27, 1966 (age 52) Tokyo, Japan Nationality Japanese Known for Video game design Notable work Pokémon; Pulseman; Drill Dozer Ken Sugimori (杉森 建 Sugimori Ken) (born January 27, 1966 in Tokyo, Japan) is a Japanese video game designer, illustrator, manga artist, and director.[1] He is most famous as the character designer and art director for the Pokémon franchise. Sugimori is also credited with the art direction for other titles, including Pulseman.[2] Sugimori drew and finalized all of the original 151 Pokémon.[3] He has worked on the various Pokémon movies, trading cards, and other games like the Super Smash Bros. series. Contents 1 Career 1.1 Works 1.1.1 Video games 1.1.2 Card games 1.1.3 Anime 1.1.4 Manga 2 References 3 External links Career From early 1981 until 1986, Sugimori illustrated a gaming fanzine called Game Freak, which had been started by Satoshi Tajiri.[3] Sugimori discovered the magazine in a dōjinshi shop, and decided to get involved.[4] Eventually, the two decided to pitch an arcade game design idea to Namco; they reworked Game Freak into a development company and produced Mendel Palace.[5] Sugimori is most famous as the character designer and art director for the Pokémon franchise and designed the first 151 Pokémon with Atsuko Nishida, Motofumi Fujiwara, and Shigeki Morimoto. He has worked on the various Pokémon movies, trading cards, and other games. For Pokémon Black and White, Sugimori directed a team of 17 people in designing new characters for the games, though he always drew the final designs. He drew much of his inspiration from observing animals in aquariums and zoos.[6] Sugimori has also written and illustrated original manga, including one which was distributed with pre-orders of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness.[7] When he begins a new character, his process normally involves making a rough sketch, then tracing it onto film paper while polishing it and making the illustration more professional looking. After that, he draws the character many times, changing its proportions until he is satisfied.[8] Works Video games Pokémon series: art director and character designer Mendel Palace: character design Smart Ball: character design Jelly Boy 2 (canceled game): character designer Drill Dozer: director and game design Pulseman: character designer and artist BUSHI Seiryūden Futari no Yūsya:[citation needed] character design Tembo the Badass Elephant - advisor Card games Pokémon Trading Card Game: main card artist Anime Pokémon (anime): character design Pokémon: The First Movie: original character design Pokémon: The Movie 2000: original character design Pokémon 3: The Movie: conceptual character artist Pokémon 4Ever: conceptual character artist Pokémon Heroes: conceptual character artist Manga Quinty (Mendel Palace) Jerry Boy (Smart Ball) Valkyrie no Bōken Gaiden: Futari no Megami (The Adventure of Valkyrie Gaiden: Two Goddess) Screw Breaker Gōshin Dorirurero (Drill Dozer) Pokémon Fushigi no Danjon Toki no Tankentai Yami no Tankentai (Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness) Shin Maido Osawagaseshimasu