McDonald’s Japan Releases Limited-Edition Pokemon Summer Festival Toys

McDonald’s Japan has announced a new line of Pokemon-themed toys that will be available in Happy Meals starting August 11th. The toys are designed with traditional Japanese summer festivals in mind and feature festival versions of popular Pokemon characters.

Toys Pay Homage to Japanese Summer Traditions

The Pokemon Natsumatsuri Happy Set will include 8 different toy options split into 3 separate releases.

The first release, from August 11th-17th, will have 4 toys:

• Festival Pikachu Taiko – A Pikachu drum that makes different sounds when hit on the face or rim. Pikachu is dressed in traditional festival clothing.
• Poke Ball Chochin Lantern – A plastic Poke Ball that lights up and includes stickers. It is modeled after the paper lanterns seen at festivals.
• Yo-yo Fishing Game
• Ring Toss Game

The second release, from August 18th-24th, will include:

• Pikachu Target Shooting Set – A Pikachu-themed water gun
• Pikachu Uchiwa Fan
• Pinball Game
• Disc Fishing Game

The third release starting August 25th will allow customers to receive any of the 8 toys while supplies last.

Long-Running McDonald’s and Pokemon Partnership

McDonald’s and The Pokemon Company have collaborated multiple times over the years on Happy Meal promotions. This partnership dates back to 1998 with the original Pokemon Red and Blue games.

Given Pokemon’s enduring popularity in Japan, these summer festival toys make for a fitting promotion as the season comes to an end. It is unclear if the Pokemon Natsumatsuri Happy Set will be available outside of Japan.

The Pokemon festival toys provide a unique way for fans to celebrate summer traditions. While availability may be limited, the toys showcase the creative collaborations between major brands and pop culture icons.