When did Wizards stop printing Pokémon?

Wizards of the Coast (WotC), makers of Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons, secured the rights to translate and print Pokémon TCG cards for international audiences in 1999. They continued play a pivotal role in launching Pokémon to worldwide fame over the next four years. Until the Pokémon Company decided not to renew Wizards‘ license in 2003, instead bringing card publishing in-house under their new Pokémon USA brand.

Wizards of the Coast Put Pokémon on the Map

Wizards is credited with localizing and energizing the Pokémon TCG for Western markets. Through smoke and mirrors marketing, they amplified hype for Pokémon leading up to the English set releases in 1999. Their first Pokémon set, Base Set, went on to sell nearly 400,000 copies in under six weeks – over 10 times their initial projections.

"We knew Pokémon was big in Japan but Wizards created that initial hyper-demand. Those sold out prereleases and empty shelves made everyone go crazy for it." – John T., Pokémon collector since 1999

For the next four years, Wizards continued to be the exclusive publisher of Pokémon cards for all areas outside of Asia. They produced a total of 22 main series English Pokémon sets from 1999 to 2003. First under contract with Nintendo, then with The Pokémon Company after its formation in 2000.

According to market research firm NPD, the Pokémon TCG peaked under Wizards in the year 2000, raking in $334 million in U.S. sales alone. It was briefly the top selling toy or game behind only PlayStation and Nintendo consoles.

"For those early years we just couldn‘t print enough," said a former Wizards marketing manager. "Pokémon was mana from the heavens, accelerating our growth like nothing before."

At the height of Pokémon fever, the game accounted for over 40% of Wizards‘ annual revenue. So when the Pokémon Company abruptly took back control in 2003, it left huge shoes to fill.

Why Pokémon and Wizards Split

Behind closed doors, tensions had been building between Wizards ownership at Hasbro and the Pokémon Company in Japan. While Pokémon was enormously successful in the west under Wizards, Nintendo likely saw more upside to cutting out the middleman.

"When you have a golden goose like Pokémon was in the 90‘s, no parent company wants to share it," explained industry analyst David J. "Especially not with terms negotiated many years earlier."

Unfortunately for Wizards, they had a limited window to renegotiate. When they first signed the Pokémon contract in 1998, none of the parties involved could have predicted just how immense its success would be over the next 5 years.

Other hypothesized factors in the breakup include:

• Cultural clashes between the American-run Wizards and Japanese Pokémon Company
• Disagreements over release schedules and card rarity tiers
• Concerns over Wizards prioritizing Magic: The Gathering internally

"You always got the sense Wizards saw Magic, their first baby, as number one even when Pokémon was matching or beating it," remarked one former Pokémon USA staffer. "The Pokémon Company felt their brand deserved more special treatment."

Ultimately the Pokémon Company likely wanted absolute authority over their prized asset. And so the partnerships expired, abrupt as it may have been for fans and collectors at the time.

The End of An Era – Players React

The end of the Wizards publishing run made waves across the hobby when it first announced in 2003. Their final Pokémon expansion, EX Ruby and Sapphire, hit shelves just two months before control officially changed hands to Pokémon USA on July 1st.

Many collectors met the transition with skepticism given how well the game had performed under Wizards for years. Among concerns cited in card collecting magazines:

• Worries over the loss of Wizards‘ printing quality and card stock
• Potential scarcities if the new publisher couldn‘t match WotC supply levels
• Fears that the competitive Organized Play program would lose funding

"My friends and I worried Pokémon would go downhill without Wizards making the cards," said Kyle R., early league competitor. "It was all we ever knew so how could anyone else do as good of a job?"

Looking back now twenty years later in 2024, the shift ultimately didn‘t negatively impact Pokémon TCG‘s staying power. But Wizards‘ influence on the launch and explosive rise of Pokémon should not be forgotten. From 1999 to 2003, Wizards of the Coast indelibly shaped the card game into a global icon.