Pokémon & Nintendo Switch Record Year Wasn’t Enough to Win No. 1 Spot in New 2025 Rankings

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Both Nintendo and Pokémon had a very successful 2025, thanks to the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 and the popular game Pokémon Legends Z-A, which both sold extremely well. However, a recent ranking in Japan shows that newer companies are growing faster in terms of brand value – even in Japan itself.

A leading entertainment and business analysis platform recently shared an update on Pokémon‘s success. They used a special ranking system to measure the brand’s value, considering annual sales, fan engagement, and how much time people spend with the franchise.

The company uses this information to create a single score that measures how popular and engaging different entertainment franchises are for fans. Recent data from over 330,000 people, analyzed for 2025, shows that Pokémon is currently less popular than both Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba and Capcom’s Monster Hunter franchise.

Pokémon Lags Behind Demon Slayer in Japan’s ‘Brand Value’ Ranking for 2025

According to Gem Standard’s 2025 report on entertainment brand performance, Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba ranked number one with a score of 15,033 – almost double the 9,028 earned by Pokémon. Demon Slayer generates an average of 95 billion yen (about $608.8 million) each month through anime sales and merchandise. Pokémon (known as Pocket Monsters in Japan) brings in roughly 57 billion yen ($365.3 million) monthly from its fanbase.

Gotouge’s manga, Demon Slayer, first appeared in Shonen Jump in February 2016. It really took off in popularity after the anime adaptation premiered in April 2019. Now, five years later, Demon Slayer is one of Shueisha’s most well-known modern franchises around the world.

The popularity of the work is confirmed by Gem’s “2025 Rapid Rise Entertainment Brand Value Rankings,” which measures a franchise’s success by looking at the difference between its best and worst months. Demon Slayer ranked first with a difference of 8,792 points, while the Monster Hunter video game series came in second with a difference of 3,347 points.

Gem’s “Rapid Rise” chart is helpful because it shows how well a franchise does at its most successful point, usually when a major product like a new game console is released. For Nintendo, this peak likely occurred in June 2025 with the worldwide launch of the Nintendo Switch 2.

The latest Pokémon game, Pokémon Legends Z-A, was released globally in October 2025 and quickly became a hit, selling over 1.5 million copies in Japan during its first week. Despite this success, the Nintendo Switch remains behind Monster Hunter in third place, with Pokémon following closely behind in fourth.

Although Pokémon and Nintendo remain financially successful, they seem to be having trouble keeping up with the excitement surrounding newer games and entertainment. This was particularly noticeable with the release of their latest movie, Infinity Castle, in July 2025.

As of December 2025, the film has grossed over 38.6 billion yen (about $247.3 million) domestically, making it the highest-earning film in Japan for the year. The popular Demon Slayer franchise also saw success with its newest video game, The Hinokami Chronicles 2, selling over 150,000 physical copies in Japan within its first three months of release.

Nintendo faces a continuing challenge with the immense popularity of Demon Slayer, which shows no signs of slowing down. The recent climax of the series, years in the making, has thrilled fans. However, Pokémon has a chance to regain its momentum with the expected release of new games based on its first generation, potentially arriving in 2026 or 2027, though these haven’t been officially announced yet.

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2025-12-30 17:39