Awesome Pokemon Vending Machines Are Appearing in Japan

A number of Pokemon-themed vending machines selling Pokemon plushes and other merchandise have appeared in several cities around Japan.

Japan has always gotten the coolest Pokemon merchandise and goodies. With over a dozen Pokemon Center retail stores around the country, it seems that Japanese Pokemon fans have more chances to buy their favorite Pokemon goods no matter where they go. Now, Pokemon fans in Japan have a new option on how they buy Pokemon goods, as several official Pokemon Center vending machines have appeared around Japan.

These new vending machines can support Japanese, English, Chinese, and Korean languages and gives fans a chance to buy a small selection of official Pokemon Center gear. It appears that the vending machine sells mainly Pokemon plushes, and delivers goods in a special Pokemon box. In addition, Pikachu appears on the video screen to assist users and cheerfully approve your purchases. The vending machine also has two smaller display screens that show advertisements for different Pokemon shows and products, like the upcoming Pokemon the Movie: Everyone’s Story or the Pokemon anime series.

You can check out a video and some photos of the vending machine in action below:

So far, Pokemon fans have spotted vending machines in places like Narita Airport, a service area in Shizuoka, Aqua City Odaiba, and a toll road rest stop in the Kanagawa prefecture.

Of course, these aren’t the first Pokemon Center vending machines to pop up in Japan, but they definitely look to be the most advanced. Previous Pokemon Center vending machines have been more standard fare, without the video screens, the Pikachu assistant, or the specialized boxes. Those vending machines appeared around in Japan as late as spring 2018, so it appears that the Pokemon Center is just giving their vending machine hardware a major upgrade.

If you live in the United States, you can actually find Pokemon Center vending machines in one location: Seattle. There are four official Pokemon Center vending machines located in Northgate Mall in Seattle, Southcenter Mall in Tukwila, Tacoma Mall in Tacoma, and South Hill Mall in Puyallup, all of which offer trading cards, plushes, and other Pokemon Center merchandise in sale. However, they appear to be more standard vending machines and not the video screen version seen above.

(h/t Nintendo Life)