Remember rolling dice-shaped Pokémon at your friends? Plakoro — Bandai’s legendary 1997 Pokémon dice battle hobby — is making its full comeback on 18 July 2026, 29 years after the original, and it looks better than ever.
What Is Pokémon Plakoro?
Plakoro is a tabletop dice battle system built around two component types. Each Charakoro is a six-sided die cast in the likeness of a Pokémon — when you roll it, the face that lands up determines which move fires. Enekoro are energy dice: six-sided cubes printed with elemental symbols (Fire, Water, Grass, Lightning and more) that you assemble yourself using the 18 included element-symbol parts. Combine a roll of your Enekoro with the move cards in your hand and the resulting type matchup plays out instantly — reduce your opponent’s HP dial to zero and you win.
The name fuses Plastic (the Hobby model-kit tradition of BANDAI SPIRITS, which designed this using their modern figure-making technology) with Koro — the Japanese onomatopoeia for a die tumbling across a table. The original game was designed by Tsunekazu Ishihara and Creatures Inc. in 1997; the same development team was reassembled for this 30th Anniversary revival.
Six Starter Sets for Six Iconic Pokémon
The first wave launches with six Starter Sets, each built around one beloved Generation I Pokémon:
- Bulbasaur
- Charmander
- Squirtle
- Pikachu
- Eevee
- Mew
Each set includes one Charakoro Pokémon die, three Enekoro energy dice, 18 elemental symbol parts, a character card, seven move cards, and an HP counter dial. The launch price is ¥500 each (limited initial price; regular ¥990) — roughly S$4.60 at the introductory rate, or S$9.10 at regular retail pricing.
A separate Explorer Box (¥385) lets you add a random Pokémon die to your collection, though it requires a Starter Set to play. A storage case arrives in September 2026 at ¥1,320.
How a Plakoro Battle Works
Each turn you roll your Charakoro first — the face it lands on shows a move icon and the energy type it requires. Then roll your Enekoro dice; if you land enough energy symbols matching the move’s requirement, the move fires and deals its listed damage to your opponent’s HP dial. Type matchups mirror the main series — Fire beats Grass, Water beats Fire — so the dice-and-cards system carries genuine strategic depth beneath its breezy luck-based surface.
Community play is central to the design. According to the official Famitsu announcement (Japanese), roughly 200 certified stores across Japan will host teaching sessions, casual tournaments, and Battle Challenge competitive events — with promo card packs on offer for participants.
Where to Get It — Japan Exclusive for Now
Plakoro is confirmed for Japan only — there is no international release date and no word yet on whether BANDAI SPIRITS plans to expand distribution to other regions. The official shop opens at Bandai Namco Cross Store Yokohama on 18 July, with a pre-opening experience event running July 10–12. The game will also be sold through the approximately 200 certified community stores nationwide.
For Singapore fans, that means import is the route for now. Starter Sets at ¥500–¥990 are affordable as individual purchases, and forwarder services like Buyee or White Rabbit Express make them very accessible — though you will be paying JP domestic shipping on top. Keep an eye on hobbyist retailers locally who may stock small quantities; no local distributor has been announced as of writing.
Given how strongly the 30th Anniversary angle is being played — and the proven global appetite for Pokémon collectibles — a wider rollout would make commercial sense. Until then, this is a Japan-exclusive pick-up. Follow the official @plakoro_pokepla on X for the latest and check out the latest Pokémon news here for any international release updates.