Pokémon Taruka

The classic Japanese card game Karuta — with a Pokémon twist and a backwards brain-bending challenge. Pokémon Taruka is The Pokémon Company's take on the traditional Japanese card game Karuta, released in Japan in July 2025.

The original Karuta is played by spreading out a set of "grabbing" cards on the table or floor, while a reader reads out cards from a second "reading" set. The players must compete to find the matching card from the grabbing set as fast as possible. Whoever grabs the correct card first wins that round.

The Pokémon Taruka twist goes further: the title itself is Karuta spelled backwards — Ka-ru-ta becomes Ta-ru-ka — and the Pokémon names are reversed too. When you hear "Orikaru", you need to realise it's Lucario (Rukario) and grab the right card before everyone else. Even the Pokémon on the picture cards are drawn upside down, adding a genuinely tricky extra layer of challenge. The colourful cast includes Pokémon such as Lucario and Bulbasaur.

As the cards are written entirely in Japanese with Japanese Pokémon names, international players will need some Japanese knowledge or a reference to play — but as a collector's item from Japan, it's a genuinely unique and eye-catching piece.

Product Details:

• Publisher: The Pokémon Company
• Release: July 2025 (Japan)
• Language: Japanese
• Game Type: Pokémon Taruka (reverse Karuta)
• Condition: Sealed / New

✅ Official Pokémon Product from Japan
✅ Pokémon Illustrated Cards
✅ Based on Traditional Japanese Karuta
✅ Unique Reversed-Name Twist

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