Fender Turns Pokémon Red and Green Into Two Guitars

Pokémon Red and Green were Game Boy games in 1996, and for the 30th anniversary Fender Japan has built them as guitars: a Made in Japan Pokémon Red Version Stratocaster and a Made in Japan Pokémon Green Version Telecaster. Both carry pixel art from the early games, Poké Ball inlays on the fretboard and a built in 8 bit sound effect that switches on from the volume knob.

The guitars were announced with Pokémon Center Co., Ltd., and the sale runs through a lottery, not a shelf.

Lottery Entries Open November 19 and Close November 24

Applications open at 12:00 on November 19, 2026 and close at 16:59 Japan time on November 24 through Pokémon Center Online. Entering requires a Pokémon Center Online membership, a login and phone number verification, and membership registration alone does not complete an application.

That is a short window with real friction in it. Anyone who wants one has to have the account sorted before the lottery opens, because the draw, not the speed of a click, decides who gets a guitar.

One Price for Both Guitars

Each guitar is priced at 396,000 yen with tax included, which Guitar Player converts to about 2,518 dollars. The Red Version Stratocaster and the Green Version Telecaster cost the same.

For scale, that sits above the 2,298 dollar price of the Supreme and Fender Precision Bass with Bootsy Collins graphics released in July, and far above the 849.99 dollar Stratocaster that Fender put in Rallye Orange in the Player II line that same month. Those comparisons use the dollar figures reported at the time and a yen conversion, so they show the order of magnitude, not an exact gap, and a conversion can move before the lottery closes. The Pokémon guitars are priced as collectibles with a working instrument attached.

Each purchase includes a pick set, a certificate with original artwork and a dedicated hard case.

Pressing the Volume Knob Turns On the 8 Bit Circuit

Fender's new 8 Bit Sound System is activated by pressing the volume knob, and it layers an electronic 8 bit sound over the normal output. It is a switch built for one purpose: to make a Stratocaster sound a little like a Game Boy cartridge.

The rest of the spec sheet follows the games. The Stratocaster has a rosewood fingerboard and the Telecaster has a maple one, with fluorescent pickguards and Poké Ball fretboard inlays on both. A neck plate carries a pixel style 30th anniversary logo.

The two shapes are the oldest in Fender's solid body catalog, the Telecaster from the early 1950s and the Stratocaster from 1954, so the pairing puts a 1996 Game Boy duo on two designs that predate the games by more than four decades. Guitar Player's headline calls the lottery the catch, and for most buyers that is the only obstacle between the spec sheet and the guitar.

Four Pokémon Objects Since July, Now One With Strings

Pokémon's objects this year have been physical and pricey. The Casio G Shock Pokémon 30th anniversary watch came out at 270 dollars on July 21 after Casio's online preorder sold out and resale climbed to nearly 450 dollars on StockX. Two days later, Sean Wotherspoon's Pokémon Center plush arrived at 7,700 yen each. In September came the Poké Ball guest room in Hokkaido and a four chair set with 100 Thieves and Modernica, which was released on September 25.

Add the guitars and that is at least five Pokémon object collaborations since July. The G Shock showed that the demand is there, since resale climbed far above retail. The guitars test the same demand at a different scale: not 270 dollars but a number near 2,500, and not an open release but a lottery.

Preorder in English, Lottery in Japan

Pokémon's English announcement says the two guitars are coming soon to Pokémon Center for preorder. The Japanese announcements and Guitar Player describe a lottery only sale, with the applications running November 19 to 24.

Nothing reviewed here confirms a delivery date, and the sources do not agree on one, so none is stated. They also do not say the guitars will be sold outside Japan: the models are labeled Made in Japan and announced with Pokémon Center Co., Ltd., and one Brazilian outlet notes there is no indication of a release in the West.

The fact that settles it for now is the application window. It closes at 16:59 Japan time on November 24, 2026.