The New York Video Game Critics Circle announced the winner of its annual Andrew Yoon Legend Award ahead of January’s New York Game Awards. And unlike in previous years, it will not go to a single luminary from the video game industry. This will be… the Pokémon series.
This is the first award in the award’s ten-year history, and previous winners include Sam Lake, Neil Druckmann, Phil Spencer, Tim Schafer and Reggie Fils-Aimé. However, this does not mean that the definition of reward was not malleable before. In its first year of operation, 2016, the award went to the studio: Rockstar Games. In 2021, the award was given to four people: Jerry Lawson, Hideo Kojima, Brenda Romero and John Romeo.
However, it is still sporadic for the Legend award to go to a franchise. On its website and in past years, the NYVGCC has described the award as “a landmark in the video game industry” and “to those who have moved the world of gaming forward, celebrating their profound impact on an industry that continues to captivate and connect people around the world.” This year’s press release described the award’s purpose as “recognizing industry icons and organizations that have demonstrated significant and lasting achievements through exceptional artistic achievement and innovation.”
According to the NYVGCC, Pokémon was selected as “an iconic piece of global popular culture, breaking into video game and mainstream audiences in the mid-to-late 1990s with its unique combination of collectability, strong and accessible RPG gameplay, and unrivaled character design.” The announcement cited global retail sales of $12 billion in 2024, more than 489 million game units sold since 1996 and the fact that it is one of the most profitable media franchises. We gave the latest Pokemon game, Pokémon Legends: ZA, an 8/10, stating that “we finally feel like Game Freak is getting on track in the 3D Pokémon era, with an interesting setting to explore, a well-written story, and a complete overhaul of the fighting system that works surprisingly well.”
“How do you express the impact of a cultural phenomenon like Pokémon? ‘Legend’ is the only word that comes to mind,” said Harold Goldberg, president and founder of NYVGCC. “For 30 years, the series has become the most recognizable game franchise in the world and is beloved for its unique monster designs that have compelled gamers both young and old to catch them all. It is a great honor to present the company with the Andrew Yoon Legend Award at our 15th New York Game Awards.”
The award will be accepted by The Pokémon Company at an awards ceremony on January 18, and The Pokémon Company will be present with “two fan-favorite Pokémon” that will be available for fans to take photos.
IGN reached out to NYVGCC for comment on the decision to honor the franchise this year and received the following official statement:
“The Pokémon Company’s Legend Award is the second time that the New York Game Awards has chosen to honor an entire team rather than a single developer, the first being the Rockstar Games Award in 2016. With their impact on entertainment, console and tablet gaming for 30 years, we felt that the many people working with The Pokémon Company deserved to share the prestigious Andrew Yoon Legend Award in celebration of our 15th anniversary.”
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Her posts can be found on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Have a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
