Pokémon.com/History

With the official launch of the Pokémon.com website on January 8, 1998, it was little more than a repository for News and announcements about the then current Pokémon video games, Pokémon Trading Card Game, and organized Play! Pokémon events. While using the "Pokémon.com" web-browser address, the website was referred as Pokémon World or the Pokémon Times.

Between May 4, 1999 and November 29, 1999, the Pokémon.com website underwent its first redesign. This update introduced new content such as the first version of Pokémon browser-based online games and an Online Pokédex in which users could look up information on then current Pokémon video game versions of specific Pokémon as well as information about Pokémon anime television episodes and movies.

Between September 9, 2001 and January 24, 2002, the website underwent a minor overhaul of its design. The only significant changes were the introduction of the Pokémon Center as a separate online store for purchasing Pokémon merchandise and the relabeling of the Pokémon.com website itself from "Pokémon World" to just "Pokémon.com".

In mid-2002 (sometime between June 4 and July 22), the website underwent a complete overhaul of its design but largely left the content in place.

Between June 19, 2003 and July 19, 2003, the website underwent a complete overhaul of its design and content. Content was separate into separate websites. Pokémon.com retained News and announcements. The separate sites were Pokémon-games.com for the Pokémon video games (March 2003 at least to January 2009) and Go-Pokemon.com and Pokemon-tcg.com for the Pokémon Trading Card Game (from May 2003 to January 27, 2014).

The next major overhaul occurred on March 21, 2005. This update not only included a complete overhaul of design and content but was built using technology. The most prominent content additions were the inclusion of the now retired Media player for playing the soundtracks of then current Pokémon video games and the Mailbag question and answer sections.

On January 11, 2010, the website underwent its next major overhauled of content and design. Each section utilized a similar layout with a uniquely identifiable color scheme. To users familiar with the current website, this update seems familiar even though the layout is different due to the primary elements of the current website existing very close to their current forms. The Trading Card Game section included the addition of a Trading Card Database allowing users to search for specific Pokémon cards and expansions and the ability to centrally manage user Pokémon accounts and view organized Play! Pokémon information through Pokémon.com. This update also introduced Trainer Tokens and an early version of the Trainer avatar system, the ability to watch select Pokémon anime television episodes as well as the ability to look up information about them, and the initial set of three, current Pokémon browser-based online games. Prior to the 2010 update, only six online games were available (four being accessible directly and two hidden). These initial three online games were adaptations of games originally distributed on the Japanese Pokémon Daisuki Club website (as was the original Trainer avatar system). The six previous online games were briefly made available on an archive site, which has since been removed.

The current version of the Pokémon.com website was implemented on January 27, 2014 and represented another major overhaul of content and design. The basic layout was "simplified" along with the full incorporation of what had also been separate Pokémon Trading Card Game websites, including the incorporation of the current user customizable Trainer avatar system that allows users to define their owner visual look and style. The update also updated the Online Pokédex by implementing a similar Basic and Advance search criteria and browsing options that were originally introduced in the 2010 Trading Card Database. The update additionally expanded the ability to centrally manage all user Pokémon accounts through Pokémon.com as well as children accounts under the User profile. Later incremental updates also introduced the ability to add and follow "Friends" and earn additional rewards through the Stamp reward system.