Pokemon is one of the most popular video game brands in the world, in no small part due to its all-ages accessibility. That makes Pokemon one of the ripest opportunities for brands to do collaborations with. Putting a PokeBall on the cover of a new product or adding Pikachu's familiar yellow coloring to a design is a quick way to grab a Pokemon fan's attention. The latest such product to appear to be partnering with Pokemon is none other than Oreo.
In one of the official Oreo Twitter account's latest tweets, a hint at what could be a Pokemon collaboration is shared. A short video shows a normal Oreo cookie spinning around, only to have electricity spark from its "cheeks" and then surround it like it's casting Thunder Shock. A date is then shown, limned in golden electricity, of September 2020. Oreo says to expect its latest collaboration to be available in the fall.
If the video itself isn't a big enough clue, the text of Oreo's Twitter message makes it all the more clear. The message starts with, "Our newest collab in September is going to be," followed by a lightning bolt. Oreo then adds a few more "hints," listing three emoji: a leaf, a flame, and a water drop. In other words, Oreo lists the typings associated with the Pokemon franchise's starter Pokemon.
What Oreo is implying is that it will be collaborating with Pokemon. The reference to Pikachu is obvious, but hinting toward ties to fire, water, and leaf-type Pokemon teases that there's more to the collaboration than just yellow-colored filling. Oreo will perhaps instead offer a range of different cookie filling colors, allowing Oreo fans to choose their favorite. It's the Pokemon way, after all.
To be clear, an official Pokemon and Oreo collaboration has not been officially announced. This is just a teaser, though it's certainly not subtle. There's always a small chance that Oreo tricked everyone and is actually doing a different collaboration, or that the planned collaboration falls through. It's always worth pointing out when something hasn't been 100% confirmed in situations like this.
The only things surprising about Oreo's potential collaboration with Pokemon is that it hasn't happened yet. Oreo collaborates with a huge variety of partners. It has a special line of rainbow Oreos for LGBTQ+ Pride Month, a crossover with the NBA for this month's playoffs, Olympics-branded Oreos with red, white, and blue filling, and an odd The Offering event going on where Oreo tries to give cookies to aliens as a tie-in with the US government's recent UFO report. Suffice to say, Pokemon Oreos will be in good company.