In the early days of the Pokemon series, much of the promotional art for the franchise was provided by Game Freak's designer and Pulseman manga artist Ken Sugimori. He is responsible for the designs of the initial generations of Pocket Monsters. This includes all of the original 151 species from the first generation.Quite a bit of Sugimori's work was seen in Pokemon's instruction manuals, box art, and official game guides. However, many of his renditions were never translated into high definition and remained in obscure locations like Game Freak's old website or printed material. This appears to have changed, as the Twitter user and Pocket Monsters archivist @Lewchube announced that they had received high-quality scans of Sugimori's artwork for 251 species seen in Generations I-II. In an accompanying GIF, @Lewchube remarked that the difference between the original scans and their high-quality counterparts was "insane."Lewtwo@LewchubeFor the very first time, we've been sent accurate scans of the original 251 Ken Sugimori Pokemon artwork to archive in high quality.the difference is insane.288795833For the very first time, we've been sent accurate scans of the original 251 Ken Sugimori Pokemon artwork to archive in high quality.the difference is insane. https://t.co/KmNUIJQ2yvPokemon fans react to high-definition Ken Sugimori artworkLewtwo@LewchubeFor over 20 years, the Red, Blue, Gold & Silver artwork of each Pokemon across the internet had inaccurate colors, were often misshapen, and generally VERY low quality.Thanks to scans provided by @ExcaliburZero_Z, we're finally able to see how they were always meant to look.93621248For over 20 years, the Red, Blue, Gold & Silver artwork of each Pokemon across the internet had inaccurate colors, were often misshapen, and generally VERY low quality.Thanks to scans provided by @ExcaliburZero_Z, we're finally able to see how they were always meant to look. https://t.co/aCTYVzC0DZThanks to the new uploads provided to Lewchube, all of the documented Pokemon originating from the series' first two generations of games have been posted in vivid clarity. Before this batch of images was provided, many of Sugimori's works found online via Lewchube and other outlets had incorrect coloration or inaccurate linework. This was likely due to the fact that they were scanned and uploaded back when the works were still regularly circulating in printed material, which would likely date to decades ago. Outlets such as Bulbapedia retain the old scans but will likely be uploading these new high-definition scans as well.Lewtwo@Lewchube@ExcaliburZero_Z Since this is a fairly large undertaking, the process will be as follows:We're going to be removing all low-quality Red, Blue, Gold & Silver Pokemon artwork from the Asset Archive, effective immediately. Each Pokemon will then be meticulously cut out for transparency in… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…5115302@ExcaliburZero_Z Since this is a fairly large undertaking, the process will be as follows:We're going to be removing all low-quality Red, Blue, Gold & Silver Pokemon artwork from the Asset Archive, effective immediately. Each Pokemon will then be meticulously cut out for transparency in… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/dBB3xJEboXSome of Sugimori's artwork was salvaged and provided when Pokemon titles hit Nintendo's Virtual Console service for 3DS, Wii, and WiiU. However, many images are being seen in a completely new light, as this is likely the first time that the first two generations of creatures have been uploaded in their entirety. Previously, fans would have to scour the internet and old clippings of printed material just to find off-color or faded iterations of the original artwork. While Lewchube uploaded the images, many Pokefans asked for specific renders of some of their favorite species.Brady Fleming@Arctic_Terra@Lewchube Also pls do we have jolteonmy boymy child6809@Lewchube Also pls do we have jolteonmy boymy child https://t.co/4KLN8MRjSVLewtwo@Lewchube@Arctic_Terra we were actually given a native-quality Jolteon when the Virtual Console games released194847@Arctic_Terra we were actually given a native-quality Jolteon when the Virtual Console games released https://t.co/h3uUmu9BETZeruss@Zeruss21@Lewchube could we get a peek at Mew as a treat, please🥺97@Lewchube could we get a peek at Mew as a treat, please🥺Lewtwo@Lewchube@Zeruss21 i got u2209155@Zeruss21 i got u https://t.co/Jb7iQG5JqiSpindash (Greg)@Spindash54@Lewchube @Zeruss21 By comparison with what we’re used to149@Lewchube @Zeruss21 By comparison with what we’re used to https://t.co/As9E7HSE7oSome Pokemon fans and content creators also asked if it was possible to use the newly-uploaded art in video thumbnails, which Lewchube agreed to. This makes sense since they aren't the copyright holder of the original art. Other fans remarked on how incredible the detail was. They pointed to the dot matrixes present in the images, showing that the scans are incredibly high quality compared to the initial renders that likely lost some detail on the image scanners of the time.Lewchube also confirmed that the process of uploading the artwork was ongoing and that all Pokemon pictures would be provided on Twitter and via their online archive once the process of level adjustments was complete.sips@dogslobberin@Lewchube the dot matrixes visible on em up close look cool but is that intentional? is that inherent to scanners or are these scans of printed reproductions instead of the original works7@Lewchube the dot matrixes visible on em up close look cool but is that intentional? is that inherent to scanners or are these scans of printed reproductions instead of the original worksLewtwo@Lewchube@dogslobberin they're as a result of being extremely high quality scans61@dogslobberin they're as a result of being extremely high quality scansLewtwo@Lewchube@shyonae we still need to provide proper level adjustments and carefully cut them out, I'll tweet about them when they're all 100% complete70@shyonae we still need to provide proper level adjustments and carefully cut them out, I'll tweet about them when they're all 100% completeショナーエ@shyonae@Lewchube this is amazing, where can I find the scans?3@Lewchube this is amazing, where can I find the scans?Toasty@Lachie2Toasty@Lewchube Would there be a Dropbox folder or any sort of online archive, a way that someone could save all of these in one hit?3@Lewchube Would there be a Dropbox folder or any sort of online archive, a way that someone could save all of these in one hit?Lewtwo@Lewchube@Lachie2Toasty twitter.com/Lewchube/statu…Lewtwo@LewchubeOver the last two months I've been creating a high quality Pokemon visual resource, and it's now open!!For artists, content creators and fans of the series!1314Over the last two months I've been creating a high quality Pokemon visual resource, and it's now open!!For artists, content creators and fans of the series! https://t.co/C1nlw1Hmc7@Lachie2Toasty twitter.com/Lewchube/statu…For longtime fans of the Pokemon franchise, Ken Sugimori's artwork holds a very special place in their hearts. The advent of these high-resolution uploads is likely a huge event not only for fans but for the preservation of the game franchise's long history. Sugimori continues to supervise the art direction of Game Freak where the Pocket Monsters series is concerned. However, the efforts of the community to preserve his older works are a huge win for both fans and Game Freak.