Pokemon has gotten its first-ever ASMR video and it features the fan-favorite Charmander. Pokemon is experiencing a huge resurgence of popularity after the release of Pokemon: Sword and Shield. Charmander's evolution Charizard was actually the only original starter Pokemon included in the game, to the dismay of some fans. There is quite a bit of controversy surrounding the fact that Game Freak cut the National Pokedex from the game. Despite this, Sword and Shield have both received positive reviews and the games have become the fastest-selling Switch titles of all time.
The Pokemon franchise originally began in Japan with the release of games Red and Green for the Game Boy in 1996. The games became so popular that other forms of media were formed around the franchise. The cartoon series was created in the late 90s and continues to air to this day. The franchise has also spawned movies, a card game, and even a short lived theme park. With everything that The Pokemon Company has produced it is no surprise that Pokemon has become the best-selling media franchise of all time.
The official Pokemon YouTube channel posted the ASMR video yesterday. The video doesn't feature anything other than Charmander sleeping next to a fire. In the beginning Charmander wakes up and lights the fire with his flaming tail then drifts back off to sleep. The rest of the video the crackling sounds of fire burning can be heard as Charmander intermittently rouses from his sleep to get more comfortable.
ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response and is essentially a tingling sensation on the scalp and spine that some people get from certain kinds of audio. People who are affected by ASMR experience relaxation and so therefore the concept has become very popular. There are currently over 13 million ASMR videos on YouTube. The Pokemon video tries to achieve this level of ASMR relaxation by having viewers listen to the sounds of the crinkling fire over and over.
Viewers who have very little experience with ASMR may look at this video and wonder what the big deal is. Some may feel like they are missing something, but that is all it is. This is just simply a thirty minute video featuring a sleepy Charmander curling up around the fire. While it may seem like an odd choice, this actually isn't the first time a Nintendo property has put out an ASMR video. Pokemon fans can use this as an opportunity to take a load off and relax with Charmander for a bit.
Source: Pokemon