It has been revealed that a new Pokémon plush of Galar's Water-type starter Inteleon will be released in Japan in the near future. Other recent additions announced for the franchise's extensive lineup of soft toys include plushes of the Pokémon Scarlet & Violet starters, giving fans a number of cute starter companions to pick up for collections.
Plushes are a major brand of merchandise for the Pokémon Company and are available in a range of shapes and sizes. while certain fan favorites like Pikachu are offered more frequently, players can also find adorable toys based on the nearly 1000 different Pokémon species available. Currently, the focus for merchandise appears to be set on the spin-off game Pokémon Legends: Arceus, which introduced fans to ancient Hisuian variants of numerous Pokémon, including Arcanine and Stantler. These two Pokémon have been part of a release of special collectible Hisuian form plushes available from the Pokémon Center in recent months.
It has now been revealed the Water-type starter Inteleon will be receiving a super-sized plush toy. As reported by NintendoSoup, the new plush stands significantly shorter than Inteleon's canonical height of 6' 3" (190cm), but it is still no pushover at around 4' (120cm) tall. Although apparently incapable of standing by itself, the Pokémon Center store demonstrates that the Inteleon plush's limbs can be moved to create a variety of poses. The plush is currently on preorder in Japan until August 21 and is priced at 16,500 yen, which equates to about 120 USD. This makes the enormous Pokémon plush a fairly costly piece of merchandise, although this is understandable given its size.
The new Inteleon is far from the only plush of this size to appear in recent months. It is part of a quickly-growing trend that is providing fans with the possibility of acquiring cuddly companions in sizes that are more true-to-life than most regular stuffed collectibles. A similar Lucario plush, for example, is also currently available for preorder in the same size (120cm). However, unlike the new Inteleon plush, the toy Lucario's height perfectly matches its Pokédex entry; the Aura Pokémon canonically stands at 120cm precisely. This in turn makes the Lucario plush doll truly life-sized.
Although this Inteleon plush isn't quite life-sized itself, it still has a majestic height to it. As a result, fans with a soft spot for the Galar Pokémon will doubtlessly be eager to acquire one for themselves. The plush's poseable nature will make it an easy subject for stylish photographs and will be an impressive addition to any Pokémon collection.
Sources: NintendoSoup (via Nintendo Life), Pokémon Centre