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In a collaboration between the Toyota Engineering Society and the Pokémon Company, this weekend lucky fans can ride a real Pokémon replica.
Using cutting-edge technology, the invention is as close to the size and shape of the Pokémon as possible, and can even transform between the two modes of Miraidon, wheels and legs.
The Toyota Engineering Society is a small subset of engineers from Toyota who have been building weird and wondrous devices and machines with the car-maker’s technology for over 70 years.
They collaborate annually with the city of Tokyo on the ‘Waku Waku World’ event. This year the theme was “Future Mobility”. After receiving over 8,000 submissions from elementary students in the Japanese capital, the team opted to create a lifelike Miraidon.
The collaboration aimed to convey the message that “an adult’s seriousness can become a child’s dream” and “Dreams don’t end as dreams, as imagination creates the future,” according to a translated post on Twitter/X.
【トヨタミライドンプロジェクト】
"大人の本気が、子供の夢になる"
トヨタ技術会とポケモン(@Pokemon_cojp)が夢に向かって始動
プロジェクトの様子をぜひご覧ください#トヨタミライドンプロジェクト始動 pic.twitter.com/ZOTKnqYlB1
— トヨタ自動車株式会社 (@TOYOTA_PR) March 14, 2024
The completed model will be on display in the Tokyo Midtown Hibiya mall from March 15 to 17, and anyone who weighs under 65kg will get the chance to ride on the back of Miraidon. Tickets for a ride are limited in number so this is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for a small number of fans.
Pokémon fans are an ingenious bunch and this isn’t the first brush with modern technology we’ve seen. In January, a YouTuber created a working Pokédex using a 3D printer and AI.
What is Miraidon?
Miraidon is a Pokémon which featured on the box art for Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. The replica is of the blue-purple variant from Pokémon Violet. The legendary creature joins the protagonist on their adventure, transforming between a ride-on living motorbike and a dog-dragon hybrid ready to battle.
Despite releasing in 2022, Pokémon Scarlet and Violet were still receiving content updates in the form of an epilogue earlier this year.
Featured image credit: Toyota Engineering Society/The Pokémon Company
