A Made in Japan Strat and Tele covered in pixel art have a hidden 8-bit sound system triggered by pushing the volume knob, but you’ll have to win a lottery to get one.
Pokémon Red and Green first came out in Japan in February 1996. Thirty years on, Fender and Pokémon Center have turned them into a pair of Made in Japan guitars: a red Stratocaster and a green Telecaster, each covered in pixel art lifted straight from the original Game Boy games.
The Pokémon “Red Version” Stratocaster and “Green Version” Telecaster have bodies covered in pixel-art sprites of the original pocket monsters and characters, with a Poké Ball and a Game Boy Color in the mix. Each guitar also gets its own pickguard, and the Strat’s has a fluorescent-style effect that changes as light hits it from different angles.
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This isn’t just a paint job, either. Fender has developed a dedicated set of single-coils for each model. The Strat’s three Pokémon “Red Version” pickups are higher-output, voiced for a focused, punchy tone. The Tele’s Pokémon “Green Version” pickups are more balanced, with the bright, crisp top end players expect from a Telecaster.
The real party trick is what Fender calls the 8-Bit Sound System, which is shared by both guitars. Pressing down on the volume knob brings in chiptune-style electronic tones reminiscent of the original game soundtracks, layered over the normal guitar signal. That puts a little piece of 1996-era Game Boy audio right under your picking hand, and Pokémon Center has posted a demo of the system in action on its 30th anniversary page.
Both guitars come with a custom 30th anniversary neck plate engraved with the pixel-art anniversary logo, an illustrated certificate of authenticity, a hard case and a collectible tin of 11 picks. Ten of those picks carry a different pixel-art Pokémon, and the eleventh has the 30th anniversary logo.
Getting hold of one won’t be easy. Both models will be sold by lottery through Pokémon Center Online in Japan, with entries open from 12pm on Thursday 19 November until 4:59pm on Tuesday 24 November, Japan time.
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