The Pokémon universe is a fictional universe that encompasses the Pokémon media franchise, including stories and fictional works produced by The Pokémon Company, Nintendo, Game Freak and Creatures, Inc. The concept of the Pokémon universe, in both the fictional works and the general nonfictional world of Pokémon, stems from the hobby of insect collecting, a popular pastime which Pokémon creator Satoshi Tajiri enjoyed as a child. Players of the video games are designated as Pokémon Trainers and the two general goals for such Trainers are: to complete the Pokédex by collecting all of the available Pokémon species found in the fictional region where that game takes place and to train a team of powerful Pokémon to compete against teams owned by other Trainers and eventually become the strongest Trainer: the Pokémon Champion. These themes of collecting, training and battling are present in almost every version of the Pokémon franchise, including the video game series, the anime series, the manga series, the film series and the Pokémon Trading Card Game.
