What are Pokemon menko?
Menko is a Japanese flipping game played with thick printed card pieces. Pokémon menko were made from about 1997 to 2005.
- The game
- Flip your opponent’s menko to win it
- Years
- About 1997 to 2005
- Shapes
- Rectangular (kakumen) and round (maru)
- Makers
- Amada, Nagatanien and Banpresto
How the game works
One player puts a menko face up on the floor. The next player slams their own menko down beside it. If the first one flips over, the thrower wins it, and play goes on until one player has them all.
Most Pokémon menko also print battle stats on the front, so they double as a stat game.
Two shapes
Kakumen are rectangular, a shape Amada chose so menko could sit in an album next to trading cards. Maru menko are the older round shape. Both were sold at the same time, so the shape does not tell you the year.
How to identify a loose menko
- Turn it over. The back prints the menko’s number next to a Poké Ball, but never its name.
- Check the frame. Full colour is Normal, silver foil is Rare, and gold or holo is Special.
- Don’t guess the Part from the number. Parts 1 and 2 share the range 001 to 201, so you need the Part badge in the same photo to be sure.
What has a checklist here
Amada’s Kakumen Retsuden line (2003 to 2005) has checklists for Parts 1 to 4 and Kai Parts 1 and 2. Parts 1 and 2 are still incomplete, because their printed checklist has never turned up. Amada Maru and Kaku Menko (1998), Nagatanien Curry Big Menko (1999) and Banpresto Spin Menko (1997 to 1998) are listed without checklists for now.
Quick answers
What is kaku menko?
Kaku menko, or kakumen, are rectangular. Amada used this shape for its Kakumen Retsuden line so the menko would fit in an album next to trading cards. Amada also made a separate square Kaku Menko line in 1998.
What is maru menko?
Maru menko are round, which is the older, traditional shape. Amada’s 1998 Hyper Menko line is round, larger and thicker than rival menko, with about seven to a pack. Round and rectangular menko were sold at the same time, so the shape does not date a menko.
Are Pokémon Patchin menko?
No. Patchin are small coin-shaped pieces from 2003 to 2005, made for a flicking battle game. They have their own section on this site.
Are Pokémon menko cards?
Sellers and graders often list them as cards. They are really game pieces made of thick card, so this site files them as menko.
Hidden Temple Codex. First published 13 September 2026, rewritten 27 September 2026. Photos belong to the collectors credited on them.