Since 1996, Gengar has looked exactly the same: the squat frame, the spiked ears, the red eyes, the grin that hints it’s just done something to your Pikachu and has no intention of confessing. Three decades of that same face.
Not anymore — and the culprit is a shoe.
After months of rumors and leaked info stoking talk of a fresh run of Pokémon-themed sneakers, Adidas has now made the Pokémon x Adidas Originals 30th Anniversary Collection official, with a September 2026 arrival. Buried in the announcement were designs nobody had seen before for Charmander, Charizard, Mewtwo, Rayquaza, Pikachu, and the Ghost trio of Gastly, Haunter and Gengar.
Why this one actually counts
Adjustments to Gengar aren’t new. Sprites were sharpened over time, and its proportions drifted slightly from one generation to the next. The Ghost/Poison-type has also collected alternate forms over the years, Mega Gengar and Gigantamax Gengar included.
A permanent redesign, though? That has never happened — not once since Pokémon Red & Blue first introduced it.
The sneaker pulls it off. Those mischievous eyes are placed along the sides of the shoe, the trademark grin is present, and the design registers as Gengar without needing an oversized printed logo to spell it out. Among the several options in the full lineup, this is the pair people will scrap over.
The rest of the lineup skews hard toward Kanto
There are multiple Superstar and Pro Model designs for Pikachu. Mewtwo appears on the Samba, ZX 8000 and Handball Spezial. Charmander’s full evolutionary line made the cut as well.
Rayquaza is the curveball. The Legendary cuts against the collection’s dominant original-Kanto focus with two distinctive performance-inspired models — an odd but welcome detour in a lineup assembled almost entirely from the first 151.
Thirty years in, and the games aren’t slowing down either
The anniversary arrives with Pokémon already well into its fourth decade of projects, the headline entry being Generation 10’s Pokémon Winds & Waves. Game Freak has confirmed three new starters, an island-based setting and a planned 2027 release.
Beyond that, it’s all leaks. Alleged leaks have hinted at some surprising and impressive evolutions, Houndour among them and possibly Onix too.
The rumor mill has pushed even harder, claiming Winds & Waves may add hundreds of new Pokémon — some carrying brand-new types — plus battles against multiple enemies, broader online features and one of the biggest regions the franchise has produced.
File all of that under rumor. The sneakers, on the other hand, are real.
A good week to like both things
The overlap between sneakerheads and Pokémon fans is never as tidy as brand partnerships imply, yet this is one of those rare releases aimed squarely at the crowd queuing for both. The Ghost trio on its own makes the case for the collection.
September 2026. Work out now whether you’re a Gastly, a Haunter or a Gengar, because the Gengar pair won’t be lingering on shelves.