Horikawa, Nomura, and Yonezawa were all well-known Japanese toy companies that came to fame in the post-WWII occupied Japan era. These toy companies were known for making innovative battery-operated space toys and robots out of tin that delighted consumers with their futuristic designs. Many baby-boomers have fond memories of these toys and their origins. Some of these Japanese space toys and robots constructed of tin are considered to be quite collectible, and while their dominance as coveted collectibles has faded a bit as the baby-boomer generation has aged, some of these toys still command generous sums on the secondary market. Japan has been leaving their mark on the collectibles trade long before the words Nintendo or Pokemon were ever spoken by American audiences. Today, younger collectors also love Japanese culture and many of the items they have brought us over the years. The focus has shifted to newer toys and collectibles that captured the hearts and minds of Gen-Xers and Millennials alike. I fondly remember growing up in the early 1980s and being introduced to Hasbros Transformers toy line. It wasnt until much later that I learned that the Transformers toy line was actually based on a Japanese toy line called Diaclone created by a Japanese toy company called Takara. The U.S. based toy company Hasbro liked the concept so much, they purchased the rights and launched it here under the name Transformers. Even today, a lot of enthusiasts who grew up with this toy line that is still being produced today still do not know that this franchise was based on a Japanese concept. The 1980s also saw the rise of many popular Japanese franchises being introduced to American and Western audiences. Anime and Manga series like Robotech, Dragon Ball Z, and many others were created and introduced during this time. Many of these franchises found success outside of Japan even if in certain instances the original concepts had to be changed to make it acceptable to American audiences. Incidentally, two of the most successful Japanese products of all time would come to America in 1985 and the late 1990s, respectively. The Nintendo Entertainment System (also known as the NES) released in late 1985, sold poorly at first, but after the company extensively advertised the video game system and its pack in game Super Mario Bros. it became a smash hit and one of the most sought after items for the coveted 1987 holiday shopping season. Today, Nintendo is still a beloved company, and vintage Nintendo video games can be seen selling for tidy sums on the secondary collectibles market, especially if they are in factory-sealed condition. Nintendo is credited with single-handedly reviving the video game market in the U.S. after companies like Atari, Coleco, and Mattel almost destroyed it due to a glut of low-quality over-produced games that were just not fun to play. Nintendo is still one of the most successful and most profitable Japanese companies of all time, which is quite impressive because they actually started out in 1889 producing handmade hanafuda playing cards in Japan, The company ventured into producing plastic toys and games in the 1960s and later electronic video games. By the time the Nintendo Entertainment System was released here in late 1985, the company was already known for their popular arcade game called Donkey Kong, which became an even bigger cult sensation across the globe. Arcades prominently displayed the game Donkey Kong, which helped Nintendo become a U.S. brand. By the mid-1990s it was clear that Nintendo was here to stay and the company solidified its dominance in the home video game market. Wanting to stay relevant, the company formed a lucrative partnership with another Japanese company called Game Freak. Game Freak is best known for their work on the Pokmon video game franchise, and, right now, the Pokmon franchise is the most valuable pop culture franchise in the world, grossing more than $100 billion in sales since the first Pokmon video games became available for play exclusively on Nintendo systems back in the 1990s. Add in a collectible trading card game and Pokmon alone has dominated the collectibles trade, with certain third-party graded vintage Pokmon cards selling for over six figures! There is no denying the fact that the Japanese now have a stranglehold on the collectibles scene. Vintage Pokmon cards and even vintage video games are more popular with American audiences than they are in their homeland of Japan, as American audiences are more likely to identify as collectors than other cultures. It is U.S. based vintage Pokmon cards and video games that are selling for enormous sums. Even though these products first debuted in Japan, it is Western audiences in particular that are buying up these items, and many view them as investments based on the nostalgia that these popular franchises are built upon. It will be exciting to see where these markets go from here, but one thing is for sure: the Japanese have once again captured the hearts, minds, and wallets of younger collectors. Now where did I put that binder of vintage Pokmon cards? Shawn Surmick has been an avid collector since the age of 12. He currently resides in his hometown of Boyertown, Pa., and is a passionate collector of antiques and collectibles. His articles focus on various topics affecting the marketplace.