All illustrators/Sanosuke Sakuma
Sanosuke Sakuma is a freelance illustrator living in Kanagawa, with 172 English printings between 2013 and 2026. 12 of those cards have been printed in Simplified Chinese, the highest being Dragonite at $279.79 in PSA 10.
Quick answer
CardSpicy records 315 Pokémon card printings credited to Sanosuke Sakuma — 172 of them in the English run, 130 Japanese printings outside it, 202 with an official card image. The English run spans 2013–2026. 12 of those printings have a Simplified Chinese card. The printings include 13 Japan-only or promo sets. The highest-priced of the artist’s Simplified Chinese cards is $279.79 in PSA 10.
Who they are
Sanosuke Sakuma is a freelance illustrator living in Kanagawa. Born October 31, 1990. The credit is freelance rather than in-house.
Bulbapedia counts 162 cards under the name in total. 35 cards have since been credited in Pokémon TCG Pocket.
They are also credited in Pokémon animation as character designer.
Every card credited to Sanosuke Sakuma
Every printing we can attribute to this artist, shown card by card: English first, then the Japanese printings that never had an English release, then the sets that only ever ran in Japan. Each printing is listed under its own language rather than merged, because a Japanese original and its English release are different cards to a collector. Cards whose official image is not in the open card databases are still listed, and say so.
- Black & White Era 5 (2013)
- XY Era 34 (2013–2016)
- Sun & Moon Era 42 (2017–2019)
- Sword & Shield Era 49 (2019–2023)
- Scarlet & Violet Era 34 (2023–2025)
- Mega Evolution Era 5 (2025–2026)
- Promotional cards 2 (2021–2024)
- Other sets 1 (2017)
English printings 172
English printings, grouped by era. Numbers are the collector numbers printed on the card.
Black & White Era
5 cards
2013 · 1 set
XY Era
34 cards
2013–2016 · 14 sets
Sun & Moon Era
42 cards
2017–2019 · 13 sets
Sword & Shield Era
49 cards
2019–2023 · 20 sets
Scarlet & Violet Era
34 cards
2023–2025 · 13 sets
Mega Evolution Era
5 cards
2025–2026 · 3 sets
Promotional cards
2 cards
2021–2024 · 2 sets
Other sets
1 card
2017 · 1 set
Japanese printings outside the English run 130
Japanese printings in sets that never received an equivalent English release. These are additional to anything the artist has in the English run.
Sword & Shield Era
27 cards
2021–2022 · 13 sets
Scarlet & Violet Era
44 cards
2022–2025 · 20 sets
Japan-only and early promotional sets 13
Sets that exist only in Japanese, or that ran as promotions and were never part of an English expansion. No official card image exists in the open databases for these, so they are listed without artwork rather than with a stand-in.
Delta Reign
2 cards
Expedition
2 cards
SM-P Promo
8 cards
BW-P Promo
1 card
Their Simplified Chinese cards
The Simplified Chinese print run — the cards we actually price and sell. Simplified Chinese cards have only been issued since 28 October 2022, so however long the career, it shows up here as the late Chinese slice of it.
| Card | Printing | No. | PSA 10 | Ungraded | Shop |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dragonite | 151C | #149 | $279.79 | $1.78 | Find this Card for Me |
| Shining Celebi | 30th Celebration | #141 | $99.15 | $15.89 | Find this Card for Me |
| Friends In Galar | Chinese promo | #82 | $72.63 | $6.50 | Find this Card for Me |
| Dratini | 151C | #147 | $39.47 | $1.99 | Find this Card for Me |
| Dragonair | 151C | #148 | $38.36 | $1.99 | Find this Card for Me |
| Nemona | Gem Pack Vol.1 | #1704 | $25.00 | $6.98 | Find this Card for Me |
| Copycat | CS4aC | #180 | — | $7.93 | Find this Card for Me |
| Copycat | CS4aC | #159 | — | $3.25 | Find this Card for Me |
| Ethan’s Slugma | CSV10C | #31 | — | $1.99 | Find this Card for Me |
| Brawly | CS3bC | #170 | — | — | Find this Card for Me |
| Dunsparce | CSV7C | #161 | — | — | Find this Card for Me |
| Hop’s Sandaconda | CSV10C | #117 | — | — | Find this Card for Me |
| Teal Mask Ogerpon | CSV8C | #27 | — | — | Find this Card for Me |
Prices are PriceCharting sale values in US dollars, PSA 10 where a graded sale exists and ungraded where it does not. They move.
Their career in the TCG
We can place 172 English printings across 67 sets, running 2013 to 2026. The first of them is Froakie in XY Black Star Promos (2013). The run covers the Black & White era, the XY era, the Sun & Moon era, the Sword & Shield era, the Scarlet & Violet era, the Mega Evolution block, promotional releases and miscellaneous sets.
The heaviest single set is Vivid Voltage with 7 cards, and the busiest year is 2021 (22); Output averages about 13.2 cards a year across that span; 130 further printings sit in the Japanese run without an English equivalent, which we list separately; 13 cards belong to sets that were never part of an English expansion at all — early Japanese sheets, half decks and promotions; 36 cards are credited for Pokémon TCG Pocket.
In Simplified Chinese we price 12 cards by this artist. The highest of them is Dragonite from 151C, at $279.79 in PSA 10.
- 2013Earliest English printing we record: Froakie, XY Black Star Promos.
- 2021Busiest year: 22 printings, including 7 in Vivid Voltage.
- 2026Most recent printing we record: Gholdengo, 30th Celebration.
- —Dragonite (151C) is the highest-priced Chinese card, $279.79 in PSA 10.
Style and technique
The working method is on the record — Photoshop and watercolor.
Staying on the set lists from the Black & White era through to miscellaneous sets — 8 eras — is a career fact rather than a stylistic one, and we have not been able to source a description of the drawing itself.
Frequently asked questions
How many cards by this illustrator does CardSpicy list?
CardSpicy lists 315 printings credited to Sanosuke Sakuma on this page. Official card images are available for 202 of them.
Does this illustrator have Simplified Chinese cards?
Yes. CardSpicy prices 12 cards by Sanosuke Sakuma in Simplified Chinese, each as a PSA 10 Gem Mint value.
Which card by this illustrator is the most valuable?
The highest-priced Simplified Chinese card CardSpicy lists for this illustrator is $279.79. That is a recorded PSA 10 Gem Mint value, not an asking price.
When did this illustrator first appear in English?
The English printings CardSpicy records for this illustrator run from 2013 to 2026.
Are any printings released only in Japan?
Yes. CardSpicy records 130 printings released only in Japanese, outside the English run, and 13 sets released only in Japan or as promos.
Sources
- Bulbapedia, artist article (biography, career and technique)
- Bulbapedia card index, Category: Illus. by this artist
- TCGdex card database, illustrator credits and card images by printing
- PriceCharting Simplified Chinese sales via our own card index
Card attribution comes from the illustrator field recorded in the card databases; where a single card was reprinted across many sets, each printing is counted separately.
Cards by Sanosuke Sakuma in our card index
CardSpicy tracks 10 of this artist’s printings as full card pages, each with its PSA 10 population and market history:
- Pretend Boss Pikachu (197/SM-P) PSA 10 ≈ $3,458
- Pretend Boss Pikachu (191/SM-P) PSA 10 ≈ $3,452
- Pretend Boss Pikachu (196/SM-P) PSA 10 ≈ $3,300
- Pretend Boss Pikachu (195/SM-P) PSA 10 ≈ $3,263
- Pretend Boss Pikachu (194/SM-P) PSA 10 ≈ $3,150
- Pretend Boss Pikachu (193/SM-P) PSA 10 ≈ $3,091
- Pretend Boss Pikachu (192/SM-P) PSA 10 ≈ $2,800
- Pokemon Center Lady (69/S-P) PSA 10 ≈ $218
- Zoroark GX (154/SV-P) PSA 10 ≈ $78
- Arceus VSTAR (161/SV-P) PSA 10 ≈ $56
See also the full card index — every card CardSpicy tracks, ranked by PSA 10 value.