Nintendo Shuts Down Beloved Pokémon Nature Documentary YouTube Channel PokeNational Geographic

Nintendo has officially shut down PokeNational Geographic, a beloved fan-made YouTube channel dedicated to producing beautifully animated Pokémon nature documentaries.

The channel, created by EliousEntertainmentYT, gained a dedicated following for its 3D animated shorts modeled after segments from National Geographic nature documentaries. Using software like Blender, the shorts depicted wild Pokémon in their natural habitats, narrated by a David Attenborough-esque character named Professor Ginkgo, who shared fascinating facts about each Pokémon featured.

Fan-Favorite Pokémon Documentaries

Fans of the Pokémon franchise often imagine how their favorite creatures would behave in the real world. PokeNational Geographic brought those daydreams to life, with Elious meticulously animating each Pokémon to reflect their unique traits and behaviors. The narration by Professor Ginkgo further enhanced the immersive experience, making the series a standout among fan-made Pokémon content.

Nintendo’s Copyright Strikes Lead to Shutdown

On April 26, 2026, Elious uploaded a video to a separate YouTube channel explaining that Nintendo of America issued a series of copyright strikes against PokeNational Geographic. YouTube’s policies allow channels to receive up to three strikes before facing termination, and Nintendo’s actions pushed PokeNational Geographic over that limit.

Creator Defends Fair Use in Response

In the video, Elious refuted Nintendo’s claims that PokeNational Geographic stole "content used in Pokémon video games, including audiovisual works, characters, and imagery." He emphasized that every Pokémon model in the series was created from scratch. The only assets Elious admitted to using from official Pokémon games were the pixelated Pokémon cries, which he argued were used for no longer than three seconds and fell under fair-use rules.

“I can’t fight this. I don’t…I don’t know what to do about it because it’ll remove everything. Almost 100,000 subscribers over three years of making these animations, and it’s all going to be gone in seven days.”

Elious expressed deep disappointment over the shutdown, noting that the channel had helped him secure promising animator jobs and internships. He plans to continue uploading videos on a new channel but has no intention of creating new Pokémon content.

For now, Elious is downloading every video in the series for personal use, preserving the work that captivated Pokémon fans worldwide.