Don’t let the warm inviting weather of San Diego fool you. For the invite-only contestants, it was all business at the 2011 Pokemon World Championships.
If you wanted to be the very best, like no one ever was, the “Pokemon League” of real-world competition was the place to be. The top players of competitive (TCG – trading card game) and video game players around the world fought for supremacy and the much coveted World Champion distinction. In order to even compete in the World Championships, players fought and advanced through a year of regional and national tournaments around the global hemisphere. It was here in San Diego, California that the ones remaining reached their “Indigo Plateau” of Pokemon competition.
Over 400 players representing 27 countries competed in the annual event. Competitors from as far as Argentina to the United Kingdom descended to the California hotspot to showcase the qualities of Pokémon Trading Card Game and video game players: skill, strategy, sportsmanship, and fun. Despite a completely video game dominated USA victory, two of the six World Champions came from the Southern Hemisphere. Notably, TCG Junior World Champion, Gustavo Wada from Brazil and TCG Senior World Champion, Christopher Kan from Australia.
The event took place over a period of three days and while the focus was squarely on the World Championship tournament, there was also 24-hour gaming sessions for fans and opportunities to meet up, get autographs, and pictures with Pokémon V.I.P’s like the legendary Junichi Matsuda, the creative force behind the Pokémon video games at Game Freak Inc. Watching a live Pokémon battle as a spectator was a similar experience to sitting in a crowd for a highly anticipated sports match. The vibe was familiar as crowds would cheer when a victory was called and stayed silent in anticipating the outcome of a tense moment. The crowd favorite was a USA versus Korea matchup for the Senior World Championship where a visibly enthusiastic Sejun Park (South Korea) fought admirably but fell short of a victory to Kamran Jahadi (USA). Despite his loss, Park took home a $5,000 scholarship as well as an invitation to the 2012 Pokemon World Championship. Not bad at all.
Celebrating his 2nd consecutive Pokemon Video Game World Championship, Ray Rizzo, from Marlton, New Jersey felt the anxiety as a defending champion stating, “…it was a lot different this year, I had to learn new Pokémon and it was a lot tougher.” The Pokémon World Championships revolved around the newly released Pokemon Black and White Versions for the Nintendo DS and only Pokémon featured in-game could be used, no original 150 or pre-Generation V were allowed.
Two days of Pokémon battles ensued and showed that the competitive scene was vibrant and alive within the Pokémon community. With Nintendo and the Pokémon Company vested in the franchise, fans both new and old can be assured that the mantra “Gotta Catch ‘Em All!” will continue.
