From: Ben Good [doublexraven@hotmail.com] Sent: Friday, January 04, 2002 10:17 AM To: cardtips@pojo.com Subject: Article on 15+ Developments
Fight For Our Right To 15+!


So...the news is in. 15+ in all major tournaments has ceased to exist. As this news broke, I wasn't in the Wizards chat, but I quickly managed to figure out what was going on from Pojo's IRC room. There was hardly anyone who hadn't had something to say. " Wizards." was probably the favorite remark, followed by "Wizards ."

Obviously, people are going to be EXTREMELY annoyed by this decision. And rightly so; Wizards has essentially just told all Pokemon players of ages 15 and up exactly where they can go and shove their pieces of cardboard. Many of the players who have followed the game from the beginning are now 15 or over, so this is a REAL slap in the face. What the hell is Wizards doing?

Well, instead of actually letting players in the 15+ division PLAY in their major events, Wizards has now introduced a "Professor" system, whereby older players of the game become judges for the younger players. Wizards insist that this is necessary for the games survival, which may be true. I actually think this is a good system, as the people who take this up ARE rewarded. However, it seems when Wizards thought of this, they saw a problem. People want to PLAY in the major tournies, not judge in them. So Wizards has told the 15+ players that they can't play in the major tournies. Now you only have 2 choices. Judge at the major tournies, in which case you get to play in the Professor side tournies, or just don't go. Wizards knows that most people will still want to attend these events (probably to meet up with people more than anything else), so there's not much we can do about it. We either embrace the Professor program, or we're forced into the minor local leagues. Even worse, Wizards are hold large Professor-only events, but in different times and places to the 14- events! As Matt Moss said on the Wizards chat, a lot of people knmow people from the 14- division online, and now they will not get to meet them at all (most of us can't afford that many trips a year).

So... What can be do about it? After much deliberation, I've come up with this:

PLAN OF ACTION


1. UNITE
Not everyone in this game likes each other. We all have different views on how the game should be run, and what changes should be made to it. These are not important! If we can't present our views as a united front, we WILL FAIL. If we present ourselves to Wizards in an ORGANIZED manner, they are a LOT more likely to pay attention to us.

2. STOP BUYING WIZARDS PRODUCTS
I know right now, you're probably thinking; "What the hell?", but seriously, this HAS to be done. Complaining will do ABSOLUTELY NO GOOD if you carry on to buy more Wizards products. If you complain, but Wizards' profits dont change one bit, why SHOULD they listen to you? If you need to play, play online, with Apprentice. Wizards makes no money from you doing this. It may be hard, but this is necessarry. And to all you people who say, "If we do that, Wizards will just stop making the game!" NO THEY WON'T! NOT if they know WHY we're doing it. We're basically providing them with a solution to get their profits back. Which leads me on to this...

3. COMPLAIN, COMPLAIN AGAIN, AND THEN...COMPLAIN SOME MORE.
Of course, not buying any products won't do any good if Wizards don't know why the hell it's happening. EMAIL THEM! Let them know of your dissatisfaction. Let them know WHY you are displeased, WHAT you will be doing about, and WHAT Wizards HAVE TO DO to make you satisfied. Then, write them a written letter, expressing the same views. And KEEP DOING IT. Every week - 2 weeks, send them a written letter. Every single day, email them. I know this sounds ridiculous, but imagine how pissed off Wizards are going to be if they're being bombarded by letters and emails every single day. They won't be able to handle it. Also, I am starting a petition at PetitionOnline.com. If, when you email Wizards, you would put it's address (see bottom) in the body of your email, I'd appreciate it :).

4. SPREAD THE WORD
Tell EVERYONE you know that plays Pokemon to do the same thing. Get your younger brothers and sisters to do the same thing, because their big brother/sister can't play. Hell, get your non playing friends to email them too! Any bit of help we can get, we need.

5. DON'T GIVE UP!
Don't just say, "Oh, there's no way way we can make a difference." That is just completely defeatist. If you say this, then you should quit Pokemon right now. You don't care about the game enough. We, the players, we MAKE THIS GAME EXIST. That means without us, the game CEASES TO EXIST. Wizards doesn't want this. They are still profiting from the game. Show them they CANNOT CONTROL US. They are a company serving US. It is NOT the other way round. Show them what happens when they forget that.

***

Together, we can make a change. Unite, for the future of the game!

Oh, some addresses might help :P

Custserv@Wizards.com
Wizards Customer Service. Send emails here.

Wizards of the Coast
P.O. Box 707
Renton, WA 98057
(425) 204-7289

Wizards' main office. Any written letters should go here. Disgustingly, there seems to be no Pokemon Customer Service department, or if there is, there's nothing about it on their website, so I would advise just sending to that address. They're probably more likely to read them that way anyway.

NOTE: When sending a letter, make sure you do it properly, and be polite. Wizards already thinks we're a bunch of dumb kids. Don't prove it to them.

Petition to Wizards
Petition stating the views I've stated here. Please sign it with your REAL NAME, it just makes it look more respectable.

doublexraven@hotmail.com
My email. Feel free to contact me about anything said in this article. You can also contact me on IRC in Pojo's chat.

Benjamin R. Good (TheRaven) _________________________________________________________________ MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos: http://photos.msn.com/support/worldwide.aspx