|
POKÉMON ANNOUNCES SCHEDULE
FOR
2009 VIDEO GAME WORLD
CHAMPIONSHIPS
Pokémon Video Game
Players To Compete In
Regional Tournaments For
Chance to Battle the Best
Players from Around the
World
Bellevue, WA
- April 8, 2009 - This
spring and summer, thousands
of Pokémon Trainers from
around the globe will battle
it out with their prized
Pokémon for a chance to win
it all at the 2009 Pokémon
Video Game World
Championships! Today,
Pokémon USA, Inc. announced
details for one of the most
anticipated video game
events of the year, the 2009
Pokémon Video Game
Championships (VGC). The
only official Pokémon video
game competition of its kind
- placing the world's best
Pokémon players in
head-to-head competition -
will begin Regional
Qualifier Tournaments on
Saturday, May 9, kicking off
the largest video game
tournament season in Pokémon
history.
The format for the Pokémon
VGC will include six
different U.S. stops in
addition to tournaments
being organized in Europe
and across Japan. Pokémon
fans will play in the U.S.
Regional Qualifier
Tournaments and Pokémon
Video Game National
Championships and if
successful will meet their
international rivals from
Japan and Europe at the
Pokémon VGC World
Championships, which take
place in San Diego on August
14 and 15.
The 2009 Pokémon VGC
schedule will include
competitions in six cities
with weekend stops in
Seattle, San Francisco,
Phoenix, Dallas,
Philadelphia, and
Nashville. At each
regional, up to 128 players
for each age division
(Juniors and Seniors) will
be selected at random from
those in attendance but all
registrants will walk away
with a character
distribution of a powerful,
and rarely seen, level 50
Shiny Milotic™. Details
about the tournament and
each of the event locations
can be found at
www.pokemonvgc.com.
May 9 - Seattle, WA
May 16 - San Francisco, CA
May 23 - Phoenix, AZ
May 30 - Dallas, TX
June 6 - Philadelphia, PA
June 13 - Nashville, TN
June 27 - St. Louis, MO
Winners from each of the
regional tournaments will
win trips to play in the
Pokémon Video Game National
Championships in St. Louis
on June 27 and 28 - before
landing one of only 60
coveted international
invitations to compete on
the ultimate stage - the
Pokémon Video Game World
Championships.
"Pokémon is proud to present
an opportunity for thousands
of Pokémon video game
trainers across the globe to
come together and battle to
determine who is a true
World Champion," said J.C.
Smith, Pokémon USA, Inc.'s
director of Marketing. "The
Pokémon VGC tournaments are
a great way for our biggest
fans to meet with each other
and test their Pokémon
strategies against the
best."
Competitors will be required
to play with Pokémon
Platinum Version, which
became available on March 22
at retailers nationwide.
Players will need to bring
their own copy of the North
American Pokémon Platinum
Version to participate and
will compete using the
"2-on-2 Double Cup" format,
with no Pokémon allowed to
exceed level 50. European
players will use Pokémon
Diamond Version or Pokémon
Pearl Version at their
qualifier tournaments.
More information, including
prizes, tournament
locations, times, as well as
Pokémon restrictions and
rules can be found by
visiting
www.pokemonvgc.com. A
European site will be
available soon, so check
back for details about
Pokémon VGC events in that
region.
About Pokémon USA
Pokémon USA, Inc., a
subsidiary of The Pokémon
Company in Japan, manages
the property outside of Asia
which includes licensing,
marketing, the Pokémon
Trading Card Game, an
animated TV series, the
Pokémon Trading Figure Game,
home entertainment, and the
official Pokémon website.
Pokémon was launched in
Japan in 1996 for play on
Nintendo's Game Boy™ and has
since evolved into a global
cultural phenomenon. Pokémon
was introduced in North
America in 1998 and today is
one of the most popular toy
and entertainment properties
in the world. For more
information, visit
www.pokemon.com. |
