Pokémon in Singapore: Difference between revisions

On December 1 and 2, 2012, Singapore hosted the first ever Southeast Asian Regional Championships (Autumn) for the Trading Card Game<ref>[http://www.maxsoftonline.com/events.html 2012 Autumn Southeast Asian Regional Championships]</ref>. The event took place at Pasir Ris Elias Community Centre, Singapore, and hosted players from Singapore, Malaysia, {{pmin|the Philippines|Philippines}}, {{pmin|Indonesia}} and Hong Kong.

The second Southeast Asian Regional Championships (Spring) will take place at {{wp|SAFRA National Service Association#SAFRA Mount Faber|SAFRA Mount Faber}} on March 16 and 17, 2013<ref>[http://www.maxsoftonline.com/events.html 2013 Spring Southeast Asian Regional Championships]</ref>.

In March 2013, Maxsoft collaborated with [[The Pokémon Company]] and stocked local shelves of retailers like 'Comics Connection' and 'This & That' with goods and merchandise direct from [[Pokémon Center (store)|Pokémon Centers]] in Japan<ref>[http://www.maxsoftonline.com/pokemon-merchandise-where.html Locations selling Pokémon Center merchandise in March 2013]</ref>. These include small and large plush toys, Pokémon mascot dolls, A4-sized clear folders and goods from the video game [[Pokémon Conquest]]<ref>[http://www.maxsoftonline.com/pokemon-merchandise-products.html List of Pokémon Center merchandise sold in March 2013]</ref>.

From mid-November to December 2010, Team Robo organized a Christmas-themed event at {{wp|Tampines Mall}}. The event incorporated many small events together such as mini-games, workshops, stage shows, as well as tournaments such as the ''[http://www.teamrobo.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=650 Pokémon TCG City Championship SG 2010]'' and the ''[http://www.teamrobo.com/pokemonleague/christmasbash.html Pokémon NDS Video Game Christmas Bash]''. The video game challenge, dubbed the "Battle Mall Challenge", incorporated features of the in-game [[Elite Four]] as well as [[Battle Frontier]] facilities. Challengers had to defeat four Trainers in a row, each stationed on every floor, in order to be able to challenge the Battle Mall Captain. Players would have to restart if they lost to any of the four Trainers. If the player managed to defeat the Battle Mall Captain, it would entitle him or her to participate in a tournament (Boxing Day Challenge) held on December 26, 2010. The top three players of the tournament would be able to win a coupon to be exchanged for a copy of the {{game|Black and White|s}} on the day of release. <ref>[http://www.teamrobo.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=801#p5282 Pokémon Christmas Bash Event Report @ Team Robo Forum]</ref>

On March 6, 2011, the date of the US English release of the {{game|Black and White|s}}, a launch event-cum-tournament took place at {{wp|Funan DigitaLife Mall}}. Participants of the tournament had to form a team while playing through 3 hours of a new game, and then battle each other in a tournament with their team. Matches were conducted via [[Wonder Launcher]] [[Triple Battle]]s. The overall winner of the tournament would walk away with a new copy of Pokémon Black or Pokémon White, and a companion guidebook for the game. <ref>[http://www.teamrobo.com/PokemonBWlaunch.html Pokémon Black and White versions Launch Event & Tournament information and details]</ref>

From June 13 to June 19, 2011, an event took place at {{wp|West Mall}} which comprises of the [http://www.teamrobo.com/premierevents/nationalchampionship_2011.html Pokémon TCG National Championships 2011] and the [http://www.teamrobo.com/premierevents/videogamecompetition_blacknwhite.html Pokémon Black & White Video Game Elite 4 Tournament]. The video game tournament used the rules of the [[2011 World Championships#Video Game Championships|2011 Video Game Championships]], and each day, players competed in several swiss rounds to become the top 3 finalists for that day. All the finalists then competed on June 19, 2011 to determine the top four players who would be crowned the "Elite Four" of Singapore. The overall winner won a [[Nintendo 3DS]].

On October 6, 2012, the first inter-country video game tournament in Southeast Asia took place between Singapore and {{pmin|the Philippines|Philippines}}<ref>[http://pkmn-ph.com/blog/2012/09/18/major-announcement-singapore-vs-philippines/ Announcement on the Philippines Pokémon Community webpage]</ref><ref>[http://pkmn-ph.com/blog/2012/10/06/singapore-vs-philippines-tournament-results/ Results for the Singapore-Philippines inter-country video game tournament]</ref>. The event was coordinated between the two heads of the respective video games community and battles were conducted in the Wi-Fi room.

On December 1 and 2, 2012, Singapore hosted the Southeast Asian Regional Championships for the Trading Card Game, together with a video game tournament and a variety of side events. The Regional Championships featured players from Singapore, Malaysia, {{pmin|the Philippines|Philippines}}, {{pmin|Indonesia}} and Hong Kong, and was the first time a regional tournament was held in Southeast Asia. On the second day of the event, a video game tournament was held which only allowed the Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 video games. The rules are similar to the rulings of the upcoming 2013 Video Game Championships. The event also featured [[PokéPark 2: Wonders_Beyond|PokéPark 2]] on the Wii, a series of video game side events, and a seminar on competitive play by Eugene Tan, the first-place winner of the 2012 Elite Four Tournament<ref>[http://www.maxsoftonline.com/events.html Maxsoft's events page]</ref>.