New Open Pokemon Video Game Championships

The first Pokemon Video Game Championships were held in 2004, and were in no small part prompted by the popular informal tournament play that cropped up at the regional and national Pokemon Trading Card Game Championships. The incredible popularity of the video games at the TCG events convinced Nintendo and the Pokemon Company that there was not just a potential gamer population interested in competing in official tourney events, but actually a demand for such an event!

The result was that a semi-official series of tourney events for the video games took place parallel to the TCG games, but it was not until 2009 that the video game Championships officially began. Organized virtually the same as the TCG championships, with winners comprised of those in Regional and National tournament play, it soon developed that there was a huge population of active Pokemon video game Trainers and they wanted to show off their stuff!

In 2010, a Last Chance Qualifier was held on the Friday of the Championships to fill vacant spots, and thus became an official part of the event.

The tradition for the Video Game Championships (Regional, National, and World) is to use the most recent Pokemon video game, and to only permit Pokemon from the region featured in the game in tourney play. This enhances the value of the most recent generation of Pokemon, and naturally places an emphasis upon the most recent game -- which for the 2011 Championships is Pokemon Black and White.

The official list of Championship Games is:

* 2009: Pokémon Platinum

* 2010: Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver

* 2011: Pokémon Black and White

The 2011 Pokemon Video Game National Championships kicks off in Europe on June 4th in Birmingham, UK before heading to Italy for the first time ever, then to Spain, France and finally Germany. The top eight finalists in each division from each of the five European locations will earn guaranteed competitor slots at the 2011 Pokemon World Championships. In addition to invitations to the World Championships in San Diego, top finishers in Europe and in the U.S. will receive travel allowances, special medals and Pokemon prizes.

The 2011 Pokemon Video Game Championship Series kicks off in the U.S. on May 14th in Seattle, Washington, before making five more stops in major cities across the country. At each location, the top 16 players from each division will earn invitations to compete at the 2011 Pokemon U.S. National Championships July 8th-10th in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Players at the National Championships will battle to secure a top eight finish over the weekend, and in return, receive a guaranteed competitor slot at the 2011 Pokemon World Championships.

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Pokemon Video Game Regional Championships

In the United States, Regional tournaments are now open events, meaning you just need to show up ready to play and you have the chance to win -- and reserve a place for yourself at the National Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana, in June.

The top players at the National Championships will earn invites to compete with players across the globe at the Pokemon World Championships in San Diego, California, in August, and depending upon how high you place, your travel costs may be covered!

In Europe, National events will be held in England, Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. Like the Regional events in the United States, all of the European National events are open to all attendees, with the top competitors from these tournaments eligible to compete in the World Championships in San Diego, California, USA!

Pokemon Video Game U.S. National Championships

An invitation-only event that is open to a total of 112 invitations in each age division, positions at the big show are allocated in the following manner:

* The top 16 players at the Northwest Regional Championships

* The top 16 players at the West Regional Championships

* The top 16 players at the South Regional Championships

* The top 16 players at the Southeast Regional Championships

* The top 16 players at the East Regional Championships

* The top 16 players at the Northeast Regional Championships

* The top 16 players at the U.S. National Championships Last Chance Qualifier

Players with invitations are required to check in at the VGC tournament area Friday, July 8th, between 4:00 P.M. and 6:00 P.M. The National Championships is a Swiss plus Single-Elimination event. Each Swiss match will consist of a single game. Single-Elimination matches will use a best-of-three format, with the first player to win two games winning the match. The Last Chance Qualifier will be run using Single-Elimination tournament format. When a player loses a match, that player is eliminated from the tournament.

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Pokemon Video Game World Championships

An invitation-only event that is open to a total of 74 invitations in each age division, positions at the big show are allocated in the following manner:

* The 1st and 2nd place finishers from the 2010 World Championships

* The top 8 players at the U.S. National Championships

* The top 8 players at the UK National Championships

* The top 8 players at the German National Championships

* The top 8 players at the French National Championships

* The top 8 players at the Italian National Championships

* The top 8 players at the Spanish National Championships

* The top player at each of 14 Japanese Regional Championships

* The top player at each of 2 Korean Regional Championships

* The top 8 players at the World Championships Last Chance Qualifier

The World Championships is a Swiss plus Single-Elimination event. Each Swiss and Single-Elimination match will use a best-of-three format, with the first player to win two games winning the match. The Last Chance Qualifier will be run using Single-Elimination tournament format. When a player loses a match, that player is eliminated from the tournament.

Official Event Dates and Locations

European Dates and Locations:

June 04, Birmingham, United Kingdom -- National Exhibition Centre, Hall 8

June 11, Rome, Italy -- Fiera Roma, Hall 12, Ingresso Nord

June 18, Madrid, Spain -- IFEMA, Hall 1, Feria de Madrid

June 25, Paris, France -- Espace Grande Arche, Parvis de La Défense

July 02, Cologne, Germany -- EXPO XXI Koln GmbH, Gladbacher Wall 5

At all European National locations, Junior and Senior Division lines open at 8:00 a.m. and close at 8:30 a.m. The Masters Division line opens at 12:30 p.m. and closes at 1:00 p.m .

U.S. Dates and Locations:

May 14, Seattle, WA -- Washington State Convention Center, Hall 4B

May 21, San Jose, CA -- San Jose Convention Center, Exhibit Hall 2

May 28, Dallas, TX -- Arlington Convention Center, Grand Hall

June 04, Atlanta, GA -- Gwinnett Center, Hall A and B

June 11, Washington, D.C. -- Dulles Expo Center, South Hall

June 18, Newark, NJ -- Meadowlands Exposition Center

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2011 Pokémon World Championships:

August 12th -- 14th, San Diego, CA -- Hilton San Diego Bayfront

Last Chance Qualifier for the 2011 Pokemon World Championships will be held August 12th at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront.

A Very Basic Set of Rules

For the first time in the history of the World Championships System, competition is open to all Trainers -- but of course there are some rules that you will need to follow if you want to stand up and be counted, and show the world that you are one of the best Pokemon Trainers in it...

Here are the basic rules for you to use in planning your participation -- but remember that there is no substitute for the full rules list, so be sure to consult that prior to each event to be sure that you are in compliance!

Registration

All event registration will be handled on-site the day of each event. Players will be permitted to register on a first come, first served basis. Players in line are not guaranteed a competitor slot until they have completed the registration process.

Players must prepare their team prior to reaching the registration desk, and each player must place 4-6 Pokemon in his or her Battle Box. Each Pokemon may hold one item, which cannot be changed after registration.

Pokemon Restrictions

Players may use Pokemon found in the Pokemon Black Version or Pokemon White Version Unova Pokedex, from No. 001-148, and No. 151, that are caught in the game, or received by an official event or distribution. Pokemon from the Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, or Sinnoh Pokédex cannot be used.

All Pokemon that are Level 51 or higher will have their level reduced to 50 for the duration of the battle with the following parameters:

* Each Pokemon retains all of the moves that it knew before being auto-leveled

* Pokemon that evolve after Level 50 do not devolve when auto-leveled

* Pokemon below Level 50 remain at their actual level rather than being auto-leveled up to Level 50

* The Pokemon's stats are adjusted to what its Level 50 stats would be

* A player's team may not contain two Pokemon with the same Unova Pokedex number

* Each Pokemon on a player's team may use held items, though no two Pokemon may hold the same item during battle

* Only items acquired in Pokemon Black Version or White Version, or received at an official Pokemon event or promotion, may be used

* Players may not enter two Pokemon with the same nickname

* Players may not enter a Pokemon nicknamed with the name of another Pokemon character (for example, an Unfezant nicknamed "Pidove")

Players found to have inappropriate/offensive Trainer names or Pokemon nicknames, as determined by the event staff, will be disqualified from the event.

Hardware and Games

The 2011 Pokemon Video Game Championships will be played exclusively using legitimate Pokemon Black Version and Pokemon White Version Game Cards (see The Cost of Cheating later in this article).

* Players at European events may only use European versions

* Players at United States events may only use North American versions

* Players at the World Championships may use any version

Players will compete in one of three age divisions, based on their date of birth.

* Junior Division: Born in 2000 or later

* Senior Division: Born in 1996, 1997, 1998 or 1999

* Masters Division: Born in 1995 or earlier

Tournament matches will take place via Infrared Connection. Players must provide their own Nintendo DS systems and Pokemon Black Version or Pokemon White Version Game Cards and cannot share systems or Game Cards with another player at the event.

It is strongly recommended that players bring chargers for their Nintendo DS systems, as the tournament staff will not have chargers available for loan. Power outlets will be provided in the game play area.

The Cost of Cheating

Regular members of Gaming Update -- and visitors to our sister site, SuperCheats.com -- who have used our many unofficial Pokemon Game Guides, and who have read our coverage of Pokemon will be familiar with our caution against using game editors and cheating devices. The reason? The Cost of Cheating is High!

According to the official Pokemon website:

"The use of external devices to alter the Pokemon in a player's party is expressly forbidden. Random checks will be performed throughout the tournament to determine whether or not an external device has been used to modify a player's party. Players found to have Pokemon that have been tampered with will be disqualified from the event, regardless of whether the player tampered with his or her game or received a Pokemon or item that was tampered with by someone other than the player. It is the player's responsibility to have legal Pokemon. Event officials have the final determination regarding the legality of a Pokemon.

"A player should notify the staff immediately if he or she believes that there is a problem with an opponent's Pokemon. At the end of the round, all match results become final. Issues that go unreported until after the round has completed will not change the result of that match, regardless of whether there is a problem with an opponent's Pokemon.

"Players and spectators are expected to demonstrate proper sportsmanship over the course of the event. A player may be disqualified from the event based on actions taken by friends or relatives who disrupt the operation of the tournament."

What that means, in simple terms, is that if you cheat and try to compete, chances are high that you will be caught. To protect yourself from suffering such a fate, your best approach is to only use a game cartridge that you know is clean -- one you purchased new in a sealed box, and do not use Pokemon obtained via GTS or from trades with other Trainers.

The GTS system tries to weed out edited or altered Pokemon, but there is always the chance that one could slip through, so your best approach is to only use Pokemon that you captured and trained yourself when playing in tourney and official competitions.

The Pokemon Dream

When Ash Ketchem (Satoshi in Japan) left home to begin his Pokemon Journey he was a 12-year-old boy who was taking part in the traditional journey of adventure and maturation that all Pokemon Trainers undertook, and along the way he made solid friendships with people and Pokemon, and joined by his best mates Brock and Misty and, eventually, other mates like Tracy, May, her little brother Max, and eventually Dawn joined him for some most excellent adventures spanning multiple regions, as Ash sought -- and won -- as the Champion of each.

There was never any doubt that Ash -- and his best friend Pikachu -- were destined for greatness. Thanks to Celebi we know that Ash eventually takes his place as a Master Trainer and member of the League Council, and that he attains every one of the goals that he set out to master on the day that he took his first steps on the road to Catch 'em All!

Thanks to the different television series' and the movies, it does not take a lot of imagination to picture the world of Pokemon in depths beyond the video games -- and of course with the constant stream of improvements that have taken place between the original Nintendo Game Boy and the current model, the Nintendo 3DS, the games are rapidly approaching the level of immersion one expects from the animated cartoons.

If you are taking your first steps into the world of Pokemon with the 5th Generation of the games -- Pokemon Black and Pokemon White -- well, you could not have picked a better time to do it! These two games have such a deep and compelling story in them, and such a wide variety of all new Pokemon -- types that we have never seen before and some that are clearly related to the Pokemon from the previous regions somewhere in their DNA -- that you will be at no loss for great and powerful Pokemon with which to build your teams.

Competing on the Regional, National, and World level how you will meet the best of the best -- and to get there yourself, you will want to gain as much battle experience, against as wide a variety of teams and Trainers, as you can -- so remember to take advantage of the Random Match System, and the Battle Subways in the games, and to seek out Trainers in your area to battle. The more experience that you gain the better you will be at building your team and taking them in to battle!

The official Video Game Championships are a young sport, as this is only the third year that they have existed in a properly organized model -- and remember you only have to show up and register to compete on the Regional Level! So good luck!