Latest news with #PokémonCenter
Time Out
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Time Out
A Pokémon pop-up is heading to Anaheim with exclusive merch
Before Labubus, there were Pokémon. Whether you grew up debating the superiority of Charizard versus Blastoise or spent hours trying to catch Mew under that infamous truck, the franchise has become a shared language of childhood joy. Even today, Pikachu's squeak hits like a warm hug from the past. Now, you can celebrate Pokémon and bond with fellow enthusiasts in SoCal thanks to a limited‑time Pokémon Center pop‑up at the Anaheim Convention Center, part of the 2025 Pokémon World Championships. (Yes, that's definitely a thing.) This pop‑up isn't just a store; it's a celebration of Pokémon fandom. With photo ops, surprise drops and merch you can't get anywhere else (like the 2025 World plushies for Pikachu, Jigglypuff, Machamp, and Fennekin), the August 14–17 event is a chance for fans to catch 'em all in person. But just because you're a badgeholder for the Pokémon World Championships doesn't guarantee you entry; you still have to RSVP. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Pokémon (@pokemon) The larger question might be just what are the Pokémon World Championships? Held since 2004, the event blends nostalgia with modern spectacle and finds players from across the globe gathering to battle it out for the title (if they scored an invite, that is) in four major events: the Trading Card Game (TCG), Video Game Championships (Scarlet & Violet), Pokémon GO and Pokémon UNIT. With a prize pool of over $2 million, players vie for world‑champion status through intense multi‑stage formats leading to single‑elimination finals, with Pokémon GO culminating in best‑of‑five grand finals on the third day. Winners will receive invitations for next year's championship in San Francisco. The 2025 Worlds is the first in Anaheim since 2017. Beyond competition, the event is a vibrant fan celebration: exclusive merchandise at the Pokémon Center pop‑up, photo ops with Pikachu mascots, side events and interactive experiences. The Worlds also emphasizes global engagement with live streams on Twitch and YouTube, multilingual commentary, fan contests, behind‑the‑scenes content and social-media-driven interactivity throughout the three-day event.
SoraNews24
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Pokémon Center Online tells all customers to change their passwords after fraudulent log-ins
Gotta change 'em all. The Pokémon Center Online should be a place of pure happiness. It's a massive selection of Pokémon merchandise, made available even to those who can't make the trip to one of Japan's physical Pokémon Center superstores. Just put the items you want in your cart, place your order, and wait for your package of Poké-joy to be delivered to your doorstep. Unfortunately, though, it's not all fun and smiles right now, because while fans have had their eyes on the Pokémon they want to catch, less wholesome types have been after something else, using unscrupulous means to acquire Pokémon Center Online users' log-in data. The online store announced on July 3 that it has confirmed a series of unauthorized log ins. In addition to performing emergency maintenance to address the problem, the Pokémon Center Online has taken the step of resetting the passwords of all user accounts. Because of that, users with existing accounts will have to go through the password reset process before they can log in again. The procedure can be initiated through the Pokémon Center Online website here and requires entering your birthdate and the email address associated with your account, after which you'll receive an email with further instructions on how to choose a new account password. The Pokémon Center Online strongly cautions against reusing the same password as before the reset, and also against using a password identical to ones used for other online services. The announcement makes no specific mention of fraudulent purchases that have been made, but keeping a close eye on charges for any credit card used for shopping though the site is probably a good idea, just to make sure no one has treated themselves to a life-size Eeveelution plushie on your dime/10-yen coin. Source: Pokémon Center Online (1, 2) Top image: SoraNews24 ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
SoraNews24
11-06-2025
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Real-world Pokémon Diamond and Pearl! Playing with Japan's Pokémon Fossil Excavation Kits【Pics】
Activity kits turn tables into the Sinnoh Underground and adult Pokémon fans into happy little kids again. Despite the games' titles, when Pokémon Diamond and Pearl brought the Pokémon franchise to the Nintendo DS for the first time in 2006, the treasures that players spent hours digging out of the earth weren't gemstones, but fossils. Diamond and Pearl introduced a massive subterranean level called the Underground, which you could explore and excavate fossils used to revive otherwise unobtainable species of Pocket Monsters. Nearly 20 years later, those days of digging in Diamond and Pearl's Underground are still with us, so imagine our excitement when we found out that there are real-world Pokémon Fossil Excavation Kits! We stumbled across these at our local Pokémon Center superstore branch, and they're also available for purchase online. Wasting no time, we grabbed one from the shelf, paid for it at the register, and took it home so we could start digging. Inside the box are four items: a hammer, a chisel, a brush, and a large chunk of plaster, inside which your fossils are waiting to be found. Just like in the games, you're told how many items are hidden within the digging area, and in the case of the Pokémon Fossil Excavation Kit, it's always four. The exact items, though, remain a mystery until you unearth them, with the possibilities being Skull, Armor, Root, and Claw Fossils, plus Heart Scales and a Red/Blue/Green Sphere cluster. The directions are written in Japanese, but there's a diagram, and really, the process is pretty intuitive. Place the plaster on a flat, steady surface, hold the chisel above it, then strike the chisel with the hammer to chip away at the plaster. You don't want to go swinging the hammer with full force, since you don't want to accidentally skewer the fossil you're searching for with the tip of the chisel. You can't be too timid either, though, because the plaster is hard. Sure, in the games all you needed to do was tap the DS screen with the stylus, but here you'll need to put enough strength into your hammer hits to create cracks, so modulating the strength of your strikes is key. After five minutes of hammering we'd worked up some sweat on our brow but still only barley scratched the surface of our excavation area, and were noticing a bit of grittiness in our mouth from leaning in too close as powdered kicked up as pieces chipped off, adding to the illusion of toiling away in the Underground. But then we spotted a different patch of color from the gray we'd been chiseling away. Carefully altering between using the brush to sweep out debris and the hammer and chisel to dig deeper, we were able to confirm we'd found a fossil, with about 10 minutes having passed since we got started. Feeling a surge of excitement, we kept at it, and were able to extract… …an Armor Fossil, looking just like the ones from the game that you use to create a Shieldon. Finding one item meant we still had three to go, but now we were reenergized. Each swing of the hammer had us feeling like we'd stepped into the Diamond and Pearl world that we'd loved as kids, with the tantalizing promise of more wonders just out of sight egging us on. We also felt like we were starting to get the knack for using our excavation tools, so we figured we'd have the remaining three items up and out of the plaster in no time. This turned out to be not the case at all, though. We kept digging and digging, but couldn't find a trace of a fossil, triggering flashbacks of expeditions deep into the underground where we'd taken a route that somehow missed all of the treasures we knew were hiding down there. But then, finally, following about 20 minutes of digging since finding the Armor Fossil, we got a glimpse of the second fossil. Slowing down and making more careful movements, we began clearing away more of the plaster around it so that we could pry it out… …only to find that there was another item buried right next to it! And then we found the fourth and final item not very far away from the fossil on its opposite side. So it looks like the items really are placed randomly within the plaster, and depending on where you start digging and which direction you go from there, it could be either a very short or very long time between finding each of them. ▼ In addition to the Armor Fossil, our kit also contained a Skull Fossil, Heart Scale, and Spheres (though the Spheres are actually more like discs). At a price of 3,520 yen (US$24), the Pokémon Fossil Excavation Kit isn't the cheapest piece of Pokémon merch around, and since it's something you literally have to crack, pulverize, and otherwise break to play with, there's not really any replay value either. But we absolutely enjoyed taking this nostalgic trip down into the memory mineshafts, and if you'd like to too, the kit can be ordered through the Pokémon Center Online store here. Photos ©SoraNews24 ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! [ Read in Japanese ]
Economic Times
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Economic Times
Pokémon Legends: Z-A: How to preorder and get free gifts? See release date, platforms, setting, game cover, and Pokémon Presents date and where to watch
The Pokémon Company International has announced the official release date for Pokémon Legends: Z-A. A summer Pokémon Presents video presentation has also been scheduled. Pokémon Legends: Z-A will be released on Thursday, October 16, 2025. The game will be available for both the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. Preorders begin on June 5 through the Nintendo eShop. Buyers can choose a digital or physical version. Those who buy the Nintendo Switch version can later upgrade to the Switch 2 Edition by purchasing an upgrade pack. The upgrade packs will be available on the Nintendo eShop and My Nintendo Store. Also Read: GTA 6: Is upcoming game worth waiting for? Here's release date, map, global release time, gameplay and platforms The game's cover art has been revealed. It shows the lead characters and their Pokémon in Lumiose City. A Mega-Evolved Pokémon appears in the scene, which takes place at night. Pokémon Legends: Z-A is different from past games. It includes real-time battles and takes place in one city. Players will explore the city and experience the story with their Pokémon next month, those who preorder the game from Pokémon Center in the US, Canada, or the UK will receive a free plush. The plush will be one of three Pokémon: Chikorita, Tepig, or Totodile. Supplies are limited, and the plush is selected at Read: Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Season 4: Release date, time, new weapons, maps, modes and maps The next Pokémon Presents video presentation will stream on Tuesday, July 22. Fans can watch the broadcast on the official Pokémon YouTube channel. When will Pokémon Legends: Z-A be released? The game will launch worldwide on October 16, 2025, for Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. What do I get for preordering from Pokémon Center? Preorders include a random Sitting Cuties plush of Chikorita, Tepig, or Totodile, while supplies last.
Time of India
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Pokémon Legends: Z-A: How to preorder and get free gifts? See release date, platforms, setting, game cover, and Pokémon Presents date and where to watch
The Pokémon Company International has announced the official release date for Pokémon Legends: Z-A. A summer Pokémon Presents video presentation has also been scheduled. Release Date, Platforms and How to Preorder Pokémon Legends: Z-A will be released on Thursday, October 16, 2025. The game will be available for both the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. Preorders begin on June 5 through the Nintendo eShop. Buyers can choose a digital or physical version. Those who buy the Nintendo Switch version can later upgrade to the Switch 2 Edition by purchasing an upgrade pack. The upgrade packs will be available on the Nintendo eShop and My Nintendo Store. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Unsold Container Homes in Davao Del Sur - Prices You Won't Believe! Shipping Container Homes | Search Ads Search Now Undo Also Read: GTA 6: Is upcoming game worth waiting for? Here's release date, map, global release time, gameplay and platforms Game Cover and Setting The game's cover art has been revealed. It shows the lead characters and their Pokémon in Lumiose City. A Mega-Evolved Pokémon appears in the scene, which takes place at night. Live Events Pokémon Legends: Z-A is different from past games. It includes real-time battles and takes place in one city. Players will explore the city and experience the story with their Pokémon companions. Free Gifts Starting next month, those who preorder the game from Pokémon Center in the US, Canada, or the UK will receive a free plush. The plush will be one of three Pokémon: Chikorita, Tepig, or Totodile. Supplies are limited, and the plush is selected at random. Also Read: Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Season 4: Release date, time, new weapons, maps, modes and maps Pokémon Presents Presentation Date and Where to Watch The next Pokémon Presents video presentation will stream on Tuesday, July 22. Fans can watch the broadcast on the official Pokémon YouTube channel. FAQs When will Pokémon Legends: Z-A be released? The game will launch worldwide on October 16, 2025, for Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. What do I get for preordering from Pokémon Center? Preorders include a random Sitting Cuties plush of Chikorita, Tepig, or Totodile, while supplies last.
