Players vow to keep up protests as official Pokémon tournaments fall apart in Asia

In light of all the recent tournament disqualifications and bans, Pokémon players are determined to make their voices heard by The Pokémon Company (TPC) regarding an unfair qualification system, poor communication, and a lack of respect within competitive circuits across Asia.

Just yesterday, four of Korea’s top players went from being disqualified from their national tournament to being permanently banned from future Pokémon Korea (TPCK) events. They had all agreed to protest the injustices within their circuit by bringing Metronome-only teams to the final stages of the Pokémon Trainers Cup. Since Metronome randomly selects a move for the user, the winner would have been left up to luck instead of calculations and mind games.

The move’s luck-based nature is somewhat a reflection of circuits in Asia. Many Asian circuits rely on a best-of-one single-elimination qualification system, featuring larger variance than the best-of-three format used by the rest of the world. Anything can happen in best-of-ones, and it doesn’t feel great knowing luck can be the deciding factor in these matches. 

In response to the Metronome protest, other VGC players have shown their support. A few players mentioned the possibility of bringing their own Metronome teams to Worlds, while one player already brought the team to Milwaukee Regionals last weekend.

Other players are spreading the word with a drawing of The Pokémon Company’s (TPC) Chief Operating Officer Takato Utsunomiya stating, “We hope many players from Asia will take an active role in the scene,” in this video. 

Unfortunately, it feels like TPC is doing the opposite of what the COO had hoped. Rather than growing the competitive scene in Asia, they’re upsetting players, if not outright banishing them from their circuits. Many players in Asia feel disrespected by the whole situation.

The image was held on stream at the Taiwan National Championships by Chien-Chien Tsai, who made it to the top 8 of the tournament. The player also named his Pokémon team after issues within the circuit.

In addition, players plan on making stickers and clothes with the design to get their point across to TPC. The text on the back of the shirts translates to “impossible,” which was the response from a TPC representative at Taiwan Nationals after players attempted to vocalize their frustrations, according to Tsai.

Taiwanese player Yang-Jie Huang intends to bring the stickers to the World Championships in Yokohama, Japan, in August. As the biggest Pokémon tournament of the year, Worlds should be the perfect place to be heard by TPC, but it comes with the risk of more bans and disqualifications.