Two more C-Gear skins....

Until September 6, 2012, American and European Trainers can get a Worlds 2012 C-Gear skin using the password WCSCGEAR2012.

Also during that same period, a Crustle C-Gear skin is available for download for those who can't get enough of that little rock lobster. The password is CRUSTLECGEAR2012.

Worlds 2012 site now up!

...and the Masters' final round will be streamed live. Link here

Best of luck to all competitors!

Fight over Pokemon cards leads to something positive

Remember the fad years of Pokemon and all that came with it, good and bad? Remember when people used to fight over valuable cards? Well, it looks like something good may have come out of it after all.

The Daily Mail tells the tale of how UK Olympic judo hopeful Ashley McKenzie took up the sport. Long story short: as a youth, he tried to get a Charizard card back from a kid who stole it from him. The kid defeats him with a judo throw. Impressed, McKenzie does some research on the Internet, takes up judo, and the rest is history. I wish him the best of luck.

Wonder if he ever got another Charizard card?

Seize the Day with Porygon!

From now until September 27, Pokemon fans can get a Porygon with the special ability Analytic from the Dream World. A Porygon2 doll for one's virtual room and Porygon-Z C-Gear skin are also available. The doll requires no password to obtain, but the other two items require a password. The passwords are:

• Porygon: IGNPORYGON
• Porygon-Z C-Gear skin: PORYZCGEAR2012

Good luck to all at Nationals!

Later today, America's best Pokemon TCG players will be duking it out in Indianapolis, Indiana for the chance to become the 2012 National Champion. Tomorrow, it will be the video game players' turn to show who's worthy. Best of luck to all competitors!


Good Luck | Forward this Picture

The Pokemon Global Link is back up!

The Pokemon Global Link is back up, and it looks better than ever! I especially like the "Earth-from-space" look of the main page. The Cool Hole is now open and has been renamed the Icy Cave. Many Ground- and Ice-type Pokemon can be found there, including Sneasel, Onix, Snorunt, and Diglett. For those of you lucky enough to have Pokemon Black or White 2, you can actully catch Unova Pokemon in the Icy Cave, including Drilbur and Druddigon. Can't wait for that!

The Dream Catalogue has been updated with new furniture (mostly bath-related items), two new houses (a Treehouse and a Tropical Hut), and more Pokemon Dolls than a teenager's bedroom. Start growing those berries!

Quote of the Whenever: Amen, brother

Seen on a bumper sticker during my drive to work a few weeks ago:

God

is Non-Denominational

Love Your Neighbor!



2012-13 Pokemon TCG rotation announced

The Modified format for the 2012-13 season will be BW-on. The rotation will take place on September 1, a few weeks after Worlds.

To get you prepared, here are a few deck ideas from Japan's Spring Battle Carnival, courtesy of the Pokegym. Hydreigon/Darkrai EX and Garchomp/Altaria look like the decks I'll be using next year.

Ba-da-ba-ba-baaaaa, I'm really lovin' it!

From now until July 5, Pokemon toys are available in McDonalds' Happy Meals. There are six toys in all - Servine, Pignite, Dewott, Woobat, Axew, and of course Pikachu - and each comes bundled with a Pokemon TCG card and a Pokemon TCG Online code card that unlocks a 60-card deck and an item for your avatar.

Pictures of the toys can be found here, and the trading cards here.

(And will someone please tell the powers that be at McD's that Pokemon is more than just a boys' game?)

The Pokemon Global Link is on hiatus...

...until June 21 in preparation for the release of Pokemon Black and White 2 in Japan. In the meantime, any tucked-in Pokemon cannot be awakened, and Game Sync and other Global Link features will be unavailable. However, your patience will be rewarded: the new Global Link will have a new Dream World area, the Cool Hole, as well as many other cool features.

Play Ball!

Sorry for not posting here for a long time (been having these weird post-cold symptoms - restless arms, dry mouth), but I'll let you folks know I'm not dead.

Anyway, baseball season is once again upon us, with my hometown Miami Marlins going up against the St. Louis Cardinals in our brand spankin' new ballpark (go Fish!).

I love baseball - it's a very geeky sport with lots of odd stats and trivia. And there's a lot of science to it, as these websites from the San Francisco Exploratorium and Discover magazine show.

Thank you for hanging in with me during these times, and may your team win!

Fixing Warped Cards

If you've played the Pokemon TCG for any length of time, you've probably had this happen: One or more of the foil cards in your deck has warped and sticks out like the proverbial sore thumb. Getting your cards flat again can be a tricky task. But before you spend the money to get replacement cards, try one of these techniques suggested by the folks at the Pokegym:

1. Take a tube that will accomodate the card (such as a TP tube), insert the card so it bends in the opposite direction of the warp, push it gently against the walls of the tube, and quickly (this is key - you don't want it warped in the opposite direction!) pull it out.
2. Place the card(s) under several heavy books (schoolbooks, old encyclopedias) overnight.
3. Put the card(s) under an old T-shirt and iron at a medium setting for a few minutes, then place the card in a book under a heavy weight overnight. I wouldn't try this with any valuable cards, however.
4. Place the card(s) in a book, then place the book in the freezer for a while. Weird, but it suppsedly works.

Reshiram/Zekrom Nintendo WiFi Download

From now until April 8, anyone in Europe, North America, or Australia with a copy of Pokemon Black or White can download a Reshiram (Pokemon White) or Zekrom (Pokemon Black) from Nintendo WiFi. These Pokemon are at Level 100, carry a Dragon Gem (which grants a one-time boost of a Dragon-type attack), and have the exclusive moves Mist (Reshiram) or Haze (Zekrom). These special Pokemon also unlock a special area in the Dream World where you can play a mini-game to unlock a very special C-Gear skin.

Also, you can get a Victini doll to decorate your Dream World home. The password is: PGLVICTNI12.

Pokemon Black and White 2: Electric (and Fiery) Boogaloo

Last Saturday, Pokemon Black and White 2 were officially announced - first on on Japanese TV, and on the offical websites soon after. This marks the first time the "third" installment of a Pokemon game was an actual sequel, as opposed to a remake with more bells and whistles. Two new forms of Kyurem have also been revealed, both of them fusions with either Reshiram (in White 2) or Zekrom (in Black 2). (Personally, I think Black Kyurem (the Zekrom fusion) is way cooler-looking than White Kyurem (the Reshiram fusion), but to each their own.)

The games are scheduled to be released in June 2012 in Japan and fall 2012 in Europe and the Americas. More info as it appears.

News has been slow....

Not much has been going on in the Pokemon world as of late (save for Keldeo's official revelation), so I've been taking some time to enjoy life. Counting down to States, attending my local Leagues (and growing my own), tearing my hair out trying to get the new Pokemon-EX - yeah, life's been good.

Internet Quote of the Whenever: White Irony

"The funny thing about white supremacists is that all the reasons they give for white people being superior to black people would make Asian people superior to them."

"Nova" on the Alternate History Discussion Board, February 4, 2012.

Oh God! Arceus in the Dream World (plus more Mewtwo stuff)

Pokemon Trainers voted, and Nintendo listened! From now until May 1, Arceus will be available internationally via Global Link. The Alpha Pokemon is Level 100 and knows Recover, Hyper Beam, Perish Song, and Judgment. The password is ARCEUSVOTE.

In related news, there is some confusion over the end date of the Mewtwo Wi-Fi giveaway (which starts tomorrow). Most press releases say February 26, whereas Pokemon.com says March 6. Regardless of the date, it's a good idea to snap Mewtwo up as soon as you can.

For those of you who frequent the Pokemon TCG Online website, a Mewtwo T-shirt is available for your online avatar. For those of you who don't want to play the Trainer Club Spin game on the main site, the password is MEWTWO2012.

Mewtwo-A-Go-Go

The Pokemon world has gone crazy over Mewtwo lately, thanks to the upcoming release of EX:Next Destinies and the highly anticipated Mewtwo EX card. Shortly after the release of Next Destinies on February 8, a special Mewtwo Collection box containing two Next Destinies packs, a Mewtwo EX jumbo card, a cool Mewtwo figure, an exclusive Battle City Stadium card promo, and (of course) a Pokemon TCG Online code card, will be released.

If the video games are more of your bag, then there's good news for you as well: a special Mewtwo will be given out via Nintendo WiFi. The Level 70 Mewtwo will have a random nature, hold a King's Rock, and know a move Mewtwo doesn't ordinarily know: Electro Ball. The promotion starts February 12.

To learn more about Mewtwo and EX:Next Destinies (and to download some cool wallpapers in the process!), you can go to Pokemon.com's mini-site here.