Welkamo Pip

There's been a lot of talk about the 2024 Pokémon TCG Illustration Contest as the Top 300 Entries have been revealed. Most controversial, however, are accusations that certain contestants have submitted images created with generative AI, with fans pointing out a range of issues with certain images, including inconsistencies in background details, strange proportions, and a rendered-like style common with AI generated images. The Pokémon Company has now addressed these issues in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter), announcing that certain entrants have been disqualified, and that additional artists would be selected to replace them in the Top 300 list.

A set of 5 new Poké Lids have been unveiled ahead of their installation across Wakayama Prefecture in Japan over the coming two months. These Poke Lids were illustrated by Saya Tsuruta, who fans may recognize as a prominent TCG card artist and the designer of Pokemon like Audino and Goomy. Saya also illustrated the location previews in Pokémon Heart Gold and Soul Silver Versions.

Even more Poké Lids are coming, this time to Fukui Prefecture, where Dragonite is the Prefectural Ambassador. The six Poké Lids feature Dragonite, along with Archen and Tyrantrum (Katsuyama), Togetic and Zigzagoon (Awara), Honedge and Toxel (Echizen), Kubfu (Eiheiji), Tatsugiri (Takahama), and Mareanie and Wiglett (Mihama). These Lids were all illustrated by sowsow, a prominent Pokémon Trading Card Game illustrator who has also contributed illustrations to Pokémon Sleep and the Pokémon x Van Gogh museum exhibit.

March 10th is Oshawatt Day! In celebration, Mie Prefecture are installing six new Poké Lids with the Sea Otter Pokémon. These Lids also include Ditto (Minamiise), Spoink (Tamashiro), Meowth (Matsusaka), Lechonk and Phanpy (Taki), Surskit and Taillow (Kawagoe), and Cyclizar (Suzuka).

In the English-speaking world of the TCG, sites like PriceCharting and TCGPlayer allow purchasers to compare prices and find the average selling price of cards they might be looking for. Up until now however, Japanese fans have had much fewer options for their own local market. It's seems that's about to change however, with SEO company KABUKI Inc. having recently opened pokécazilla (ポケカジラ), a brand new website for comparing the prices of Japanese Pokémon cards. In addition to enabling purchasers to easily compare prices between different online marketplaces, pokécazilla also allows for making purchases directly through the pokécazilla website itself.

It's the spooky season, and Ghost types of all sorts are appearing this week all over Pokémon Scarlet and Violet: in Mass Outbreaks, in Tera Raids, and in a special Online Competition!

Pokémon was my queer awakening. I had silly little crushes on male and female characters alike, and I resonated with many of the designs of the series’s more gender nonconforming designs. Pokémon has always had a wink and a nod to queerness: Jessie and James’s genderbending antics, Beauty Nova in X and Y, Blanche from Pokémon GO… the list goes on. But with Scarlet and Violet, queerness shines bright as celestial stars.

Pokémon Sleep has now racked up more than ten million downloads across both Android and iOS devices. In celebration, a special gift is being given out to all players who log-in to the game between August 25th at 5:00am (UTC), and September 22nd at 5:00am (UTC).

Earlier today, Niantic announced the launch of the Pokémon GO Web Store, as a new way for Trainers to be able to purchase PokéCoins. While only available in select regions for now, the store will be rolled out to additional regions globally in the near future.

Singaporean entomologists Foo Maosheng and Ipis Lord have discovered a new genus of cockroach, Nocticola pheromosa. If that name sounds familiar, it might be because Pheromosa is also the name of a Pokémon! An Ultra Beast also known as UB-02 Beauty, the Lissome Pokémon was first seen in Pokémon Sun and Moon.

An update on the Pokémon Trading Card Game's official Japanese homepage has revealed the majority of the remaining new cards for the upcoming Scarlet and Violet expansion pack, including the debut cards of many Pokémon first revealed in the newest entries to the franchise.

A new version of Pokémon Masters EX game, Version 2.26.0, became available for download on October 26th. Amongst other changes, this new version brings with it updates to sales of gems in the in-game store, including changes to purchase limits for minors. The producers of Pokémon Masters EX have also revealed details on several new components to the game in their monthly message to players, along with information about upcoming Sync Pairs. The next letter is slated for late November and will include information about new Sync Pairs coming in December, as well as details on events that will be running over the holiday period.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are close, but even closer is Halloween, and even closer... Greavard, the newest Pokémon to join the roster! Greavard was revealed earlier today in a special video teaser uploaded to Pokémon's official social media channels, with additional information being released shortly afterwards via press release and an update to the official site.

Halloween is right around the corner, and in celebration, Pokémon Masters EX will be seeing a rerun of the Midnight Battle Ball Story Event. Seasonal Morty, Caitlin, Hilbert, and Acerola also return for a limited time in Seasonal Spotlight, Tiered, and Ticket Scouts.