While Pokemon fans across the world were starting their new journey in Kalos, the Pokemon Center in Tokyo held a premiere event packed with new merchandise and the unveiling of their new XY themed statue.

It’s no secret in Japan that if you want to get the newest Pokemon merchandise you go to the Pokemon Center in your area, whether it’s as far south as Fukuoka in Kyushu, or as far north as Sapporo in Hokkaido. For fans in Tokyo, where the first Pokemon Center officially opened permanently, a special release event for the Pokemon XY games showed off a set of new statues and some huge new merchandise. Of course, for such a momentous occasion it also meant huge crowds.

Among those observing the huge crowds was Junichi Masuda, the director of the Pokemon Games, who video-chatted the entire crowd from Paris as the screen was paraded around.

Every Pokemon Center features a main statue with Pikachu and two other Pokemon on it as a unique marker for that location. Last year, for instance, Tokyo’s statue featured Pikachu, Charmander, and Piplup greeting fans.

Pikachu and Charmander stayed for the new statue, but Piplup was replaced by the newest water starter, Froakie.

Of course, statues of the two new legendary Pokemon, Xerneas and Yvetal also had to replace the previous Reshiram and Zekrom statues that stood guard over the store.

Some of the goods released for the occasion included keystraps, clearfiles, and figures of the legendary Yvetal, and new plushies of the starters and legendary Pokemon in a smaller size.

The real draw was, of course, the super-sized plushies of the starters. By the time the event was in full swing, many of the Fennekin ones had been snatched up by excited trainers.

Speaking of trainers, some fans even showed up in cosplay for the event.

It wouldn’t be a Pokemon event without Ash and Gary, and as always they look like they’re competing, this time over who’s going home with the bag of Pokemon merchandise.

If you purchased the game over the weekend, you probably already know how exciting the atmosphere in the Pokemon Center was before all the new merchandise was revealed. The real question is, which plushie would you have snatched up?

Check out even more gaming news here on SGCafe!

Feel free to join in the community discussions going on in the forums.

Source: Famitsu

Leave a comment