Community vs. Central Management

The great thing about Pokémon is that many people, including yours truly, really enjoy it in all its forms. That leads to the formation of many communities that are focused on making the current Pokémon situation a good one. At the same time, Pokémon is also an important property of three entities, so the brand has to be managed centrally somehow to preserve its importance. The issue of management between these two areas becomes an interesting one to discuss based on the twists and turns involved.

It is true that "community" management is pretty much considered unofficial management, but the results of that management may just aid or illustrate a possible direction for official central management. In my local TCG scene, for example, one person has gone out of the person's way to provide as much info as possible on what goes on with the TCG, so much so that the person is now effectively considered the brand ambassador by some. Meanwhile, for Pokémon Go, The Silph Road is unrivaled in the way that it manages aspects of Pokémon Go that even the game itself doesn't manage. Its systems (in particular its tournament system) also appear to be continuously improving. These are great things, of course, even if they remain unofficial; eventually they may have to be embraced.

As for the central amounting-to-official management, certainly it has to respond to happenings in the scene of the games. Continuing the mentioned game examples, one of the things that the person helped for players is the declaration and replacement of cards with "errata" on them, one of the things that plagued the launch of the localized cards; the fact that these cards are being taken care of shows great responsibility and management. Over on the Pokémon Go side, an example is for Community Day, in particular the recent one: while everyone else enjoyed the festivities, Japan didn't, for a typhoon swept its way on the same day, and the festivities there were called off. I'd say that's good management too, although just recently that management seemed to have erred a bit - more details soon.

With Pokémon being so big today, many things can and do happen. There has to be some kind of management to respond to those things. Fortunately, many of those in the communities seem up to the task of making sure that does happen, while the central management does its thing to continue serving Pokémon goodness to everyone. That being considered, both are necessary to check and balance each other regarding the things that have been put forth. In that way, we all really can enjoy everything Pokémon.

One year ago: Cosplay: Akatsuki no Matsuri
Two years ago: Never Stop Exploring

Cosplay: KAI ESports Exhibition

Me: Hey, want to get into something big?

Ash: Like what?

Me: Like this exhibition or event. It's a little different from the usual, but it works. This one, as the title suggests, is an exhibition for competitive games that some people play, although I don't really play them. I do, however, play one game which could be considered one because of a certain circumstance, but it didn't make it here.

Ash: Hey, I think I get what you're talking about! I want in!

Pikachu: Pika pika! [affirmative]

Me: Yeah, I think you know. So, I wasn't originally planning on sending you here; there is a character competition, but at first I thought it was going to be limited to characters from those other games I was talking about. But then it was decided to open the competition to everyone, so now I could send you in.

Ash: But I heard your figure friends will be meeting.

Me: Yes, that's true. But an opportunity to send you is valuable, sometimes in more ways than one, so I didn't end up going. All right, so now that I've sent you, you might recognize the place that it's in.

Ash: Hey! I've been here lots of times!

Pikachu: Pika chu! [amazed]

Me: Well, a big exhibition like this needs a really big place, and the place is one of the biggest locally, so it's no wonder. Now, what was it like inside?

Ash: It's like those other times, but a lot of it is tied to those games. And you don't play them, right?

Me: No, none of them really interest me. If I were, then I'd be in the competitions by now - just like that one time!

Ash: Yeah, I can't argue with that.

Me: OK, so the big thing for us and you today is the character competition, which is a parade today. How was it?

Ash: It was great! There were 30 or so characters on stage, and we all looked good. But even with 10 favorites and 3 best ones, I didn't win. I thought a couple of my other character friends really could win, but they also didn't. It's kind of odd, don't you think?

Me: Someone once said that a parade competition like this is kind of like a lottery, even given the usual judging criteria. Remember last year?

Ash: Oh yeah! That one was a bit hard to decide. I guess you might be right.

Pikachu: Pi, pika pika... [exasperated]

Me: The point is that we did what we can. Big hint: we can try our chances again real soon, so be ready.

Ash: I will!

Pikachu: Pika! ["I will too!"]

Me: That's great. Now, what do you think of this as a whole?

Ash: It's neat that this happened, and the stands were pretty good today. There were not many people, not like the usual one, but I can understand - different people like different things. I'm glad you sent me.

Me: I'm glad too. Now, I also have to remark that a month or two ago, there was this same event, but held in a different and pretty faraway town. Plus, this weekend there is actually a really major convention in another faraway town. So you know, it kind of makes up for those.

Ash: I guess things actually worked out.

Me: You know what? You're spot on. Now let's see if they really can next time.

One year ago: Pokémon and Adventure Games
Two years ago: Respect for Ikue Ootani

Pokémon Go Community Day, 10/12/2019

Personally, my experience with Community Days in Pokémon Go involves an issue called "optimization". That is, can I get the most out of this event with what has been given and what I've done? It's always a hard question to answer since I don't know what will happen and how things will turn out. The answer may be even harder to discern given the specific particulars for each month.

This month, though, it may be something that many have long awaited. The featured Pokémon is Trapinch, which has long been a speculated Community Day fodder due to its Egg presence, having been in 10 km Eggs before. The exclusive move for its final evolution, Flygon, is the Ground-type Earth Power, which suits its typing, making it potentially useful; as with last month, the move window is also extended. The additional bonus this month is triple XP for captures, which is really more beneficial for lower-level players, not so much players who have reached Level 40 like me.

A few things that make this month a little different than usual is being able to spin PokéStops for 2 km Eggs that contain the featured Pokémon, alongside certain Level 1 raids for them as with that of the previous month. Also, Field Research rewards were also changed slightly: including the usual rewards of Pinap Berries, Great Balls, and Ultra Balls, it is now possible to get a Golden Razz Berry, or even better yet, a possible encounter with another Trapinch, which is similar to the Squirtle one last year, only without a special accessory.

As to how I did this month, even with only a few tens of Pokémon in my storage space, I caught many Trapinch, but I mostly discarded those with lesser stats; however, I didn't raid or hatch an Egg for the Pokémon, and I only found two Field Research Tasks that rewarded the Pokémon. I also caught only two Shiny Trapinch, which is among the fewest of any Community Day Pokémon I've caught. I traded with someone else the ones I caught but didn't want, and got one Lucky one in return, plus another from trading miscellaneous Pokémon. Of all of these, I evolved one with really good stats, the first Lucky one I received, and the best of the two Shiny ones I caught. I also have a few other Trapinch for other considerations and enough Candy stock for future uses.

Based on these results, I suppose I've "optimized" the Community Day enough to get a good result out of it. Others might say it's meager, but for now it seems sufficient. Further plans in the future may benefit from the rest of what I've gained, but that's to be decided later on. Given the same question for any Trainer in Pokémon Go, different answers may be expected just as the answer is hard to discern for me or anyone else.

One year ago: Finding and Re-Finding Players
Two years ago: The (De Facto) Series Mascot

Shuffle Secrets

It's actually been some time since I've written about Pokémon Shuffle - particularly its 3DS version - on this blog, which may be because of the obvious decline of the 3DS. Even so, it's one of the games I still play on it, primarily because of its accessibility and simplicity, and especially with other things I have going on. Even with that, the game still has a few intriguing secrets (or at least non-obvious things) of its own, and they deserve a bit of discussion as well, for which this post is for that.

When playing a certain Escalation Stage - one of the types of Special Stages in the game - every so often, the Pokémon will become "angered" after a stage level is completed. In this state, its stage level is elevated temporarily to a higher level, usually 3 to 5 levels more than what it would be at that current point. Defeating the Pokémon elevates the stage level to that level plus one; failure to do so (whether by running out of moves or quitting the stage) returns the Pokémon to the normal stage level, likewise if the Pokémon is not battled within 10 minutes after entering that state. The process is almost completely random and does not occur consistently; in fact, in the past, this state sometimes enabled one to skip major prize stages, which is both beneficial as the prize is still rewarded, and an "unfair advantage" if the skipped prize stage is a hard one. Nevertheless, the "angered" state still occurs and is still quite useful for saving Hearts.

Another secret involves one of the enhancements, which would be the Raise Max Level. As I've noted previously, this enhancement "uncaps" the maximum level of a Pokémon to a certain extent. Initially, this only was possible for a select few Pokémon, with more being added over time. Today, however, this enhancement can be used for all Pokémon, with at least 5 for all and more for others. Even with that, it is most likely that one will not use it for absolutely every Pokémon, since not all may be battle-ready in difficult stages. The usage scenario will therefore likely remain to use the enhancement for the most useful and necessary Pokémon before the others, especially those that aren't at maximum level. Even with this enhancement having a broader scope and being given more, wisdom in usage is still important.

Finally, for those who have completed the 700 Main Stages, they can be challenged again as something called UX Stages, which are accessed immediately after completion of Stage 700. These stages are the same as their regular counterparts, even in the same order, but with one important difference: they are much harder to play through. These stages, therefore, are a test to see how higher-level and therefore stronger Pokémon fare in battle. All the same, S Ranks obtained in these stages also count for unlocking Expert Stages, so they become a kind of "alternative assistance" for those who are having trouble earning S Ranks on some of the regular Main Stages in addition to their role as a challenging front. Those who have the mettle and many powerful Pokémon should definitely give these stages a try.

Now that they're out in the open, these "secrets" can hardly be classified as secrets anymore. But for those who are still playing and haven't discovered them, they remain as such, until they are discovered, of course. As for the voyage of discoveries within this game, I'm sure many have finished theirs, but mine (and quite a number of others) will continue, at least until there are no more secrets like these to be fleshed out and the game wraps up on the 3DS due to its decline.

One year ago: Pokémon Game Journals
Two years ago: All That He Wants... (Is Another Victory)

Illusions of Success?

As a whole, Pokémon is a highly successful game franchise composed of many games within. People buy and/or spend on the games in great amounts. Even so, recent findings have shown that it might seem that not everything might be well for some of the games, indicated by certain goings-on related to them. It's a bit speculative, but that seems to be the way things go.

Pokémon Masters is one of the games involved. Despite raking in a significant amount of money through in-game purchases, it seems the content is problematic. Anyone who has played will certainly know about the spate of errors the game has had, evidenced by the amount of compensation for them. It seems the overall content is also on the short side and that the game is confusing to say the least. Now, I can't personally vouch for these complaints, not having had a chance to play, but these are what the producers have received. They say they will update the game progressively to address these complaints. I find this to be an irony, but with that accordingly being the truth, they can and should respond by doing so. And while it means I'm only likely to experience the game post facto, I'm always hoping for the best.

Next on the list is Pokémon Go, or something brewing under it. Apparently, in a few days or so, there will be a special ticket item for sale, which will let Trainers access an event scheduled for November 2. The event is called "A Colossal Discovery", and the keyword seems to be "colossal", as with it, it suggests that Regigigas will be in the mix somehow. The event itself seems to be no problem, but the "for sale" part seems to be, as reportedly Niantic's next-door game Ingress has used the same technique and a few have complained about these so-called "paid events". Thus, the ticket item up for sale is essentially a proxy for that in Pokémon Go. Given the game's success without such an implementation, it might seem odd for some to see it implemented. But then things seem to have to demand for this, even if the game remains successful.

These are, of course, in addition to other shakeups that have occurred earlier, one of them being the Duel game closing its doors. And then it's hard not to forget about the National Dex affair, which may still have some effects being felt today. With these, it's almost as if earlier successes are getting away and becoming illusory. Perhaps a better way of thinking about it is that earlier successes are going nowhere and that current successes are illusory first before becoming reality. It's the "reality" part that then results from the efforts being put in. Success may very well happen, but not as the illusion "suggests", which may be something to keep in mind.

Whatever happens, even for such an illusionary world, the success of Pokémon is breathtaking. I'm quite sure it will remain that way for the longest time ahead.

One year ago: People-Adventure or Pokémon-Adventure?
Two years ago: Kanto Starter Keychains

Hunting for Physical References

In the 20+ years that Pokémon has existed, its world has dramatically expanded from just games to a host of many things. It can be a tough thing to keep track of each of those things, so in this regard, references are needed. I've explained part of my ordeal in making my own set of references in the specific area of VGC in another post, and it's a tough thing. That is why I also like to seek (physical) Pokémon references that others have made, from different places. This is sometimes a practical and neat thing to do.

Online references are great, of course, but they have their own issues at times. BulbaPedia is great and informative, but sometimes for me personally it may be a bit too informative. Online strategy guides are neat and each one is unique, but they may not be very illustrative. Even other Pokémon-related things on the Internet may be good enough but the text, images, and structure may be off; in the case of my blog, I'm sure some people perceive it to be that way, even though I've done the best I can to avoid this situation. The point is that every fan can use some really great physical references in the form of books.

That leaves the question of where to find them. My local town is a good town for finding books, but not necessarily Pokémon ones or the ones that I want to read. The most recent Pokémon-related books I've obtained didn't come from my local town, but from places further away. It seems it may not be popular enough in my local town. On the other hand, in some faraway places, I can find places that readily sell books I want to read, including - yes - but not limited to Pokémon. Sometimes, the book fairs there are sufficiently large and also allow for Pokémon books to be sold, which means it becomes a matter of getting there, finding the desired books, and coming back with the "spoils".

It just so happens that one of these book fairs has recently been opened, and I actually had the chance today to see if I can bring back some Pokémon "reference" books for myself. Earlier, however, one of my figure fellows, and the top one at that, had obtained a really nice Pokémon reference book, which also was the last of its kind being sold; I can testify that I did not find the book in question. I did, however, come away with something that may not be quite a reference through and through, but it seems to be quite a reference nonetheless. This latter book will surely be on this blog in due time, though the former may or may not.

It's hard to deny that any Pokémon fan could use the services of physical references. They're meant to serve as alternatives to easily-obtained online references that may vary in quality. If they're good enough, then they may be worth to be a keeper in one's collection and to be shown off to fellow Pokémon fans. With that, I'm sure that like me, they'll really make the distance to end up with something that demonstrates how far Pokémon has come today and what are involved, as the function of the reference.

One year ago: What Pokémon Eat
Two years ago: Pokémon Jigsaw Puzzle

Someone Else's Points

In my discussion about Gym Badge progression in Pokémon Go, I had mentioned that there is really another progression for which the gold status of Gym Badges are important. That progression is something called "Kieng Points", which are a different way to measure the achievements and accomplishments of a Trainer in the game. The metrics for such a measurement still relates to in-game statistics, but the way that it is performed makes the metrics all the more important, for the Trainer and a select group of others.

These "Kieng Points" belong to a group on Facebook called TL40, which are a group of Trainers who have reached Level 40 and have accomplished major things. The points themselves are used as verification and entry criteria; if the resulting points are high enough, then a Trainer can be deemed to have made major accomplishments and therefore can apply to enter the group. As to why they are called "Kieng", they are so called as such because "Kieng" refers to a Pokémon Go Trainer of outstanding fame (Twitter: @PoGoKieng). In fact, so famous is he that he became one of the competitors in the inaugural, invitational Pokémon Go PvP tournament at the Pokémon World Championships this year. With that stature, he is obviously an important person - and so are these points.

The points themselves are a bit complicated to explain. These points are calculated using a spreadsheet, which can be gotten from the group or someone with connections to the group. To calculate the points, one inputs into the spreadsheet the values that are indicated; most values originate from Trainer Medals, but a few are sought in other places, like the number of gold Gym Badges, which is indeed one of the metrics. The values are compared with other Trainers' statistics by way of hidden data in the spreadsheet, and the percentiles are taken. The highest-valued percentiles are averaged, and the Kieng Points are obtained; if they're high enough, the spreadsheet will inform that they are so, for the eligibility to join the group. It should be noted that the spreadsheet changes from month to month, because Trainers also vary playing from month to month; spreadsheets from earlier months can still be used, but they amount to no more than a possible reference, and the current spreadsheet has to be used for eligibility.

As for myself, although I have reached the hallowed Level 40, my Kieng Points are far too few for eligibility of entry into the group. The last time I entered my values in the spreadsheet, my best-performing medal values are nowhere close to the percentiles needed to contribute a sufficiently high number of points for entry. To elevate those to a level that would achieve this situation would require near-herculean efforts, which could affirm one thing: these points are for very, very hardcore and dedicated players. With the way I play, it would take me a very long time to get to a state of eligibility. In any case, I'm not too concerned about eligibility, even if it should happen later on in the future.

These points are definitely not mine; they belong to the group and the namesake of the points. With that in mind, and where I stand regarding the points, I don't feel as if I'm involved with the points or the points would involve me at all. All the same, with my accomplishments, I do have my share of the points, though not a great deal. It is only with greater accomplishments and greater amounts of points that I can then say that the points would be then mine, in a manner of speaking.

One year ago: A Poké Ball Keychain
Two years ago: Cosplay: Kisetsu no Matsuri