Pokemon VGC Player Uninvited From Worlds, Leaving Fans Angry
Pokemon VGC players have been reporting that they are uninvited from the Pokemon World Championship, confusing and angering trainers around the world.
Pokemon Worlds is looking to be one of the most hype Pokemon events yet. Held in Japan this August, it’s where all of the top Pokemon players in the world will come together to see who is the champion of the card game, video game, and Pokemon UNITE.
To compete at Worlds, trainers have to qualify by getting high placements in sanctioned tournaments, both regionals and online events. This means that competitive players have been grinding for points all year long.
This made it all the more upsetting when a well known VGC player, Ray Rizzo, announced on Twitter that he received an official email from Pokemon uninviting him from Worlds.
“I’ve now been uninvited from the World Championships, and will have to compete for a spot at Worlds again. This debacle of a qualification system is an absolute shit-show,” he tweeted.
In Rizzo’s case, he competed in an online tournament and got a high placement that allowed him to get the amount of points he needed to compete at Worlds. Unfortunately, the online system malfunctioned and the ratings and battles were not tracked.
During the tournament, the players had to continuously play matches without any break at all due to the error, making it all the more frustrating when Rizzo did it all for nothing.
Another online tournament will be held in its place, with the results determining who will get the points and qualify for Worlds. This means that someone else entirely could qualify instead of Rizzo.
“Pokémon’s qualification system is just badly organized. And it still baffles me that in a tournament, two people can have the exact same W/L in Swiss but only one makes it to top cut,” replied on annoyed Pokemon player.
How Do You Qualify For Pokemon Worlds?
To qualify for Worlds, Masters (adults) in the United States need 500 points for that season. This was a bit of a challenge in 2022-2023 since there were no League Cups. Previously, competitive Pokemon players would compete in local Challenges and Cups to rack up 50 points a win.
Most Pokemon players flew around the country — and world — to compete in Regional Championships. Usually these tournaments would have 700 or more Master players. Winning one gets you 200 points and money. You also get points for getting in the top half of players and up.
Pokemon Worlds will be in Japan from August 11 to August 13. Even if you don’t qualify, you can attend as a guest or compete in side tournaments and fun matches. You’ll also have access to one-of-a-kind Pokemon Center products.
Unfortunately, the festive event has been soured with the mishandling of the recent online VGC tournament. Uninviting a talented, popular player for their own mistake has definitely added to the list of grievances the community has against the Pokemon Company.
