Starting this summer, PokeBeach will be hosting sanctioned, online Pokemon video game tournaments ran by Games - Ohio (http://www.games-oh.com/). Before we can get to that point, we wanted to gather some feedback in an attempt to better tailor this event series to the Pokemon players on PokeBeach. Keep in mind that there are some things that cannot be done as The Pokemon Company International (TPCi) has placed some limitations on sanctioned, online tournaments. What follows is a look at what has been planned thus far for the event page. The page will go live once we have reached a point of complete satisfaction and can plan the first event. Please comment to leave your questions and thoughts as well as give me up to a week to respond due to other commitments. Thanks.
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Welcome to the PokeBeach & Games – Ohio Video Game Championship Series! Up to 64 players will duke it out in an officially sanctioned swiss format tournament to determine who is currently the best Pokemon video game player on PokeBeach! All matches will be conducted according to the official Play! Pokemon VG Rules and Formats (http://www.pokemon.com/us/play-pokemon/about/tournaments-rules-and-resources/) document. Who will claim the coveted golden ribbon?
All announcements will be posted in this news story and its associated forum thread, as you can see below. Be sure to bookmark this page and check back regularly for the latest updates and pairings!
The Pokemon Company International (TPCi) Requirements
- All tournaments must have “Online” in its name when sanctioned.
- All tournaments must be based upon the current standard rule set.
- Players must be at least 16 years of age as of this year to participate (Masters Division).
- Players must have a Pokemon Organized Play [POP] identification number (A POP ID number can be issued to new players. It is also referred to simply as a player ID).
- Standard Pokemon (Legal/Modified-VGC) Format
- Level 50+ Pokémon, 6-on-6 flat, double battles with no handicaps.
- Up to six Pokemon placed in Battle Box & two Pokemon cannot hold the same item.
- No Soul Dew or banned Pokemon.
- This is a swiss round tournament. All players move on to the next round, but top cut becomes single elimination.
- All matches must be conducted with the proper Nintendo equipment. No exceptions.
Registration Ends: Thirty (30) minutes prior to the start of the tournament.
Single Game (Swiss) Rounds: Fifteen (15) minutes times the number of rounds.
Best of Three Games Top Cut (Single Elimination) Rounds: Forty-five (45) minutes times the number of rounds.
All match results must be reported as the tournament progresses or both players will be issued a tie. Note that colluding is not allowed, and that Battle Video codes will be collected.
Registration
- Registration will be open at least two hours prior to the start of the tournament. There needs to be at least eight registered players for the tournament to be sanctioned.
- The registration form will ask for your POP ID, First Name, Last Name, Date of Birth and PokeBeach Username. You will only need to provide your e-mail address if you want to join the Games – Ohio mail list. Future event details will be included in the monthly newsletter.
- This tournament may have up to six (6) single game rounds and three (3) best-of-three games top cut rounds. Single game rounds may last up to 15 minutes while best-of-three games top cut rounds may last up to 45 minutes.
- You can only participate in this tournament if you are in a North American time zone or can commit to its schedule. If you are in a completely incompatible time zone than most of our players, you should not register for this tournament. All times are of the Eastern United States time zone.
- To sign up, complete and submit the Pokemon Video Game Team Registration form linked from the tournament’s forum topic.
- To participate, you must have a proper Nintendo console and game for the format operating with the latest hard and software updates.
- Your tournament organizer is Ntanel (http://www.pokebeach.com/forums/members/ntanel.9239/). If you have any questions or issues, feel free to send him a PM. Although, he prefers that you ask via the tournament thread so others with the same question may receive an answer as well.
- Chat Room: Log into the chat room. All tournament business between the players and the tournament organizer will be conducted via this method.
- For simplicity, as your real name will be used, it is recommended to set your nickname as your FIRSTNAME_LAST-INITIAL in the Chat Room. Once in the Chat Room, you can type, “/nick FIRSTNAME_LAST_INITIAL” to change your nickname.
- Streaming Video: Play the streaming video. The tournament organizer will be using the video to display match pairings and results.
- Round Start: Match pairings will be posted via streaming video prior to the start of each round. When the pairings have been posted, it is your immediate duty to contact your opponent, exchange Friend Codes and battle them.
- To send a Private Message via the Chat Room, click the name of the player in the users list to open a Private Message window.
- Battle Time: Time to battle! Make sure that when you are done, you have saved your Battle Video – you will need to submit your Battle Video code when reporting. We need this so that we can verify both players’ teams are as registered.
- To find your Battle Video’s code, connect to the Internet. Then, go into your game’s bag and use the key item known as the Vs. Recorder. Once you have found the video, if you place the cursor upon it and no code is displayed at the top of the screen, you will need to click on the video to make it public. After the battle video is public, the code (EX: WF3W-WWWW-WWW5-VAT2) will appear. When 24 hours has passed, you can remove the battle video from the public by clicking on its icon and then the down arrow.
- Reporting Matches: The winner of the match must report the results to the tournament organizer and submit a Battle Video code. This is so we can confirm that matches actually took place and to resolve any potential disputes. If this information is not reported, both players will be issued a tie for the round.
- Delays: There may be delays with communications as well as with the completion of rounds due to the live nature of this tournament. All efforts will be made to reduce delays, including the penalization of players. Players will have up to three minutes to exchange information once a round has begun, so it best to have it done before the round begins. A delay of three minutes in a single game match will be a match loss, while in a best of three games top cut match will be a single game loss.
- Dropping: If you would like to drop from a tournament in between rounds, simply let the tournament organizer know. If you drop from a tournament this way, the only penalty is that you will lose all points that you have gained from it. However, if you drop your connection without any notice, you will be initially issued a loss and after a second round of non-response be dropped from the tournament.
- Penalties: Players who are dropped from the tournament for any reason other than those mentioned above will be banned from participating in any PokeBeach event for 60 days, will lose all points earned in the tournament, and will lose an additional six points from their overall PokeBeach Tournament Score. Additional offenses could result in an overall ban from the site. Dropping will also prevent players from receiving Pokemon Play Points.
PokeBeach members earn badges next to their usernames that are visible on all parts of the website. These badges denote your accomplishments to other members and viewers. If you place high enough in this tournament, you are eligible to win the following:
Top Eight: GO Exclusive Pokemon (http://www.games-oh.com/cms/events/distribution/)
3rd place: Bronze Ribbon
2nd place: Silver Ribbon
Champion: Golden Ribbon
Players that participate in this tournament are also awarded Tournament Points with PokeBeach and Play Points with The Pokemon Company International. The higher that you rank with PokeBeach, the more points that you earn!