TheSpeedGamers have announced that their next weeklong marathon will be from June 15th, 2012 until June 22nd, 2012. Their objective this time will be to catch all 649 Pokémon throughout the various games of the franchise while raising money for ACT Today!, a charity supporting Autism awareness and treatment. During the marathon, TheSpeedGamers will raffle and auction off Pokémon related items to lucky viewers that tune into their online stream and chat. We hope that TheSpeedGamers are successful in fulfilling their goals for this helpful cause.

TheSpeedGamers is a non-profit charity organization that holds gaming marathons which usually last 72 hours to benefit other charities. This organization was founded in March 2008 and has held 25 marathons so far, rasing $309,896.64 for nearly 20 different charities.

Last week, a fake version of the game Pokémon Yellow was posted on the Apple App store and reached number 2 on the sales charts before the illegal app was pulled from the store. The popularity of the app has sparked debates on the Internet about Nintendo's stance on only releasing games for their platforms and not popular cell phone platforms such as iOS and Android. This has also brought Apple under fire for their app approval process which allowed the Pokémon Yellow app to be sold despite it being a blatant illegally posted version of the game. The Pokémon Company issued a statement to Develop and has asked fans to report illicit imitations of their games to them.

Pokémon Company issues warning to scammers

Nintendo subsidiary asks fans to report illicit imitations

“We continue to combat the unauthorised [sic] release of games, applications and merchandise that trick our fans into purchasing something that does not meet our quality standards,” The Pokémon Company told Develop.

“Fans who encounter questionable products should report to us immediately so we can keep other fans from falling victim to these scams,” The Pokémon Company, a Nintendo subsidiary, added.

Source: http://www.develop-online.net/news/39884/Pokmon-Company-issues-warning-to-scammers

The Pokémon Video Game National Championships are being held throughout Europe during March and April and are open to all players. Winners can earn invitations and Travel Awards to the Pokémon Video Game World Championships in Waikoloa, Hawaii, as well as other cool prizes.

In the press release posted today, it was announced that a rare Shiny Larvitar that knows the move Superpower and is holding a Chople Berry will be distributed at the European National events. Below is a list of some of the European National Championships dates.

• United Kingdom - March 3rd, 2012 - Birmingham, National Exhibition Centre, Hall 11
• Germany - March 10th, 2012 - MESSE ESSEN, Messeeingang Süd, Halle 1A, Norbertstr. 2
• France - March 17th, 2012 - Paris, Espace Champerret, Hall C, 6 rue Jean Oestreicher
Porte de Champerret
• Spain - March 24th, 2012 - Madrid, IFEMA Pabellón 5, Feria de Madrid
• Italy - April 1st, 2012 - CENTRO CONGRESSI MILANOFIORI, Strada 1 - Milanofiori, 20090 ASSAGO (MI)

A promo video for the United Kingdom's National Championships was also released and can be viewed below.

United Kingdom National Championships Promo Video

Press Release - GO SHINY LARVITAR!

A rare Shiny Pokémon confirmed as character distribution at the 2012 Pokémon Video Game National Championships: www.pokemon.co.uk/vgc

The Pokémon Company International today announced that there will be a unique character distribution at the 2012 Pokémon™ Video Game National Championships taking place across Europe during March and April. Attendees will be able to walk away with a rare Shiny Larvitar, a Rock- and Ground-type Pokémon with unusual colouring. Players will need to bring along their copy of the Pokémon Black Version or Pokémon White Version game and their Nintendo DS™, Nintendo DSi™, Nintendo DSi XL™, or Nintendo 3DS™ system to receive this unique distribution.

This Shiny Larvitar knows the powerful Fighting-type move Superpower, which can only be learned in Pokémon HeartGold or Pokémon SoulSilver from a special tutor. It also comes holding a useful Chople Berry, which is difficult to obtain in the games. Larvitar can eventually evolve into Tyranitar, which, thanks to its strong stats and its Ability to kick up an unending Sandstorm, has been a very popular character since its introduction in Pokémon Gold Version and Pokémon Silver Version in 2000.

Source: http://www.pokemon.co.uk/vgc

The official Japanese Pokemon Company YouTube account has posted two new commercials for Pokémon + Nobunaga's Ambition (ポケモン＋ノブナガの野望). The game will be released in Japan on March 17th, 2012. Below are the two commercials.

Pokémon + Nobunaga's Ambition 15sec Commercial 『ポケモン＋ノブナガの野望』CM（15秒）

Pokémon + Nobunaga's Ambition 30sec Commercial 『ポケモン＋ノブナガの野望』CM（30秒）

Source: http://www.youtube.com/user/ThePokemonCompanyCH

The official Pokémon + Nobunaga's Ambition (ポケモン＋ノブナガの野望) website announced the first two Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection episodes that can be downloaded for the game. The episodes are only available for a short period of time and there is a certain point that players must get to in the game before the episode is available to be played. A page listing these Wi-Fi episodes has been added to our site. It will be updated as new episodes are announced. Below is a list of these two Wi-Fi episodes and events.

Wi-Fi Episodes:

Image	Description
	Episode Name: The origin event where Motonari and Motochika becomes friends! (モトナリ・モトチカが仲間になるイベントが発生!!) Dates Available for Japan: March 17th, 2012 to no end date The episode features Motonari and Motochika who get in the players way during the normal story mode. Motonari is strong with Grass type Pokémon while Motochika is strong with Water type Pokémon and they are the commanders who greatly aid the protagonist.
	Episode Name: Wandering Kabuki Performer: Keiji's Story (流浪のかぶき者、ケイジのストーリー) Dates Available for Japan: March 24th, 2012 until April 13th, 2012 The episode features the wandering kabuki performer Keiji and can only be played after the player has unlocked the first ending. Keiji is the mysterious commander who came to the protagonist's aid multiple times during his/her journey.

Characters and Pokémon

A character page has been added to our Pokémon + Nobunaga's Ambition (ポケモン＋ノブナガの野望) information page. It includes basic, revealed information about the officers and their Pokémon partners. Click here to visit the Characters page.

Super Pokémon Rumble Passcodes

Two new Super Pokémon Rumble passcodes have been announced that can be used with the European and Australian versions of the game. Our passcodes list has been updated with the codes. Below are the two newly announced passwords.

Password	Pokémon	Attack A	Location	Code Obtained from:	Day Announced
61501893	PokéTC　Zoroark	Foul Play	4-1 Frozen Tundra	Official Pokémon Website	2012-02-15
10279741	Garchomp	Dragon Claw	3-1 Rugged Flats	Official Pokémon Website	2012-02-15

Source: http://www.pokemon.co.jp/ex/ranse/episode/

The official Japanese Pokémon website has announced two tournaments that will be taking place. The first one is the 2012 International Challenge (2012インターナショナルチャレンジ) which is a Pokémon Global Link Wi-Fi Tournament that allows all players from around the world to participate in it. Registration for the tournament will be from March 15th, 2012 until March 21st, 2012 and the actual tournament will be held from March 22nd, 2012 until March 26st, 2012.

50000 participants will be able to compete in this tournament but 25000 of those will be from Japan and the remaining 25000 will be from countries around the world. Tournament registration is on a first-come first-serve basis, so registered early if you wish to participate. The results of the tournament will be announced on April 4th, 2012 at 13:00. Players require a copy of Pokémon Black or White that has been linked up to a Global Link account.


Mew, Mewtwo, Lugia, Ho-oh, Celebi, Kyogre, Groudon, Rayquaza, Jirachi, Deoxys, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Phione, Manaphy, Darkrai, Shaymin, Arceus, Victini, Reshiram, Zekrom and Kyurem are all banned from the tournament.

The official English Pokémon website has also announced the 2012 International Challenge and they posted the following news article on their website.

Press Release - Start Training for a New Challenge!

Registration for the Global Battle Union 2012 International Challenge begins March 15th.


Another exciting event is on the way in the Global Battle Union! Take part in the 2012 International Challenge, a tournament open to Pokémon Trainers around the world. Following last year’s successful Autumn Friendly Tournament, the 2012 International Challenge will give Trainers a chance to demonstrate their awesome battling skills in Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version. With the additional participation of Japanese and Korean competitors, the 2012 International Challenge will truly be a global event!

All you need to participate is a Pokémon Trainer Club account and a copy of either game with its Game Sync ID registered at the Pokémon Global Link. The top players will earn a special avatar for their Pokémon Global Link account to signify their success!

When creating your battle party, you can select from nearly every Pokémon in the National Pokédex. Train hard and develop smart strategies to reach the top of the tournament leaderboards! The rules for selecting Pokémon and their moves match the rules for the Video Game Championship Series, including the recent changes regarding the Dark Void move.

Japan Cup 2012 Spring (ジャパンカップ2012スプリング)

A Japan only tournament was also announced. The Japan Cup 2012 Spring (ジャパンカップ2012スプリング) is also a Pokémon Global Link Wi-Fi Tournament and is a World Championships 2012 qualifying event. Topped ranked players in this tournament could represent Japan in the upcoming 2012 World Championships that will be held in Hawaii in August of 2012. The Japan Cup 2012 Spring tournament will be a double battles tournament.

Tohoku Pokémon Center - Master Ball Event

The Tohoku Pokémon Center will be distributing the Master Ball from February 28th, 2012 until March 16th, 2012. The previous Pokémon Center Master Ball event took place at the Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya, Osaka, Fukuoka and Sapporo Pokémon Centers from November 19th, 2011 until December 3rd, 2011 which was just before the Tohoku Pokémon Center opened.


Sources: http://ja.pokemon-gl.com/about/sp/ic2012/page2-1.html, http://www.pokemon.co.jp/info/2012/02/120210_p03.html and http://www.pokemon.co.jp/ex/wcs2012/itn/