As of Tuesday, April 7th, 2020 at 19:00, in response to the Japanese Government's Emergency Declaration, the Pokémon Center Co., Ltd. has announced they will temporarily close the following Pokémon Center and Pokémon Store starting on Wednesday, April 8th, 2020 until the emergency declaration is canceled. Our list of COVID-19 canceled Pokémon Events has been updated with this announcement.

Pokémon Centers

・ Pokémon Center Tokyo DX & Pokémon Cafe
・ Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo & Pikachu Sweets
・ Pokémon Center Shibuya
・ Pokémon Center Sky Tree Town
・ Pokémon Center Tokyo Bay
・ Pokémon Center Yokohama
・ Pokémon Center Fukuoka
・ Pokémon Center Osaka DX & Pokémon Cafe
・ Pokémon Center Osaka
・ Pokémon Center Nagoya (April 10th, 2020)

Pokémon Stores

・ Pokémon Store Tokyo Station Store
・ Pokémon Store Narita Airport Store
・ Pokémon Store Itami Airport Store
・ Pokémon Store Kansai Airport Store

Source: https://voice.pokemon.co.jp/stv/zenten/2020/04/post-10510.html

Update: April 17th, 2020

The Pokémon Center Co., Ltd. announced that it would expand the area of ​​the emergency response to all prefectures and that as of Saturday, April 18th, 2020, Pokémon Centers and Pokémon Stores nationwide would be closed. The Pokémon Center Online will continue to operate normally.

Source: https://voice.pokemon.co.jp/stv/zenten/2020/04/post-10510.html

The Pokémon Company announced today that the 2020 Pokémon Championship Series has been canceled. All invitations to the 2020 Pokémon World Championships will be honored for the 2021 World Championships. Our list of COVID-19 canceled Pokémon Events has been updated with this announcement.

2020 Pokémon Championship Series Canceled

The safety and well-being of our competitors, organizers, employees, local communities, and partners continues to be our top priority and is the primary consideration with every decision we make.

After careful review and pursuant to guidance set forth by local, regional, and national health authorities, as well as the World Health Organization, Public Health England, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the 2020 North America International Championships (scheduled for June 26–28 in Columbus, Ohio) and the 2020 Pokémon World Championships (scheduled for August 14–16 in London, United Kingdom).

With the cancelation of these pinnacle events, the 2020 Play! Pokémon Championship Series is suspended and all sanctioned Play! Pokémon events including League, Club, Prerelease, League Challenge, League Cup, Premier Challenge, and Midseason Showdown are canceled until further notice. No Championship Points will be awarded for the remainder of the season. Any points earned up to this point for the current Championship Series will roll over to the 2021 Play! Pokémon Championship Series. We look forward to celebrating the accomplishments of all our competitors at an expanded 2021 Pokémon World Championships in London. All invitations to the 2020 Pokémon World Championships will be honored for the 2021 World Championships. We are closely monitoring health mandates, guidelines, and recommendations from appropriate government agencies to determine when the resumption of events and operations will be safe for our communities. Further details are being actively worked on and we will communicate them with all of you as soon as they are finalized.

In the meantime, we want to thank our millions of players, fans, organizers, and Professors around the world for their continued support and understanding during these unique circumstances. The Pokémon International Championships and Pokémon World Championships are very special occasions for us, and we know how much they mean to the global Play! Pokémon community. We would like to recognize the hard work and dedication of all our competitors, Professors, and event organizers during the 2020 Play! Pokémon season. We hope that the spirit of friendship and community that are the hallmarks of our amazing fans and these events continue during this challenging time, and that you take care of yourselves and of each other. We can't wait to see you and celebrate with you again.

Source: https://www.pokemon.com/us/pokemon-news/2020-pokemon-championship-series-canceled/

The Pokémon Company announced that they are teaming up with Daniel Arsham, an American artist to create sculptures of Iconic Pokémon. Additional details about the collaboration will be announced later this spring.

POKÉMON AND DANIEL ARSHAM TEAM UP FOR ART COLLABORATION

Daniel Arsham × Pokémon Project To Feature Sculptures of Iconic Pokémon

TOKYO – February 28, 2020 – The Pokémon Company has unveiled the Daniel Arsham × Pokémon project with American artist, Daniel Arsham, featuring icons of the Pokemon franchise presented within the artist’s creative concept of “fictional archeology.” Through his work, people are invited to imagine the unearthing of Pokémon a thousand years from now and experience the passage of time. On the surface, Daniel Arsham’s Pokémon sculptures may look weathered, but closer examination of the excavated future of Pokémon exposes a crystallized brilliance.

"The fictional archaeology is really an idea of taking all of the objects from our present day and imagining as if we were an archeologist in the future and looking at these objects from our everyday life or our everyday experience,” said Daniel Arsham. “I think there’s something kind of prolific and impactful about trying to step outside of our own time frame. It gives us a perspective of our own experiences and lives. Through these works, I hope to be able to shift people’s understanding about time in general. "

“Pokémon evolved as a brand by embracing new technologies and collaborating with partners from new fields ranging from data communication systems and geolocation-related technologies to partners in fashion and art,” said Tsunekazu Ishihara, CEO of The Pokémon Company. “I’m delighted to welcome Daniel Arsham as our collaboration partner. Through his work, my wish is for people around the world to ‘dig deep’ into their imaginations and think about what Pokémon would look like in a thousand years.” Additional details about the collaboration will be announced later this spring.

About Daniel Arsham Daniel Arsham (born 1980 in Ohio) is an American artist. Daniel Arsham straddles the line between art, architecture, and performance. Raised in Miami, Arsham attended the the Cooper Union in New York City. Arsham’s work has been shown at MOMA PS1, The Museum of Contemporary Art, The Athens Bienniale, The New Museum, Mills College Art Museum, Carré d'Art - musée d'art contemporain de Nîmes, How Art Museum.

YouTube Clip - Daniel Arsham × Pokémon First Art Collaboration Project

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cr3ceYa9by4

The Pokémon Company and Pokémon Centers have announced they have canceled various events scheduled to be held after February 29th, 2020 in order to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) and to consider customer safety. They will inform customers on the official site when they plan to resume events. They apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, but they appreciate your understanding and cooperation.

Events Canceled or Postponed:

・ Pokémon Card Game Events: City League Season 3 / Trainers League / Gym Battles / Pokéca's Weekends / Pokémon Card Game Classes / First Battles
These events are scheduled to resume on March 20th, 2020, but they will continue to monitor the latest situation. The official Card Game site updated on March 13th, 2020 that all events in Japan would be canceled until April 3rd, 2020.
・ Pokémon Card Game Caravan - The February 29th, 2020 event at Tokushima Momoya Toy Game Shop will go ahead as planned. The March 7th, 2020 event at the Geo Naha Shintoshin store in Okinawa will be postponed.
・ Events related to “Pokémon Game Gym”
・ Events held at Pokémon Centers
・ Pokémon GO Nidorino and Gengar Raid Day has been canceled in Japan, South Korea, and Italy which was scheduled for Sunday, March 1st, 2020, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time.
・ Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo Grand Reopening rescheduled from March 6th, 2020 to April 2020.
・ The Safari Zone St. Louis, Missouri, US from Friday, March 27th, 2020 to Sunday, March 29th, 2020 was canceled.
・ The Pokémon GO Abra Community Day which was scheduled to take place on March 15th, 2020 was postponed.
・ Canada Regional Championships 2020 scheduled for March 13th, 2020 to March 15th, 2020 at The International Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada was canceled an hour after the event was scheduled to start. Later in the day on March 13th, 2020, the official Pokémon website announced that Charlotte Regional Championships, scheduled for March 20-22, 2020, Regional de Pokémon de Joinville em Santa Catarina 2020, scheduled for March 28-29, 2020 and Salt Lake City Pokémon Regional Championships, scheduled for April 4-5, 2020 had been canceled as well.
・All Play! Pokémon Events Canceled from March 17th, 2020 through May 14th, 2020.
・Pokémon GO Raid Hour: This events cancellation was announced on March 17th, 2020.
・Pokémon GO Safari Zone - Liverpool and Philadelphia postponements were announced on March 18th, 2020.
・Pokémon GO - Special Lugia Raid Week was to be held on Tuesday, March 24th, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. to Tuesday, March 31st, 2020, at 1:00 p.m. PDT but was canceled on March 23rd, 2020.
・Pokémon Center Singapore - Events Suspension Announcement - March 24th, 2020 - All mascot appearances, TCG and VGC Elite 4 Challenges, Pokémon Explorer Tours, TCG Free Battles, and all workshops were canceled.
・ Pokémon GO Raid Hour (every Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. local time): This event was canceled until further notice on March 27th, 2020.
・ 2020 Pokémon Championship Series Canceled including the 2020 World Championships - Announced on March 31st, 2020. All invitations to the 2020 Pokémon World Championships would be honored for the 2021 World Championships.
・Pokémon Center Singapore - Anniversary Celebrations Postponed
・Pokémon the Movie Coco Special Advance Ticket Release Date Postponed - Originally scheduled for purchase on April 17th, 2020.
・Pokémon Center Singapore Temporary Closure - The Pokémon Center Singapore announced on April 4th, 2020 that it would temporarily close from Tuesday, April 7th, 2020 until Monday, May 4th, 2020, or until further advised by the Ministry of Singapore.
・Pokémon Centers and Pokémon Stores to Temporarily Close in Japan - Announced on April 7th, 2020, from April 8th, 2020 until the emergency declaration ends, the stores were temporarily closed. On April 17th, 2020, it was announced that the remaining stores that were opened during that time period would also close on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 but the Pokémon Center Online would continue to operate normally.
・Pocket Monsters 2019 Anime Production Delays - The official Pocket Monsters anime PR Twitter posted an announcement on Sunday, April 19th, 2020 that due to the COVID-19 issue becoming a issue in Japan, production of the anime has come to a halt and that all new episodes are being delayed starting with PM 2019 episode 23 which was originally scheduled to air on Sunday, April 26th, 2020.
・Pokémon Japan Championships 2020 (PJCS2020) Canceled - The Pokémon Japan Championships 2020 (PJCS2020) was scheduled to be held at Pacifico Yokohama on Saturday, June 27th, 2020 and Sunday, June 28th, 2020.
・On May 13th, 2020, the official Pokémon Twitter news account posted a Tweet announced that Pokémon the Movie: Coco had been postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
・The Pokémon Masters Special Event Double Trouble featuring the Team Rocket voice actors was released on July 8th, 2020 but it did not include the English voices at the launch of the event due to recording issues from COVID-19.
・On September 17th, 2020, the official Pokémon website announced that Play! Pokémon Live Competitions and Events for the remainder of 2020 would be suspended.
・On December 8th, 2020, it was announced that the Pokémon Center Kyoto Temporarily Closed Due to an employee getting COVID-19.
・On April 21st and 24th, 2021, it was announced that due to the Japanese government issuing a State of Emergency in regards to COVID-19 cases in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto and Hyogo prefectures, Pokémon Centers, Pokémon Stores, Pokémon Cafes and Pikachu Sweets stores will be temporarily closed in those areas. The City League Additional Season scheduled to be held at the Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo and the Pokémon Center Osaka on May 1st, 2021 and May 3rd, 2021 was also cancelled due to the closure of the facilities.
・On May 13th, 2021, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and Changi Airport Group announced that the Jewel would temporarily close from May 13th, 2021 to May 26th, 2021 for staff COVID-19 testing and deep cleaning and disinfection which required the Pokémon Center Singapore to temporarily close during that time. On May 25th, 2021, it was announced that they'd extend the closing to June 13th, 2021.
・On August 1st, 2021, the official Japanese Pokémon website announced that one employee working at Pokémon Cafe Nihombashi, Tokyo was infected with COVID-19. They closed the cafe temporarily but the Pokémon Center Tokyo DX stayed open.
・On August 20th, 2021, a temporary Pokémon Center Branch was scheduled to open in Smark Isesaki from Saturday, August 21st, 2021 to October 10th, 2021. In order to prevent the spread of COVID-19, it was announced on the Smark Isesaki official website that it had been canceled and a future schedule would be announced on the website as soon as it was decided.
・On August 20th, 2021, the official Japanese Pokémon Card Game website announced that official card game events in Ibaraki, Tochigi, Gunma, Shizuoka, Kyoto, Hyogo and Fukuoka scheduled from August 20th, 2021 to September 12th, 2021 had been canceled in addition to the already canceled events for Okinawa, Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba, Saitama, and Osaka which were canceled earlier in the month until September 12th, 2021.
・On August 23rd, 2021, the official Japanese Pokémon website announced that an employee working at the Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo had contracted COVID-19 and as a result, the store would be temporarily closed on Monday, August 23rd, 2021. During the temporary closure, the Pokémon Center Tokyo DX, Pokémon Center Skytree Town, and Pokémon Center Shibuya would be selling Pokémon Card Game products to those who won the purchase lottery for the products released on August 20th, 2021 and were to pick them up at the Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo.
・On August 26th, 2021, the official Japanese Pokémon website announced that there would be temporary closures of Pokémon Centers and Pokémon Stores in areas under an Emergency Declaration for COVID-19. Also the Shiraberu-kun and the Pokémon Center Pika Pika Big Investigation! campaign ended on August 27th, 2021 instead of August 29th, 2021.

* There is currently no scheduled closures for the Pokémon Centers and Pokémon Stores due to the impact of this virus, but if there is any changes due to the recommendation from the government, local governments, regulatory agencies, health centers, etc, The Pokémon Company will announce it.

Sources: https://www.pokemon.co.jp/info/2020/02/200228_at01.html, https://www.pokemon-card.com/info/2020/20200226_002317.html, https://twitter.com/NianticHelp/status/1233497146386788359

In a joint statement released today by Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, they announced that an employee for the Portuguese website FNintendo was responsible for posting information and pictures of Pokémon Sword and Shield to the Internet before its release date.

Joint statement from Nintendo and The Pokémon Company

In early November, Nintendo identified a number of photographs taken from game play that revealed multiple new and unannounced Pokémon from Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield. These photographs had been posted online and Nintendo, together with The Pokémon Company, quickly identified the person responsible for these leaks, and took immediate action. FNintendo also posted a statement regarding this issue.

These Pokémon were leaked by a reviewer for the Portuguese website FNintendo, who had received an early copy of the game for review purposes. Both he and FNintendo failed to handle confidential material, resulting in a clear breach of the confidentiality agreement between Nintendo and the media outlet. As a result, Nintendo will no longer work with FNintendo.

Nintendo will always protect its intellectual property and brands. Leaks hurt not just Nintendo, but the thousands of employees who work hard to bring games to market, and the millions of fans around the world who look forward to news and surprises.

To surprise and delight players through new experiences is a shared passion for Nintendo and The Pokémon Company. We will pursue all avenues to preserve surprises for players of future Pokémon titles.

FNintendo's statement

To our readers,

At the beginning of November, a series of off-screen photographs leaked multiple new and unannounced Pokémon from Pokémon Sword and Pokémon Shield. We want to take this opportunity to openly admit to our readers that FNintendo was responsible for leaking some of these photos.

Nintendo offered us a copy of the game for review purposes, with clear embargo guidelines, to which we agreed. This copy was then sent to one of our reviewers, who leaked the information. Following the investigation, FNintendo severed its relationship with this reviewer.

Our relationship with Nintendo Portugal dates back 11 years, but our part in this leak is a clear breach of the confidentiality agreement between us, and, as a result, a total breach of trust with Nintendo. We recognise it is impermissible to break embargo guidelines and we failed to handle the review materials with sufficient care.

We fully respect Nintendo's decision to cancel the confidentiality agreement between our companies as a result of this breach of trust, and accept that we will no longer receive products from Nintendo, nor will we be invited to attend their events.

We want to apologise to Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, and to our readers for letting them down.

Source: https://fnintendo.net/article/13496-comunicado-do-fnintendo

The official Japanese Pokémon website has announced that the Pocket Monsters Sword and Shield Official Guide Book Complete Story Guide + Galar Zukan (ポケットモンスター ソード・シールド　公式ガイドブック 完全ストーリー攻略＋ガラル図鑑) produced by The Pokémon Company and Overlap Inc. and released on December 7th, 2019 has some errors and that there will be a second edition of the book. Customers that purchased the original edition can receive this second edition free of charge starting in mid-February 2020. Overlap will send out the new revision by mail as the original store locations will not accept an exchange.

The official site posted a PDF listing all the errors in the original version of the book as of December 26th, 2019.

Source: https://www.pokemon.co.jp/info/2019/12/191226_at01.html

The Pokémon Company and Facebook Gaming announced that they have debuted two new Pokémon games that are exclusively available on Facebook Gaming called: Pokémon Tower Battle, developed by Bombay Play, and Pokémon Medallion Battle, developed by GCTurbo.

The Pokémon Company debuts new games exclusively on Facebook Gaming

We’re excited to welcome the beloved and iconic Pokémon franchise as they debut two games on Facebook Gaming this December: Pokémon Tower Battle, developed by Bombay Play, and Pokémon Medallion Battle, developed by GCTurbo.

Pokémon Tower Battle, available now worldwide, is a unique take on the Pokémon franchise: players compete by stacking Pokémon against one another to create the tallest Pokémon towers. As players discover, catch and level-up rare Pokémon, they can compete in real-time against friends or across a global leaderboard. It might seem like a simple physics-based puzzler at first, but the strategic choices in where and how players stack Pokémon will determine the true Tower Battle masters.


Pokémon Medallion Battle, now available to players in the Asia-Pacific region, is a digital card battle strategy game. In the game, trainers collect, battle and evolve Pokémon in medallion form and embark on a journey with their companions to win gym badges and complete their Pokédex. Players can also discover new Pokémon--introduced every month--to create even better decks.


“We are excited to launch two new entries in the Pokémon franchise on Facebook Gaming,” said Tsunekazu Ishihara, CEO, The Pokémon Company. “Launching these games through Facebook will allow people all over the world to experience Pokémon in digital form, and we are especially thrilled to collaborate with Facebook Gaming in enabling new audiences to enjoy Pokémon games online.”

For those eager to try out Pokémon on Facebook, Tower Battle is now available in all regions through the Facebook Gaming tab and bookmark. Medallion Battle is currently available to players in the Asia-Pacific region*


Source: https://www.facebook.com/fbgaminghome/blog/the-pokemon-company-debuts-new-games-exclusively-on-facebook-gaming

The National Steps Challenge™ is a physical activity initiative by the Health Promotion Board (HPB) to encourage Singapore residents to be more physically active every day, anytime and anywhere. They have announced that they have partnered with Pokémon to help promote Season 5.

National Steps Challenge™ celebrates its 5th year with Pokémon

National Steps Challenge™, a nation-wide physical activity initiative organized by the Health Promotion Board, is back for its 5th year!

This season, they have come together with Pokémon to celebrate this joyous occasion! Head on down to their mega roadshows to meet with Pikachu and Eevee, plus enjoy fun-filled activities for your chance to win more prizes!

Location Details:

Tampines Community Plaza: 27 - 29 Sep 2019
Ang Mo Kio (Grass field in front of Djitsun Mall): 11 - 13 Oct 2019
VivoCity Outdoor Plaza: 18 - 20 Oct 2019
Punggol (Grass field in front of Punggol MRT station): 25 - 27 Oct 2019
Time: 11 am to 8pm

Source: https://sg.portal-pokemon.com/topics/event/191008152550_post_17.html

The official Pokémon website for Singapore has announced that an event will be held at Causeway Point from September 27th, 2019 until October 31st, 2019 where people can go down to the mall and if they spend $160, they can get a Pokémon Plushie. There are 5 different plushies to collect. Other events are also taking place throughout the promotional period.

Catch Pokémon at Causeway Point

Come on down to Causeway Point this October and catch Pokémon! Gift with Purchase - 27 September to 31 October 2019 Spend $160 to redeem a Pokémon Plushie. We’ll be releasing one design per week – collect all five!


Torchic: 27 September - 3 October
Pichu: 4 October - 10 October
Treecko: 11 October - 17 October
Mudkip: 18 October - 24 October
Pikachu: 25 October - 31 October

Gotta-Go Pokémon Events

Get ready to battle at the Battle Score Cup Challenge 2019 and win event-exclusive prizes or hone your skills in a practice session. Hurry, slots are limited.

Practice: 30 September to 4 October 2019
Challenge: 5 & 6 October 2019
Time: 10am to 7pm

Meet & Greet with Pikachu & Eevee

Pikachu: 28 & 29 September, 12 & 13 October 2019
Pikachu and Eevee: 5 & 6 October 2019
Time: 1pm & 6pm

Freaky Fun Workshops

Spend $30 in a single receipt and join us for a session of ghoulish good fun with twisted balloon sculpting and creepy crafts! Date: 26 to 28 October 2019
Time: 12pm to 8pm

Source: https://sg.portal-pokemon.com/topics/event/190930121443_post_16.html

The Pokémon Company has created a new website called the Dynamax Camera which explains that users can take a photo and it adds one of 50 Dynamax variants to the photo. Pokémon will be adding to the service including new Pokémon.

Photo Examples:

Source: https://dmaxcamera.pokemon.co.jp/ja/