The Pokémon tournaments have become synonymous with Bargain Books in Corkwood Square Mall, Kariega.
The recent tournament had a great turnout and according to Juan van Rooyen, acting store manager at Bargain Books Corkwood Square, it was their biggest tournament yet.
“We had 22 players in our tournament, and we had a large number of entrants into the artwork as well as dress-up contests,” said Van Rooyen.
Jane Swartz was the winner with Zanro Radyn in second place and Lian van Heerden third. Mohammed was the winner of the artwork.
“Our competitions always include the card tournament, cosplay and the artwork contest. By offering the three different activities we try to cater to a larger range of interests so that there is something for everyone.
“We held our first tournament back in October of last year and we just see more and more entrants with each one. I also think it’s a great social opportunity for the kids as they get to meet and trade with kids from other schools,” said Van Rooyen.
Before the release of the Pokémon GO game in 2015 Pokémon’s general popularity was waning but ever since then it’s just been going one way and that’s up.
“I also think that it is closely tied to people like me that were kids in the 90’s, as a lot of us 90’s kids now have kids of our own and parents pass fields of interest on. Pokémon’s link to 90’s pop culture started in 1995 when the first television show started airing and the brand then grew quickly from there.”
It became such a huge hit in South Africa that Simba started putting Pokémon discs in chips packets and the television show just kept becoming more popular.
“Nowadays there is so much content out there that is in the Pokémon universe. TV shows, several well -received and critically acclaimed games, cards and the list of spin-offs and merchandise keeps growing every year,” said Van Rooyen.
- The next Pokémon Bargain Books Corkwood Square tournament will take place on Saturday, 24 June, which is the first day of the next school holiday.
