One Hit KO

A big hello to all you OHKOers out there.  This is Pikkdogs and my sidekick Pedro here, with another opinion article.  This time the opinions won’t go in the form of statements, but instead resolutions for the new year.  Pedro is finally back from his Christmas vacation, how are things going Pedro?

Pretty well.  What did you get for Christmas Pikkdogs?

My mom was nice enough to replace my TV for Christmas, it had previously broke.  She also bought me a Kitchen table and a bunch of soap and stuff.

Nothing more exciting than soap and a table.  I thought you were boring before, but I didn’t know how bad it was.

Well what did you get for Christmas then?

Mostly just clothes, not very exciting, but better than soap. 

Maybe, what clothes did you get?

Just normal stuff, like shirts, pants, and underwear.

What type of underwear do you use Pedro.

I like the tighty whities, but when I go to bed, I sleep with boxers. 

I like to sleep with boxers too……………………and then I put on underwear.

Another bad joke, let’s go to your article, even though it is probably even worse.

New Years Resolution for The Pokemon Company

This year, Nintendo and TPCI should resolve to keep the format balanced without a rotation.  This year we had one of the biggest rotations in Pokemon history, it made a lot of people mad because it took a lot of really good and valuable cards out of the format.  The rotation was made necessary because of poor choices they made in the format, such as bringing in SP Pokemon and having Sableye SF and the first turn trainer rule in the format at the same time.

Even though it was the right decision to make and the format was better for it, the early rotation was a decision that should never have had to be made.  It left us with a very small card pool, and that made the format very luck based.  The very small card pool made even long time fans like me question whether I want to play this game.  Although rotations are good for this game, TPCI and Nintendo should work towards a format that doesn’t use rotations to balance the format.

Pokemon SP were very powerful Pokemon that could only be stopped with a rotation, I hope that Pokemon EX do not have the same fate.  They are also very strong Pokemon that can easily crush other Pokemon.  It seems that we will very soon have a Mewtwo EX dominated format, more on that later, but I hope that Nintendo is working hard to make sure the EX  Pokemon are not similar to SP Pokemon.

It seems that Nintendo likes to release a powerful Pokemon, and then release something more powerful to counter it later.  But, if this trend keeps on going cards will just keep getting better and better without having any kind of balance.  We hope that in the new year Nintendo can buck this trend and have a lot of cool balanced Pokemon in the format.

New Years Resolution for Pokemon TCG Online

This year, the people at PTCGO online should resolve to setup at least 1 premiere rated event online.  I don’t think we can say that PTCGO is a success until we get our first event online.

PTCGO had a huge year this year.  PTCGO wasn’t born until earlier this year, so it hasn’t  been out for too long.  But, they have grown a lot during this time.  They went from a place where you can learn the game by playing a theme deck, to a place where you can collect all the cards n the format and have matches against players around the world.  PTCGO did do great things this year and it has become one of the most promising aspects of the games as a whole.

However, PTCGO has a long way to go.  There are many problems facing the service right now.  First are foremost are technical problems.  The game is interrupted way too much, and sometimes Pokemon just get put under other Pokemon on your bench, and are unplayable throughout the game.  I also played a game where I knocked out a Chandelure and my opponent promoted Dodrio, the problems was that Chandelure was also in the active spot and he could use his Ability.  The game suffers from a lot of weird glitches like that, and those are problems that need to be fixed.  I know a software program will always have bugs, but let’s hope in 2012 that Caterpie is one of the only bugs in Pokemon Trading Card Game Online.

As said, we need to see an online tournament in 2012.  I know that it is unrealistic to expect it within the next month or two.  But, I think during the summer or fall we should see at least one tournament.  It doesn’t have to be  a big one, maybe like a pre-release tournament.  Or maybe there can be an online Nationals or Worlds for those that cannot make the actual event.  These are all events that I would love to see, and are within our reach.  Magic has a lot of online tournaments, I’m sure within a year Pokemon that can get a couple tournaments going.  I don’t want Nintendo to replace actual events with online ones, but it would be nice if they take the steps to creating an online competitive play atmosphere.   This should be a new years resolution that they should be able to keep.

New Years Resolution for the Format

If this format was a person, it would resolve to not let Mewtwo EX rule the format.  Mewtwo EX will come out in our next set, called Next Destinies, and is expected to dominate the format.  Its ability to attack for just 1 DCE and use the energy of your opponent against him, has made it deadly in Japan, and there is no reason why it can’t be just as good here.

The format has had a rough year.  At the beginning of the year, SP decks were  dominating the format creating a major competitive imbalance.  Then we get a new rule change that lets Sableye run roughshod over the format.  So to fix all these problems the format was cut to only 5 sets.  But, that created more problems of luck being too much of a factor.  So, as more Black and White sets come out, the format is finally becoming healthy.  What the format does not need is 1 card coming into the format and dominating things like SP decks and Sableye did before.

The format needs balance and a lot of decks that can do well.  The release of Mewtwo EX does not necessarily mean that we have lost the balance that we have worked so hard for, but if Japan is any indication, Mewtwo EX will be very very very good.  So here is to toasting to a new year where the format is balanced and fun.

New Years Resolution for Judges and Tournament Organizers

I have always said that the real heroes of this game are the judges and tournament organizers.  I love this guys, these guys basically donate their time so we can play the game.  Even though I do not think that they need to change much of anything, I thought I would not leave them out and give them a New Year’s Resolution too.  In the New Year, Judges and T.O.’s should resolve to reevaluate where they hold tournaments.

I know this falls more on T.O.’s than Judges, but these are two groups of people that always get clumped together anyway.  This game has grown a lot in the past couple of years.  When Diamond and Pearl first came out, the game did not have any many participants as it does now.  The game has grown a great deal lately, and the T.O.’s should evaluate how they hold tournaments to make sure things are still held in a convenient way.

I have learned this lesson when I travel to tournaments in Ohio from Michigan.  Michigan does not have perfect tournaments, but they do have some great venues.  Ohio does not have great venues, they mostly use small card shops.  I do not have anything against card shops, they are very convenient, but most of them are fairly small.  This was not a problem in days of yore, when there were not as many players, but now it is a big problem.  T.O.’s should look at moving their tournaments to more spacious venues to accommodate all players.  It is not fun packing in to one card shop with other card players and trying to play a tournament when you can barely move.  Tournaments need to be in a large venue to accommodate all players, if not, players may leave the game and stop supporting the game we all love.

Another thing that T.O.’s can adjust has to do with who is playing the game.  I do not have any hard facts on this, but it seems like less Juniors and Seniors are playing the game.  It seems like Masters make up about 75 percent of the playing field, this may not be the same in all areas, but it does seem like there are less Juniors and Seniors.  T.O.s should do things like reevaluate where they advertise for tournaments and adjust the time that tournaments are held.  Juniors and Masters are very different, and we do things differently.  If things are focused more towards masters now because of the lack of juniors, I think more masters might join the game.

Well that’s all I have for us today.  Do you have anything Pedro?

Well, since you are so keen to give out resolutions for other people.  I will give one for you. 

New Years Resolution for Pikkdogs

Pikkdogs has had a rough 2011.  He did begin the year fairly good, have an okay Nats, and a decent Battle Roads season.  But, he finished the year sucking it up at Regionals and laying an egg at Cities.  The New Years Resolution for Pikkdogs will be to actually win a tournament. 

Pikkdogs did not win anything last year, so actually winning something this year would be a change.  And for a second resolution, Pikkdogs should resolve to write better articles without so many errors. 

How do you like your resolution Pikkdogs?

They seem way too unrealistic.  First, we all know I stink at this game.  So actually winning in a tough area like Michigan is not going to happen.  And, of course we all know this website sucks.  We also know that I can’t write, and Ed overworks me so much that I don’t have enough time to edit the articles.

Well we can hope anyway.  Good night everybody. 

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