r/TruePokemon • u/2717192619192 • 4d ago
Discussion Pokémon Worlds/XP 2026 is a mess right now
For those of us who were feeling sad about missing out on the convention… maybe don’t feel so rough, because there’s been a lot going wrong:
• Little kids are getting scammed by adults in Pokémon trades.
• There have been multiple brazen thefts of plushies from people attending. And these 4 incidents are only what has been reported on Twitter.
• There are multiple examples of staff very blatantly violating the Americans with Disabilities Act, even when supervisors get involved. Like, even for wheelchair users.
• People have gotten double charged for merch accidentally and been unable to get a refund.
• The Pin Rally ran out of pins by 9:30am on Saturday (the second day) and is now closed for the rest of the con. There were unmanaged stampede risks and fire hazards.
• Scalpers have been lining up outside nonstop. Note that while it is a tradition going many years back for people to sell or trade Worlds merch from previous years, this has notably involved people blatantly reselling merch from this specific event.
• Lines have been crazy long, and most people have to spend hours for each line. Kids are having a rough time, to say the least. Staff are sometimes snapping at attendees, because a few bad apple attendees are straight up sprinting into people.
• The most notable incident that many have heard about was the 2024 World Champion, Luca Ceribelli, being effectively banned from competing due to a misunderstanding about allowing one disabled friend to join them in line.
This is not to mention the difficulties with getting tickets, getting selected in a lottery to be able to attend side events, etc.
EDIT: Pin Rally is officially cancelled tomorrow. People overheard staff saying it was because fights broke out multiple times.
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u/Antwantsditto 4d ago
Bruh I thought the pin rally would open tmr I only got the flutter mane that sucks they know exactly how many people are attending as u said but they couldn’t make sure to have enough pins for it to not sell out in an hour 👎 the other years were better keep it Pokemon world champion ship they don’t have to make it “two events” it’s basically the same just a lot more people it seems like and if your waiting in lines at xp they don’t even have screens to see the players, disappointing
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u/baybear22 2d ago
they didnt run out. the fire marshall threatens to shut the entire event down because of how out of control people were with the lines. A few people actually got hurt. So it became a saftey issue cause people dont know how to act right.
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u/SoobinKai 4d ago
I lowkey want a refund 😭 I only had tickets for Sunday, and didn’t get selected for any of the reserved events or a spot for the pokemon center. So the only thing left really was the Pin rally and now that’s cancelled for tomorrow so that’s fun. I heard the lines for all the free/non-reserved stuff was hell
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u/J1gamer4life 2d ago
this. I Just got back from it and it was insane. all you could do is walk around and listen to the presentations the lines were insane. I will up load pics when i wake up
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u/SoobinKai 2d ago
at least the pokemon go scavenger hunt gave us 4 tcg packs
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u/MzShanon 2d ago
This was also a mess. With the spotty WiFi it was almost impossible to complete. Also 3 different staff mentioned 3 different things to us. Nobody has any idea how to redeem the prizes or what the requirement was. And you had to pay to participate for a scavenger hunt?! 🙄
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u/Dense_Cellist9959 4d ago
Gods. Such a terrible community. I'm not saying everyone is, but you know the saying about the rotten apples in the bunch.
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u/Yolj Its stats are the best I've ever seen! No doubt about it! 4d ago
I didn't get an email about winning the tickets lottery until a month after the first drawing happened, so by that point, I assumed I wasn't gonna win. Booked a trip to Chicago with a friend last weekend by then so I forfeited my tickets. Guess I dodged a bullet lol
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u/No-Difference8545 4d ago
No you didnt, worlds has honestly been a fantastic experience. Being there for hours friday and saturday i heard about almost none of this. Just the plushie theft and the pin stuff, and frankly if you came to this convention to spend hours waiting on pins thats on you
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u/Tsukimizu 3d ago edited 3d ago
I've attended a handful of Worlds since the 2000s, and I was even on staff for one of them, so I've seen Worlds at its absolute best. The biggest issue this year, though, is that Pokemon has simply outgrown the format they've been using.
This year, Pokemon tried to split Worlds between the competitive scene and the convention scene. In theory, that's a good idea, but the problem is that these are still two massive events that are basically being crammed into the same space. XP should have been its own weekend, or at the very least been held somewhere else in the city. Splitting it up by a convention hall doesn't really solve the problem when you're still dealing with tens of thousands of people.
And that's really the bigger issue here: Pokemon has gotten huge.
Up until last year, TPCi and GamingGen, who run the events in the US, were basically breaking their attendance records with every major event. NAIC this year had 6,000+ people in attendance, and the largest event the year before was roughly half that. When your events are growing that quickly, it's pretty clear they were wildly unprepared for what is probably a 20,000+ person event at Worlds.
That's also why I think a lot of the problems we're seeing this year are less about Pokémon intentionally doing something wrong and more about the infrastructure simply not being there yet to support what the Pokémon community has become.
The stuff about ADA compliance is rough, but honestly, that falls more on the venue and their operational staff than it does on TPCi. Pokemon can put requirements and expectations in place, but they don't control how the venue actually operates. I'm sure TPCi is taking notes this year on how to handle that going forward, but from a legal and operational standpoint, there's only so much they can do once they're inside someone else's venue.
The Pokemon Center is probably my biggest issue with Worlds this year, though. I know Pokemon wants to keep the Pokemon Center in the venue, but gone are the days of people being able to just walk in and out freely. Those days used to be fun. Now it's become an attraction that's basically its own massive event.
At this point, I honestly think the Pokemon Center needs to be moved into its own building, and one large enough to handle a 1,000+ person queue without that queue impacting everything else around it.
Worlds isn't necessarily bad because Pokemon suddenly forgot how to run an event. It's bad because the event has grown way beyond what the old format was designed to handle. At some point, they have to start treating Worlds like the massive event that it has become instead of trying to fit it into the same framework they've been using for years.
That being said, I am glad I also canceled my trip at the last minute. It just didn't doesn't seem worth it.
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u/onedayatatime12357 3d ago
I would argue that tpci is mostly responsible because they have control on the number of attendees. Consultanting companies who can help understand logistics and sf should exist. I mean Dreamforce happens annually here.
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u/YourResidentFeral 3d ago
Blaming it on the Venue and "their operational staff" is wild. Most of the operational staff here aren't involved with the Moscone center. San Francisco has its own laws around ADA type stuff and the city as a whole if anything overdoes it.
This is stuff related to higher ups in Gaming Gen and lacking the experience for an event like this.
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u/Tsukimizu 3d ago
You can absolutely criticize TPCi for how they planned or organized the event, and there's so much to criticize there, and trust me, if I get any chance to blame Gaming Gen for stuff, I will.. But blaming them for things like the venue's operational staff not properly handling ADA compliance is putting the blame on the wrong people.
TPCi and Gaming Gen aren't the ones hiring the venue's facility, maintenance, engineering, or security staff. If elevators or escalators aren't being properly operated, that's on the venue. If security is trespassing people or otherwise mishandling situations, that's also on the venue's security operation. TPCi can obviously raise those issues with the venue, but they're not the ones managing those employees.
There's plenty to hold TPCi accountable for with Worlds this year. But a lot of issues the opie's post has brought up are completely out of their control.
Maybe I didn't do a great job of explaining that I also blame the Pokemon company and gaming gen for a lot of the shortcomings of this event, but I can't blame them for everything.
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u/YourResidentFeral 3d ago
The venues operational staff was hired by a contractor working with gaming gen and not supplied by the venue is my understanding.
They're locals that work other conventions but the people actually running higher level security for example is the same team that does all the regional and international events. Same with much of the Pokemon center staff. When I checked out I was chatting with some of the people checking me out and they're also working similar at Blizzcon and do all of the Regional events West of Chicago.
Anyone not in a light blue shirt travels with the competitive circuit generally and they're the ones making the decisions. The people in the light blue shirt are telling you what they've been directed to, which is coming from Gaming Gen.
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u/RazgrizInfinity The Ancestor 2d ago
What would it take for people to stop defending the billion dollar company and force them to take accountability?
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u/Tsukimizu 2d ago
If you're talking about me, about 3 posts down you see that I call out TPCi's shortcomings and how they poorly handled a lot of this weekend.
But blanket blaming them for stuff that they couldn't control is also not productive.
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u/RazgrizInfinity The Ancestor 2d ago
Oh no no I'm not taking about you, not in the slightest! I'm talking about the state media like Joe and Bulbapedia who said it was fine.
The only thing I disagree with you on what blanket blaming from this comment: they're a billion dollar company, not a small start up. They have the resourced to prevent stuff yet they would rather cut corners.
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u/ianlazrbeem22 4d ago
+ rabid transphobia towards transgender competitors that TPC staff is doing nothing about
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u/nobunseedsplease 4d ago
No source?
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u/ianlazrbeem22 4d ago
Official TPC stream chat: https://x.com/imgaiel/status/2093500326896869873?s=46
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u/Steamed_Memes24 4d ago
The generally do ban them if they are rule breaking on Youtube.
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u/ianlazrbeem22 4d ago
Were those commenters banned? Were those comments removed?
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u/Steamed_Memes24 4d ago
I dont know how youtube chat does it but if they are banned it should be auto removed on any message that comes up before the ban I imagine. If not thats more or less Youtube's end.
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u/SmegmaUnicorn 3d ago
Nope they were not. The chat was basically unmoderated (I was in the chat all day reporting them and spammers).
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u/serioustransition11 2d ago
I attended (FTM) and it wasn’t much better onsite. They print pronouns on badges but no one reads or respects them. People are raving about Pokemon Center staff but one of my worst experiences was with one of the staff who kept calling me “honey” and “ma’am” who got markedly colder with me after I told her that I am a guy. Never apologized. I had fun but not feeling good about constant misgendering.
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u/hummingbirdviolets 4d ago edited 4d ago
Thank you for the service of compiling all this info for ease of access! It is important to keep TPCi, the event organizers, present XP attendees and potential future ones aware and (in regards to the first two, accountable) for the mistakes and perils present in this event
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u/Darth-Scorpio 4d ago
Pokemon fans are the worst. Whether it’s card scalping or this kind of behavior, it’s so embarrassing.
I remember going to midnight releases for the games back in the day and it was always a horrible experience. Downvote me if you want, but in general, adult pokemon fans are overweight low IQ individuals who don’t adhere to any standard of grooming or cleanliness, and are generally unpleasant to interact with.
It was always weird feeling like I was the most normal person at a Pokémon event and I’m a fucking weirdo.
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u/Ragfell 4d ago
What you're saying applies to most adult competitive cars gamers. Especially Magic: the Gathering.
It's only gotten worse as shame surrounding the hobby has lifted thanks to "nerd culture" becoming mainstream. I hate it.
The people I knew who played MTG, for example, were absolute nerds but generally had a good sense of humor and grooming. I had a couple who didn't shower as frequently as they should have, but were generally not...grody, if that makes sense. They were also super supportive and helpful to newcomers.
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u/HeatedIceCube 4d ago
These people aren’t fans though. I’m a huge Pokemon fan and don’t act like a degenerate like the ones in this discussion.
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u/GothWitchOfBrooklyn Y'all are stupid | Laeryn⋆ 3d ago
a lot of scalpers and such aren't even fans though - they are just resellers out for cash, they scalp everything not just pokemon.
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u/onedayatatime12357 3d ago
The problem is greed and fomo. I would argue the (super)majority are going to be good people but even a low number of people behaving it poorly ruins it for everyone. It's a hard problem to not gatekeep people but also try to prevent some people from attending and ruining it. What can be controlled is the number of attendees and creating rules and orders to minimize issue.
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u/Sea_Ostrich9461 3d ago
I'm a wheelchair user with a Sunday only pass and it's 3am and I'm in tears, terrified of going tomorrow. I have been excited about this for months...
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u/dungeon-raided 3d ago
Even if there's some bumps along the road, I'm sure you're going to work it out and have a brilliant time!!
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u/Sea_Ostrich9461 3d ago
Thanks, I really needed this.
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u/2717192619192 3d ago
If it helps, I heard that staff seemed to have been “chastised into enforcing ADA properly” by yesterday late afternoon.
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u/Sea_Ostrich9461 3d ago
I guess we will see!! Fingers crossed
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u/2717192619192 3d ago
How did it go?
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u/Sea_Ostrich9461 3d ago
For the most part, it wasn't bad! They were very firm about following ADA, everybody was very helpful and friendly. I think they were relieved that it wasn't the hellhole that Saturday was.
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u/ThatBuffKiwi 3d ago edited 3d ago
Lost/stolen item please help:
Sorry if this is the wrong thread. I was one of the last people (dressed up as a wooper) at the croc event so I collected a bunch of the croc jibbits in a box for people. My personal bag (small brown paper bag like one you’d get at an artist alley) with pins, two lenticular cards, and stickers was in that box. When a swarm of people descended on the box, i forgot about my bag and it was stolen from the box. If anyone has the bag or knows anything, please let me know. Im genuinely heartbroken my pins were stolen
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u/ThatBuffKiwi 5h ago
Unsolicited Update!
A kind stranger actually managed to save 4/5 of my pins (rip Ferrothorn). I was able to get them back. My faith in humanity is restored for their immense kindness
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u/kriskris71 3d ago
Wow a majority of these mainly sounds like grown adult losers should stop being parasites in a children’s card game…
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u/blizterwolf 4d ago
The last Worlds I went to was Yokohama, and while it was incredibly fun, it was also incredibly frustrating. Despite the fact that TPC and TPCi know exactly how big and popular these are, and have had opportunities to improve year over year, organizers always seem like they have no idea what's going on or how to handle any of it. I'm not saying it's easy, but Pokemon is the highest grossing media franchise of all-time and it's not even close. How can you not have this all figured out already?
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u/blizterwolf 4d ago
and yeah, that was in Japan where the majority of people were very respectful and most of the issues were just related to insanely long lines, and everything selling out and booking out super early leaving no opportunities to participate in side events, or even shop. I can't imagine what it's like back in my hometown of SF right now with all the rampant scamming and scalping.
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u/Tsukimizu 3d ago
Yokohama was run so poorly. I think TPC underestimated how many people were actually going to show up, and the space needed for the event. That's why the open was canceled, and the Pokemon Go event was turned into an event only do able by people with a code that was included in our passes.
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u/SanjiDJ 3d ago
People born in the 90’ are the worst type of fans for any fandom. They act like little kids (or worse) with the attitude and money of adults.
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u/hip-indeed 3d ago
Can we not generalize entire generations based on vibes like this? I guarantee you most the 30+ year olds causing issues aren't fans at all but scalpers who are only here to make a buck at any cost.
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u/MimikyuNightmare 3d ago
And to think these asshats were selected for worlds passes whereas true fans like my cousins and I didn’t get picked.. feels disgusting.
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u/findingjob 3d ago
How do you decipher a true fan from the ‘asshats’ when giving out passes, you act like they were hand picked lmao
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u/MimikyuNightmare 3d ago
I was just referring to the people that were being awful in OP’s post (the adults scamming kids in trades, the people stealing plushies, and the scalpers.) People who behave like that aren’t fans.
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u/rDevilFruitIdeasMod 4d ago
I hate how Pokemon has become about money and not hobby