The SMASH! Sydney Manga and Anime Show is not all about, well, just that…anime and manga. It’s also about celebrating some of Japan’s most beloved gaming franchises, with Pokemon, Super Smash Bros. and Street Fighter all having a presence at the convention this year, and all of which were played in tournaments on the day.
The Pokemon DS tournament lasted for nearly two hours, featuring 16 game competitors vying for a prize pack generously sponsored by Beyond Entertainment. Players could use their copies of either Pokemon Black & White or Pokemon Black & White 2, but there were a fair amount of regulations in place. Infrared Double Battle was the match format, with a maximum of only four Pokemon per team. There were no time limits, and all Pokemon were either auto-levelled up or down to Lvl. 50.
Players were allowed to use Pokémon from the National Pokédex – No. 001–649 – that were caught in the game, transferred from a previous Pokémon title, or received at an official event or distribution. However, the following list of Pokemon were not eligible to be on any team: Mewtwo, Mew, Lugia, Ho-Oh, Celebi, Kyogre, Groudon, Rayquaza, Jirachi, Deoxys, Chatot, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Phione, Manaphy, Darkrai, Shaymin, Arceus, Victini, Reshiram, Zekrom, Kyurem, Keldeo, Meloetta and Genesect. The complete list of rules can be read here.
Being a double elimination bracket, the winner of the ‘winning’ bracket – in this case, Roland – and the winner of the ‘losing’ bracket – Darren – would face off in the finals. If the winner of the ‘losing’ bracket were to win, then an immediate rematch would take place, giving them the handicap of having to win twice…and this is almost what happened. Darren took out the first round in a tight match, leading to the second round per the stipulations. However, Roland worked hard to ensure a repeat result was not in his future and closed out the tournament for the win!
You can see a photo of the winners at the very top of this article, and also remember to check out our coverage of the Street Fighter IV competition!
