Pokemon Center Tokyo – Don’t go on a Weekend

No, seriously. If you like to take your time and shop in peace, don’t go on a weekend. 

GOTTA CATCH ‘EM ALL!   O____O

Anyway, since kids still give a damn about Pokemon in Japan, the Pokemon Center stores are still around (R.I.P. Rockefeller Center store). The Tokyo store is in a really obscure location (Hamamatsucho) and the first time I came with my cousin Noriko the two of us got lost, even when using the GPS on her cell phone. We eventually found it on the second floor of some building around the corner from the train station and then we felt really dumb. Unfortunately, this area is all office buildings and getting lost in Hamamatsucho isn’t as nice as getting lost in Hatsudai.

When you first walk into the store, you see this gigantic statue thing of Pikachu, Charmander, and Pocchama (sorry, it sounds cuter than “Piplup”), which is kind of an odd combination. Apparently each of the stores have different combos which are stranger than this one, though all of them feature Pikachu. In the Tokyo location, gigantic models of Dialga and Palkia also hang from the ceiling. Oh, and for whatever reason in one corner there’s a giant Charizard hanging next to a security camera.

Anyway, throughout the store, the Pokemon Center theme song from the games plays nonstop. There are also a few screens in various locations advertising various aspects of the Pokemon franchise. This time the screens were showing demos of My Pokemon Ranch for the Nintendo Wii. The first time I came it was some kid’s birthday and there was some special animation on the screen with a birthday message voiced by Matsumoto Rika as Satoshi (Ash Ketchum to those of you who’ve never seen the more awesome Japanese version of the anime XP).

As far as merchandise goes, it’s all pretty normal, actually. Stuffed toys, video games, DS accessories, trading cards, stationary, figures, etc. The original merchandise is dominated by Generation IV (Diamond, Pearl, Platinum) Pokemon, though. And Pikachu (I love Pikachu though, so I don’t mind). Like Disney, there’s also Pokemon-themed food and snacks. Unlike Disney, there’s Pokemon toilet paper. 

Right now there are a few campaigns going on in the Tokyo store. The newest one is the Eevee Collection, which features Eevee and all of it’s evolutions. I love the “Eeveelutions” so this was great news for me (normally there’s only merchandise of Leafeon and Glaceon since they’re from Generation IV). The other campaign is called “Pokemon time,” which is meant to celebrate the Pokemon Center’s 10th anniversary, and features Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle. Although not a campaign, one other relatively new line of merchandise is “Pokemon 151,” a line of t-shirts designed to cater to older fans. 

Oh, and the other things to note about the store are an absolutely ridiculous amount of Pokemon gashapon machines near the cash registers and a small area where you can transfer exclusive gift items and Pokemon to your game through Nintendo WiFi. I didn’t import Pokemon Platinum so I wasn’t able to get anything… I tried it on my English copy of Diamond anyway, though. It didn’t work.

I kind of want them to make some Rotom-form merchandise. I love the angry lawn mower~

 

ポケモンＧＥＴだぜ！

Ootani Ikue, voice of Pikachu

Sugimori Ken, Game Art Director (can't read the other name)

Masuda Junichi, Game Music Composer

Morimoto Shigeki, Game Battle Director