Hey everyone

[newtothis]

I'm new here, as you can tell. I've been a Pokémon fan for years. I can tell how popular Pokémon is around the world, even now as Nintendo loses a lot of ground in the gaming industry. It's so popular that there's even a website like this, dedicated to the "art" of Pokémon battling! I know there are experts on this site that write articles on everything related to competitive Pokémon battling. I'm just wondering, do they ever see each other in real life? Or is their job confined to the online world, and they only have their usernames here to communicate with each other? Does it ever seem weird to talk about Pokémon battling with other people (compared to, say, a football team or famous musician that you're a fan of)?

(And by talk I don't mean being on forums, I mean actual face-to-face communication with another fan of Pokémon)

 

[a fairy]

http://www.smogon.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3480294

e: regarding your question, numerous users go to VGC events, as well as Smocons - meetups for Smogon users

 

[Grey Knight]

This is not a game its a competition.

 

[tehy]

No, it's a competitive game

 

[Blue_Tornado]

You'll always be new to this, huh? So tragic.

 

[DM]

I don't understand why this was locked, this could be a great thread.

To answer the question: yes, many of us meet each other in real life all the time. In fact, just this Friday night I drove up to Toronto with gene to meet up with Layell/Jackal/Ripchord/Snkz/Texas Cloverleaf. We hung out at a board game coffee shop/bar and had a great time.

For me, the Pokemon community has always been friends first, Pokemon second. Because what's the point of getting involved if you're not going to make any friends? There are people that I've met through Smogon that I plan on inviting to my eventual wedding. Fish and I have traveled together every summer since 2006 (except 2009), going to NYC/Toronto/Las Vegas/Indianapolis twice (about to be three times)/England/Scotland/Wales/Hawaii/Japan. I have met close to 200 people through this community, and I wouldn't trade any of it. Sometimes, people that I know off the internet think it's silly, but I don't hold it against them for not understanding.

 

[Phadunk]

I know there are experts on this site that write articles on everything related to competitive Pokémon battling. I'm just wondering, do they ever see each other in real life?

Trying to understand how these two statements correlate with one another.

 

[TheFourthChaser]

This is not a game its a competition.

I guess since you only play ladder you may see it as a competition of "who is less stupid".

I've met some people going to VGC events and its pretty chill, definitely some nice experiences. I never found it weird to talk about Pokemon like one would a sport, it's just another interest between people and being able to play at this highest level makes it easier to talk about. If you were a pro athlete or an established musician it's going to be easier to talk about your craft than it would be for a fan.

 

[GatoDelFuego]

By definition a competition is a game

I've never spoken in real life with anybody else on smogon, though I'm not exactly the world-class battler to go to any official tournaments. I'm seriously surprised I can't find one other person in my hometown or in my 32,000 person university that knows what smogon is. Granted, there's a lot on smogon that I'd count as friendships with people, it doesn't really have to be face-to-face to talk with people about stuff other than pokemon. The main problem is that this site is so huge, a lot of the users are spread out across the entire world. Aside from huge events, it's hard to see people.

 

[apt-get]

Since I'm in a completely lost third-world country and I'm waaaaaaaay too shy to talk to anybody, I guess no?

 

[Arcticblast]

One thing I noticed recently at college orientation is that there are more Pokemon players than you may realize. I was waiting around for a counseling session (schedule recommendations) and idly talking to a few people around me. I eventually brought up Pokemon* and before I knew it the person next to me brought up EVs... There was also another time before I graduated where I was browsing Smogon on a school computer and someone I'd never met before made a comment about it.

People you've never met before probably aren't going to make fun of you for playing Pokemon or anything. If you can manage to bring it up in conversation, there's always a chance that they play too - even competitively.

I know this post is kind of a tangent, deal with it :\ as for meeting up with other Smogon users offline, I can't say I have any experience there - the only Smogon users I've met in person are people who I originally met offline.

*"Do you play any sports?" "I play competitive Pokemon, does that count?" Whether they play or not, it should at least solicit a laugh, which is always good to hear.

 

[Deschain]

I don't understand why this was locked, this could be a great thread.

To answer the question: yes, many of us meet each other in real life all the time. In fact, just this Friday night I drove up to Toronto with gene to meet up with Layell/Jackal/Ripchord/Snkz/Texas Cloverleaf. We hung out at a board game coffee shop/bar and had a great time.

For me, the Pokemon community has always been friends first, Pokemon second. Because what's the point of getting involved if you're not going to make any friends? There are people that I've met through Smogon that I plan on inviting to my eventual wedding. Fish and I have traveled together every summer since 2006 (except 2009), going to NYC/Toronto/Las Vegas/Indianapolis twice (about to be three times)/England/Scotland/Wales/Hawaii/Japan. I have met close to 200 people through this community, and I wouldn't trade any of it. Sometimes, people that I know off the internet think it's silly, but I don't hold it against them for not understanding.

missed my chance.

 

[Layell]

fyi toronto videos have been uploaded and I will be posting them all very very soon with a little summary thread. Highlight: Jackal shoot G80.

 

[DM]

I've never spoken in real life with anybody else on smogon, though I'm not exactly the world-class battler to go to any official tournaments.

The main problem is that this site is so huge, a lot of the users are spread out across the entire world. Aside from huge events, it's hard to see people.

Man, I hate to pick on you, but these are both cop-outs. I'm a fucking terrible competitive battler (seriously, I've taken part in about 30 Nugget Bridge tourneys and have not won even a single battle), yet I have attended two Nationals, a regional, and a Worlds (and would have done more if they were closer to Buffalo). Additionally, I have traveled to meet people, as people have traveled to meet me. If you aren't willing to spend a couple dollars, then yes, it will be hard to meet people. But aside from gene/G80 (and Shichiro back in the day), NOBODY from Smogon is from Buffalo. I got out there and met them anyway.

 

[DetroitLolcat]

I'll be going to a very large university soon and I know that at least one Smogoner goes there (whether I ever see him or not is another thing lol). Hopefully, the University of Michigan has more competitive Pokemon players than just two, and I'd live to meet up with anyone who lives in the greater Ann Arbor area.

I don't know any Smogoners personally, but I sure hope that changes some day. I'd love to meet up with some of you in the future! :)

VGC sure seems to be the best place to meet up, though personal get-togethers seem pretty fun too!

 

[GatoDelFuego]

Man, I hate to pick on you, but these are both cop-outs. I'm a fucking terrible competitive battler (seriously, I've taken part in about 30 Nugget Bridge tourneys and have not won even a single battle), yet I have attended two Nationals, a regional, and a Worlds (and would have done more if they were closer to Buffalo). Additionally, I have traveled to meet people, as people have traveled to meet me. If you aren't willing to spend a couple dollars, then yes, it will be hard to meet people. But aside from gene/G80 (and Shichiro back in the day), NOBODY from Smogon is from Buffalo. I got out there and met them anyway.

Well, I suppose so. Perhaps my issue was a lack of interest. When I took battling very seriously/when I was less mature, I wasn't involved with smogon at all and didn't know anybody, and my family wouldn't have me do anything like go to nationals or something. But now that I'm involved with the social side of smogon, I'm less interested in battling anyway. If I found that anybody I know pretty well here lived anywhere I knew, I'd get together with people, but nobody seems to live in alabama. Or the west chicago suburbs

If you do though please, please tell me

 

[kalphite]

I'll be going to a very large university soon and I know that at least one Smogoner goes there (whether I ever see him or not is another thing lol). Hopefully, the University of Michigan has more competitive Pokemon players than just two, and I'd live to meet up with anyone who lives in the greater Ann Arbor area.

I don't know any Smogoners personally, but I sure hope that changes some day. I'd love to meet up with some of you in the future! :)

VGC sure seems to be the best place to meet up, though personal get-togethers seem pretty fun too!

As a fellow University of Michigan student, trust me, smogon lurkers are everywhere. I met two in my intro to engineering class and met another one at a house party and I'm barely one to even talk about that kind of stuff with other people.

 

[Shiruba]

does anyone here know [or even cooler, have data] on participants of smogon's competitive tournaments over the years? it'd be cool to see if participation has gone up, down, or stagnated over time.