February 27, 2021, marks a day, twenty-five years ago, when a young boy named Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town met his best friend, Pikachu. Together, they ventured out worldwide on a mission to one day become the very best. A Pokémon training team to be reckoned with, they’ve battled countless trainers, made new friends, and still haven’t caught them all. I have always wondered, though. If young trainers can only start their journey at the age of 10, that would make Ash, chronologically speaking, 35? Talk about good genes!
Math and logic aside, Pokémon is one of the most enduring stories about friendship, new experiences, and overcoming all obstacles to become the very best, like no one ever was. Through movies, TV shows, trading cards, and video games, the story is stronger than ever. This Saturday, fans from around the world will celebrate.
But how can you get in on the fun for Pokémon Day? We’ve come up with five ways for you to participate safely.
One of the games that have captured the world’s imagination and led a charge to get people out of their houses, into the streets, and form new communities has been Pokémon Go. The augmented reality title has captured the imagination of both young and old. In fact, one of the oldest players in the world is from Taiwan. Known as the Pokemon Grandpa, the 72-year-old plays on 64 different phones strapped to his bicycle.
The name of the game is to capture as many Pokemon as possible in an augmented reality world. There are stops based in the real world that distribute gifts like Pokeballs, snacks for your Pokemon, and other supplies you need on your journey to becoming a Pokemon Master. You can invite your friends, and together you can raid gyms and discover new Pokemon. This whole experience made portable power banks and fast chargers extremely popular, pre-COVID-19.
Niantic, the company behind Pokemon Go, has made some great tweaks to enhance socially distanced playing. The remote pass addition allows players to participate in raids at gyms from their own homes’ comfort. Once committed to a raid, you can invite your friends from anywhere to join you. Other tweaks like gift boxes have been added to help keep players engaged while acting responsibly.
The game is available on both Android and Apple iOS. Now, go catch ’em all on Pokémon Day!
The Pokémon Company is celebrating their 25 years with a unique concert experience featuring Post Malone. Even celebrities are huge fans of the Pokémon franchise. Katy Perry too!
At 4 PM PST / 7 PM EST on February 27th, 2021, the show begins. We don’t know much more than what is being portrayed in the trailer above. Is it going to be live-action, following COVID-19 protocols? Or will it be a completely virtualized event featuring a fully animated concert experience? And will Ryan Reynolds show up? Find out more at the official website.
Post Malone has also released a new track for the Pokémon Day celebrations featuring a cover of Hootie & The Blowfish’s ‘Only Wanna Be With You.’ It’s available right here.
Fans of the Pokemon franchise will recall that Ash Ketchum has a notoriously bottomless stomach. More often than not, one of his companions happens to be great at cooking. But there are also iconic foods like Poke Puffs that often get referenced from season to season and have inspired fans to turn them into the real thing.
One way that you can celebrate at home is to create Pokemon-inspired dishes for your social bubble. Share your creativity and your passion for cooking while bringing people together on Pokémon Day. Drop some treats off for your friends and celebrate by participating in the next thing on our list.
With over twenty-five years of TV shows and movies, there are not enough hours on Pokémon Day to watch them all. You’d have to get all the way from the original series, the movies, and the latest series, Pokémon Journeys. Yes, the one where Ash and Pikachu don’t look like they’ve aged a day.
The easiest way to watch together is an app called Teleparty (formerly known as Netflix Party). Once you’ve decided on which show, season, a movie featuring our favourite pocket monsters to watch, the app will help you synchronize your Netflix sessions in HD and add a chat panel so that you can share comments.
The app works with other streaming services, besides Netflix, like Disney+. You will all need to have an active account on whatever streaming service you choose to watch together.
Another way to watch is via screen share on apps like Zoom, which we are all very familiar with. Just leave the chat panel open and mute your mics.
Unleash the creator in you on Pokémon Day. Celebrate your favourite Pokémon characters with art, photos, and videos, and share them with the world on your social channels. Use hashtag #Pokemon25 to join in on the conversation. Share your unique drawings, quotes, screencaps, and memes. See what everyone else is doing to celebrate Ash and Pikachu on this special day.
Not great at drawing? You can log in to Pokémon Go and use the camera app to take pictures of your buddies in augmented reality. The app even lets you share them on your social media directly. Check out this guide to find out how it works and get creative now.
Why stop with photos? Create videos about your top 10 characters and why you love them, explore your theory on why Ash Ketchum never ages, and why does Mr. Mime hang out with Mrs. Ketchum so much? Upload them to YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. Do it because you love Pokémon, not for the views and likes though both are nice.
We’ve shared our ideas with you. Now it’s your turn to share yours! Leave a comment below and let us know how you’ll be spending your day celebrating one of the greatest friendships in history. If you made any social content, tweet us to see what you came up with, especially if you made a video about why Ash doesn’t age. How does he not age??
Most importantly, celebrate safely, and never stop striving to be the very best, even during these really weird times.
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