Pokémon and Bayou Wars
One of the biggest international competitions took place over the past
weekend. Drawing international teams of world-class competitors and cheering
fans from across the globe to home turf in the United States, this epic
competitive spectacle is nothing less than inescapable in the cultural
zeitgeist.
This event is, of course, the Pokémon North American International
Championships held at the Morial Convention Center this past weekend. What else
could it have possibly been?
The North American International Championships (NAIC) coincides with the
30th anniversary of Pokémon, the highest-grossing media franchise in the world.
In its third year in New Orleans, the event hosted competitive play in video
games (VGC), trading cards (TCG), mobile games Pokémon GO, and spinoff
video game Pokémon Unite. In addition to the main events, the main event
hall of the Convention Center buzzed with side competitions, board games, and Pokémon-themed
boardwalk games. In the hallways outside were photo-ops with Pokémon
mascots Pikachu and Gengar, Nintendo Switch sessions to play the newest Pokémon
games, and entrance into the Pokémon Center pop-up store. As the final events
played out, the winners are set to advance to the Pokémon World Championships
this summer in San Francisco.
Not far from New Orleans, a similar set of competitions was raging, as
well, but the digital had turned to physical, and the battles had turned to
wars. Bayou Wars, the D'Iberville, Mississippi-based Gulf Coast convention is
dedicated to board games in general and military battle simulations in
particular. In the shadows of the colossal casinos of Biloxi, the D'Iberville
Civic Center became host to enthusiasts of board games, history, and the
massive overlap between the two. At any one moment, gamers could take their
pick between intricate, painted figurine simulations of Napoleonic-era naval
combat, the Boxer Rebellion in Northern China, ancient Roman chariot racing, or
galactic combat in the world of Star Wars.
Fans of historical gaming and Star Wars
are another big overlap in the mix, perhaps unsurprisingly.
Interestingly enough,
many participants at Bayou Wars and Pokémon both knew that the other respective
events were going on over the course of the weekend. Although they're very
different styles of gaming, there's a continuity and respect at the edges of gaming
and fandom. It might be among the hottest days of a long summer, but the
weather could do little to compare to the heat of battle right here along the
Gulf Coast.
