An Open Letter Concerning the Elimination of the 15+ Age GTo Whom it May Concern: As an avid long-time player of the Pokémon TCG
who happens to be a sophomore in college, I must say I am hurt and
displeased with the recent decision to remove the 15+ Age Group from the
only National Level competition available to players of Pokémon.
While I was not able to attend last year’s STS, I saw what it did
for the game. The STS is one
of the best venues for Pokémon to reach people, and it provides an
environment in which to evaluate the game that can’t be found elsewhere. Magic has its Pro Tour, its Grand Prix, its Masters Series,
but what do older players of Pokémon get?
Nothing. We had the
STS to look forward to as somewhere we could go to be competative.
It was a goal to strive for, and now that goal has been taken from
us. While I understand that “15+” is not your
“target market,” you must realize that the 15+ Age Group provides much
of the revenue that comes from the Pokémon franchise.
Most, if not all, of the Pokémon players I am in contact with are
over the age of 15. I myself
am 20. Most of the players
who would do well at an event like the STS are over 15.
Yet in the quest to cater to the “target audience,” an audience
that will only grow smaller as the children move on to other “hot
items,” Wizards and Hasbro risk the total alienation of the core group
of dedicated and devoted gamers. People like myself, who started playing before Pokémon
was marketed for the 12-and-under crowd only, have remained devoted
because we enjoy the game and we feel that it is a worthwhile investment.
If there is no longer a serious competative environment for us to
play in, perhaps it is time to end this investment. Please, reconsider this decision.
If your goal is to continue and even to increase sales of your
product, eliminating over half of your target market is not the most
sucessful way of going about this. Thank you for your time, www.pojo.com |