Curtin Pokémon Cup makes a comeback after two years

Miri – 2 November 2022 – The student-run Pokémon Club of Curtin University Malaysia (Curtin Malaysia) recently brought together Pokémon trainers for its second Curtin Pokémon Cup (CPC) after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Pokémon trainers were from both the Curtin Malaysia community and members of the public.

The day-long tournament at the Curtin Malaysia campus saw about 80 Pokémon trainers participating in both physical and virtual mode, demonstrating tremendous skills in Pokémon Go and the ability to make quick decisions during Pokémon battles.

Officiating at the opening of the tournament was Miri City councillor Jeffrey Phang Siaw Foong representing Minister for Transport Datuk Lee Kim Shin, who is the chairman of Curtin Malaysia’s management committee and a strong supporter of the Curtin Pokémon Cup.

The top three winners walked away with cash prizes totalling RM1,000. The tournament also featured a lucky draw offering a range of Pokémon-related prizes.

Organising chairman Andy Yii Zhi Sheng said the aim of the tournament was to socialise and foster stronger links within the Pokémon Go community at Curtin Malaysia and also network with fellow enthusiasts in the local community.

Yii believes Pokémon Go will continue to be popular and new iterations of the mobile game developed in the future with the continued advancement of augmented reality (AR). He also thanked members of the organising committee, event sponsors and helpers, and the participants for making the event a success.

Meanwhile, Laboratory Technical Officer Siaw Teck Ung of Curtin Malaysia’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, who is club advisor to the Curtin Pokémon Club, said this year’s tournament was also a platform to promote AR, which unlike virtual reality (VR) which creates a totally artificial environment, allows users to experience a real-world environment with generated perceptual information overlaid on top of it.

“Pokémon Go is a perfect example of the integration of digital information with the user’s environment in real time, which is a very unique experience in itself. The game is also simple to use and suitable for players of all age groups,” remarked Siaw.

He added that with the continued support of the university and local community, the club is considering making the tournament an annual event.

Developed by Niantic Inc. in 2016, Pokémon Go is an augmented reality mobile game that has been a big hit across the world and continues to have a very active global player base. ‘Pokémon trainer’ is the term commonly used for a person who catches, trains, cares for, and battles with Pokémon. The majority of people within the known Pokémon world are trainers.

The game’s PVP (player versus player) battle system allows trainers to battle others with their trained Pokémon. As with all Pokémon Go tournaments, the Curtin Pokémon Cup was staged using the battle system developed by The Silph Road.

For more information on the Curtin Pokémon Club, go to https://www.facebook.com/Pokemongo.curtinmsia.

Information on Curtin Malaysia can be found on its website at www.curtin.edu.my, or look for Curtin Malaysia on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn or Tik-Tok.

Group photo of physical trainers with Cr Jeffrey Phang (seated in yellow shirt)

Battle between organising chairman Andy Yii (right) and Cr Jeffery Phang