Long post, but I hope our veteran PvP players read this The 2027 season starts tomorrow, & I wanted to share a battle recording from GO Fest Chicago.....2019 😅 I'm not posting this to say the new battle system is perfect, and I'm not trying to gloss over the myriad of issues we've faced over the years. What I'm trying to show is how far we've come from the beginning. Yes, systems should improve and change over time, & there is a strong argument that our system should be further along than it currently is. More improvement is always good. However, I remember sending battle requests & playing this game with enormous enthusiasm. Every game felt so exciting. In this recording, you'll see familiar Pokemon, like Mantine, Forretress, and Kanto Ninetales 😅 Notice the health bar on K9 bouncing around the screen, or the choppy Wing Attack animation on Mantine. The new system is more segmented than previous systems, which can feel like choppiness. It's not perfect, but I know that if I was a new player today, I would pick up our new battle system with the same enthusiasm that I had in 2019, when we had much less to work with As much as we hope and plead and push for things to be better, sometimes they simply are what they are. I've put the game down for stretches of time because it didn't live up consistent standards, but I believe the old saying is true: we often miss the forest for the trees I remember standing in Grant Park, battling in the rain with an umbrella on my shoulder. And I remember casting the World Championship finals in the Chase Center. I know you have special memories, too. None of those things happen without our game. This season, let's try to enjoy the ride a little more.

🚨🚨 New details on 3v3 team format at Worlds 2027 just dropped! Key point: Top 4 finishers at each IC will be auto-designated team captains with (seemingly?) first pick of their Worlds teammates 👀👀👀 So finishing top 4 at IC's is more important than ever...

GO Fest 10-year anniversary stream in the books! 🥂 Peak 25,000 live viewers 343,000 views on Twitch VOD’s Thank you to our incredible production team, & everyone who watched. I couldn’t have done it w/o my legendary co-pilot on the mic, @GabbySnyder See you again soon! 😉