Pokémon 2016 World Championships are underway, new Pokémon revealed

It’s day one of the 2016 Pokémon World Championship Series! This annual competition consists of Pokémon players from over 35 countries who battle it out across various Pokémon games.Players compete to prove that they are the very best and to grab their part of cash and scholarship prizes of a cumulative worth of over $500,000.

The Pokémon World Championship is being held in San Francisco this year, and tournament games include Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby, Pokkén Tournament, and the Pokémon Trading Card Game. Fans are tuning in to root for their favorite Pokémon players and perhaps to even witness the rise of a brilliant new strategy, like Se Jun Park’s game-changing use of Pachirisu’s Follow Me in 2014.

The Pokémon Company used the opening ceremony to tease fans with previews of the powerful new Pokémon-GX expansion for the Pokémon Trading Card Game, which is scheduled for release in early 2017.

The opening ceremonies also revealed the names of three new monsters for the upcoming Pokémon Sun and Pokemon Moon games; the sand castle Pokemon Sandgyast and Palossand as well as the adorable Stufful. They also gave fans a first glimpse of Crabrawler, a competitive fighting-type Pokémon, which fits nicely with the spirit of the Pokémon World Championship. Crabrawler does not come with a new, never-before-seen ability, but its pincers apparently taste delicious. Wait–are we eating Pokémon now? Maybe that’s what the newly revealed Team Skull is up to!

Fans can watch The Pokémon World Championship live on the Main Stream, which will cover all three competitions, or tune in to their favorite game via the Trading Card Game National Championship Stream, the Video Game National Championship Stream, or the Pokkén Tournement National Championship Stream. You can learn more about the 2016 Pokémon Championship Series, including scheduling, prizes, and score updates right here. May the best trainer win!