Team Rocket does NOT want to corrupt your Pokemans

11:00 AM on 03.25.2009   |   Jim Sterling

28 comments

At the top of the week, we ran a story called "Team Rocket is real and wants to corrupt your Pokemans." The story concerned a malevolent prankster who was distributing a hacked Pokemans at the Nintendo World Store in New York, dressed like a Team Rocket member. Today we received a statement from a "real" Team Rocket cosplay group, who wanted to make it clear that this was a rogue trickster that did not reflect the true intentions of real-life Team Rocket members. Seriously.

"I represent a Team Rocket cosplay group which works within and with Pokémon Organized Play (POP) in Oregon to make Pokémon fun for kids," stated a spokesman, who emailed our tips line. "I am registered as a Professor in POP, which means I am qualified to judge and organize ranked TCG tournaments, and I work in conjunction with other POP Professors to run a side-event Diamond/Pearl (now Platinum also) DS tournament at the POP TCG tournaments.

"In the course of doing so I often distribute unofficial, unhacked Pokémon; for example, I am capable of distributing the recent Toys 'R Us Regigigas, as well as other Toys 'R Us downloadables: Darkrai, Shaymin, and Manaphy; and other promo download Pokémon such as the GameStop Deoxys. We disqualify players from our tournaments who we find to be hacking their cartridge, we do not hack our own cartidges, and we actively discourage any kind of hacking."

Destructoid of course apologizes to Team Rocket for any stress caused to its legitimate members following our story, and warn players that they should always ask to see qualifications from any Pokemans distributor, to make sure you are dealing with an official POP Professor. Accept no substitute!

This is the greatest retraction in the history of retractions. Hit the jump for the full email we received.

Team Rocket has been real for a long time, and in most cases, doesn't want to corrupt your pokemons.

Dear Destructiod and PKM Database editors,

I represent a Team Rocket cosplay group which works within and with Pokemon Organized Play (POP) in Oregon to make Pokemon fun for kids. I am registered as a Professor in POP, which means I am qualified to judge and organize ranked TCG tournaments, and I work in conjunction with other POP Professors to run a side-event Diamond/Pearl (now Platinum also) DS tournament at the POP TCG tournaments.

In the course of doing so I often distribute unofficial, unhacked Pokemon; for example, I am capable of distributing the recent Toys 'R Us Regigigas, as well as other Toys 'R Us downloadables: Darkrai, Shaymin, and Manaphy; and other promo download Pokemon such as the GameStop Deoxys. We disqualify players from our tournaments who we find to be hacking their cartridge, we do not hack our own cartidges, and we actively discourage any kind of hacking.

We also conducted a Platinum midnight release party of our own, with a tournament and Pokemon giveaways to celebrate. The Pokemon were of course completely unhacked and not at all damaging to the game cartidges they were sent to. I am concerned that your recent articles may shine a bad light on us. We do carry a certain amount of fame in Oregon, but people are still shocked to hear us say "Team Rocket does not condone cheating of any kind." We would appreciate it if you would run something to the effect of "This one jerk doesn't mean every Team Rocket cosplayer distributing rare Pokemon is a hack; here's a group of cosplayers who are emphatically against hacking!" Even if it is only an addendum, it would take a load off our minds.

I'm personally shocked that you need an organization to make Pokémon fun for kids.