The Poké Court, a local Pokémon card and collector’s shop in Manhattan, was robbed at gunpoint back in January. Armed burglars showed up and terrorized guests during the middle of a crowded event. As traumatic as it was, the employees told Kotaku that the broader Pokémon community showed up to support them. Bust as word spread, Nintendo was apparently made aware of the store has since reached out to the owners to…ask them to change their branding.
The shop posted on its Instagram account that Nintendo reached out with “concerns” about its name and logo, which included the iconic red-and-white Poké Ball. “The short story is Nintendo reached out to us with concerns about our name and logo,” the message read. “This means we’re evolving!”
As such, the owners have released a statement with a new name and logo. The store will now be called The Trainer Court, and now has replaced the Poké Ball logo with a new one with a stylized “C” for “Court.” Beyond that, the store will continue to offer the same cards, community events, and tournaments. The Trainer Court will also be hosting an event on Pokémon Day, February 27, which commemorates the series’ 30th anniversary.
“Above all, we have always been fans of Pokémon,” the statement reads. “We are a group of kids who refuse to grow up, and we spend every day celebrating this franchise that means so much to us.”
Nintendo has a history of being litigious about fan creations, events, and businesses, whether that be pretty normal stuff like fan games, or more unsavory business like piracy. They certainly didn’t step in when the Department of Homeland Security was using the Pokémon theme song to promote ICE, though.
The Pokémon Company did release a statement to Kotaku confirming it wasn’t involved, but the video is still up on social media and has received over 75 million views on X alone.
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