Pokémon Center New York

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Pokémon Center New York
Pokémon Center New York logo.png
Location Rockefeller Center, New York
Opened November 16, 2001[1]
Closed January 19, 2005[2]
Type Permanent
Website

Pokémon Center New York (also known as Pokémon Center NY and abbreviated as PCNY) was a Pokémon Center store located in the Rockefeller Center in New York City. It was the first (and so far only) Pokémon Center store in the United States, when it opened on November 16, 2001.[1] The store closed in January 19, 2005, to be refurbished into Nintendo World,[2] which in turn was replaced in 2016 by Nintendo New York.

History

Alternative logo

On November 1, 2001, it was announced that Pokémon Center New York would be opening on November 16, 2001, at the Rockefeller Center in New York City. The opening was celebrated with a week long event that included "tournaments, drawings for limited edition Pokémon products and contest[s]".[1] Customers who brought along an invitation postcard received either a Pokémon Center promo card or a book exclusive to the event.[2] November 19, 2016, saw the launch of the complimentary online store PokémonCenter.com, which sold merchandise that was otherwise exclusively available at the New York store.[3]

To celebrate the store opening, a range of merchandise was produced, including the Game Boy Advance - Pokémon Center New York Edition.[4] Also featured at the opening was the then new Pokémon mini handheld console that was exclusive (in North America) to the store and its website.[5] A series of Christmas themed merchandise was also available.[6]

In November 2002, a Rapidash promo card and a Ho-Oh promo card were distributed at the store. On July 11, 2004, Pokémon Box Ruby & Sapphire was released exclusively (in North America) at the store and on PokémonCenter.com.

Nintendo World

In 2004, it was announced that Pokémon Center New York would be closing for renovations, and the store closed on January 19, 2005.[2] Rather than reopen as a Pokémon Center, the store was instead rebranded as Nintendo World, featuring merchandise from a range of Nintendo franchises, including Pokémon. The store reopened on May 14, 2005, and to celebrate a "block party" was held outside the store in Rockefeller Plaza.[7] The store featured a dedicated Pokémon Center area on the ground floor, and the PokémonCenter.com website continued to operate until 2008.

From November 26, 2014 to January 14, 2015, visitors to the Nintendo World store were able to obtain the Eon Ticket for Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire.[8]

Nintendo New York

On January 19, 2016, Nintendo World closed for refurbishment, and on February 19, 2016, reopened as Nintendo New York.[9][10] A small selection of Pokémon Center merchandise remains available on the upper floor.

The store has three sister locations in Japan. On November 22, 2019, Nintendo Tokyo opened in the Shibuya PARCO shopping center, next door to Pokémon Center Shibuya.[11] On November 11, 2022, Nintendo Osaka opened in the Daimaru Umeda department store, on the same floor as Pokémon Center Osaka.[12] Nintendo Kyoto opened within the Kyoto Takashimaya S.C. department store on October 17, 2023.[13]

Timeline

  • November 16, 2001 - Pokémon Center New York opens at the Rockefeller Center in New York
  • November 19, 2001 - PokémonCenter.com launches
  • January 19, 2005 - Pokémon Center New York closes
  • May 14, 2005 - Nintendo World opens
  • February 19, 2016 - Nintendo New York opens

Store features

Pokémon Center New York was designed by TPG Architecture,[14] who took inspiration from the surrounding Rockefeller Center and gave the store an Art Deco inspired theme. The store included many unique features, including numerous animatronics (such as Pichu, Charizard, and a 3-foot Poké Ball), sound and light shows, and a "Pokémon Conveyor Belt" where 10 "life-size" Pokémon hung from a track on the ceiling moving in a circle around the lower floor.[15]

The store had an "Ultra Pokédex" on the first floor, an interactive touch screen database which included statistics, video clips, and images of the then 251 known Pokémon. On the second floor was located the "Pokémon Trainer Gym", an area where customers could play various Pokémon games on Nintendo 64 and Nintendo GameCube for free. Also on the second floor was an area for the Pokémon Trading Card Game, which included glass display cases filled with cards, and places to sit and play the game.

  • The store exterior at night

    The store exterior at night

  • The first floor of the store, including the "Pokémon Conveyor Belt"

    The first floor of the store, including the "Pokémon Conveyor Belt"

  • The "Ultra Pokédex"

    The "Ultra Pokédex"

  • The "Pokémon Trainer Gym"

    The "Pokémon Trainer Gym"

Gotta Catch 'em All Station

The Gotta Catch 'em All Station
See also: Distribution device § Pokémon Distribution Machine

The Gotta Catch 'em All Station was a series of four Pokémon Distributing Machines located on the second floor of Pokémon Center New York. Once per week, guests at the store could insert their Pokémon Gold, Silver or Crystal game cartridge into one of the machines and receive an exclusive event Pokémon.

On January 2, 2003, the original machines were removed to prepare for the upcoming release of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire. New machines were installed later that year, and a series of event Pokémon were made available for those games. Event distributions for Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen were done via wireless communication, rather than through the machines. Pokémon Center New York closed before the US release of Pokémon Emerald, and the Gotta Catch 'em All Station did not return at Nintendo World.[16]


Exclusive merchandise

A range of exclusive merchandise was sold at the store, and on PokémonCenter.com, between opening day and when the store closed in 2005, as documented by the Pokémon Center New York Historical Website.

Grand Opening merchandise

To celebrate the opening of the store on November 16, 2001, a wide range of exclusive merchandise was made available for purchase at the store. Many of these items were later made available for purchase at the other Pokémon Center stores in Japan, as well as on Pokémon Center Online.[6][17]

Some items were only sold at the grand opening of Pokémon Center New York in November 2001. This included the Pokémon Center New York Grand Opening Pin, of which only 3000 were produced, all of which were marked with a number between 1 and 3000. The pin came packaged in a plastic box, with the pin and numbered plate resting on foam. The pin was made of metal and depicted an image of Pikachu and Pichu. A similar numbered keychain was also available.

Another featured item was the Pokémon Magical Clock, described as an "heirloom-quality timepiece", was an analogue wall clock that featured a Poké Ball that opened once an hour to reveal Mewtwo, Pikachu, Pichu, and Charizard, and chimed sounds from the Pokémon games. The clock was also available to purchase from PokémonCenter.com, and cost $349.95.[4]

  • Grand Opening Pin (numbered 0853)

    Grand Opening Pin (numbered 0853)

  • Grand Opening keychain

    Grand Opening keychain

  • Pokémon Magical Clock

    Pokémon Magical Clock

  • Mug

    Mug

  • Guitar

    Guitar

  • Chocolates

    Chocolates

  • T-shirt

    T-shirt

  • Store logo pin

    Store logo pin

  • Store logo keychain

    Store logo keychain

  • Tumbler

    Tumbler

  • Stickers

    Stickers

  • Small photo frame

    Small photo frame

  • Large photo frame

    Large photo frame

  • Figurine

    Figurine

  • Glasses

    Glasses

  • Dinner set

    Dinner set

  • Ukulele

    Ukulele

Game Boy Advance

Another piece of opening day merchandise was the Game Boy Advance - Pokémon Center New York Edition. This version of the Game Boy Advance was gold with grey buttons, had "Pokémon Center NEW YORK" written above the screen, silhouettes of Pichu and Pikachu either side of the Game Boy Advance logo below the screen, and the Pokémon logo above the A and B buttons. The handheld console was initially sold alone for $99.95, or bundled with a chocolate brown carry case for $109.95, or a plastic carry case for $105.95.[4] The carry cases were also sold separately.

Due to poor sales, the price for the console was later reduced to $79.95, and by June 2002 to $69.95 with a free copy of Pokémon Crystal.[18] Eventually, the console would stop being an exclusive, and was sold at other US retailers, such as Toys "R" Us,[5] at Pokémon Center stores in Japan, and on Pokémon Center Online.[19]

Pokémon mini

Main article: Pokémon mini

The Pokémon mini was a handheld game console designed and manufactured by Nintendo, that only played a selection of specifically tailored Pokémon minigames. In North America, the console was only available to purchase at Pokémon Center New York, or from PokémonCenter.com, and was released the same day the store opened. The console (which included the game Pokémon Party mini) could be purchased for $39.95, or in a bundle with Pokémon Pinball mini, Pokémon Puzzle Collection, Pokémon Zany Cards, and a carry case for $81.95.[4] Due to poor sales, no other games were released in North America, and the console was quickly discontinued.

Pokémon Christmas 2001 merchandise

For Christmas in 2001, a selection of themed merchandise was sold, including greetings cards, gift tags, pin badges, plates, mugs, stockings, dioramas, and cakes.[6]

Pokémon Box Ruby & Sapphire

Main article: Pokémon Box Ruby & Sapphire

On July 11, 2004, Pokémon Box Ruby & Sapphire was released exclusively (in North America) at the store and on PokémonCenter.com. Because of this highly limited release, it is considered to be one of the rarest Pokémon video games, with only around 10,000 English-language copies being sold between Europe and the United States.[5]

Promo cards

In other languages

Language Title
Japan Flag.png Japanese ポケモンセンターニューヨーク Pokémon Center New York

See also

External links

Pokémon Center New York

Nintendo New York

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Pokémon says “I Choose You!” To Rockefeller Center for First U.S. Store Dedicated To the Growing Worldwide Phenomenon - Pokémon USA, Inc. (archived from the original November 19, 2001; retrieved March 23, 2024)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 History of Pokémon Center New York - Pokémon Center New York Historical Website (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  3. ↑ Pokémoncenter.com Gives Online Pokémon Fans a Slice of the Big Apple - Pokémon USA, Inc. (archived from the original December 13, 2001; retrieved March 23, 2024)
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 The Online Shop - Pokémon USA, Inc. (archived from the original December 16, 2001; retrieved March 23, 2024)
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Gaming Merchandise - Pokémon Center New York Historical Website (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Exclusive Merchandise - Pokémon Center New York Historical Website (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  7. ↑ Nintendo World Store Opening Party - Nintendo Spin (archived from the original July 14, 2011; retrieved March 23, 2024)
  8. ↑ Get the Eon Ticket via StreetPass! - The Pokémon Company International (archived from the original November 20, 2014; retrieved March 23, 2024)
  9. ↑ Tweet by @NintendoNYC - Twitter (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  10. ↑ Nintendo NY opens its doors to fans from around the world - Polygon (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  11. ↑ Nintendo's first store in Japan opens this Friday, and it looks like a Nintendo-lover's paradise — here's what it's like inside - Business Insider (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  12. ↑ Nintendo is opening its second official Japan store in Osaka - Time Out (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  13. ↑ New Official Nintendo Store “Nintendo Kyoto” Coming to Japan October 2023 - NintendoSoup (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  14. ↑ Pokémon - TPG Architecture (PDF) (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  15. ↑ NYC Store - Pokémon USA, Inc. (archived from the original February 5, 2002; retrieved March 23, 2024)
  16. ↑ Pokémon Distribution Machine - Pokémon Center New York Historical Website (retrieved March 23, 2024)
  17. ↑ Pokémon Center Original > New York Goods - Pokémon Center Online (archived from the original January 10, 2002; retrieved March 24, 2024)
  18. ↑ Online Store - Pokémon USA, Inc. (archived from the original June 18, 2002; retrieved March 23, 2024)
  19. ↑ GBA original NY version - Pokémon Center Online (archived from the original January 11, 2002; retrieved March 24, 2024)


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Outside Japan: New York (defunct) • Singapore • Taipei
Other: Online • Pop-Up Stores (Worlds 2024 • Worlds 2023 • NAIC 2023 • EUIC 2023 • Worlds 2022 • London • Paris)
See also: Pokémon Store
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