ONOG Invitational – GEICOGaming Puts Its Weight Behind Pokémon VGC

Come One Come All

Image courtesy of GEICOGaming

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This weekend marked a great day for competitive Pokémon and the VGC. GEICOGaming and One Nation of Gamers brought together eight of the world’s top trainers for a spectacular invitational tournament.

Breaking the eight trainers into groups of four, the initial group play round was double elimination. Trainers competed in best of three format for group play. The four trainers to emerge from group play victorious would move onto semi-finals and finals. In these rounds, trainers competed in best of five, single elimination to ultimately crown a champion.

GEICOGaming sponsored the tournament, covering both the cost of the event along with the $1,000 prize pool. The competitive Pokémon scene has seen few sponsored events, so a major sponsor like GEICO is a promising sign. Given enough success, GEICO may seek further sponsorship of VGC events. Such an occurrence would only bode well for the VGC.

More than Just Saving You Money

Image courtesy of GEICOGaming

Started in 2015, GEICOGaming was created by the insurance company GEICO Insurance. Driven by a passion for digital offerings, GEICO found a natural ally in the online gaming community. This then lead to the formation of GEICOGaming and hosting various Hearthstone tournaments, such of the ONOG circuit and championship at PAX.

Fast forward two years and GEICOGaming is the leading force in the fast growing world of esports. Not only do they continue to host Hearthstone events, but GECIOGaming has gone on to sponsor two successful esports teams, Team SoloMid and Panda Global.

A Sponsor, a Shiny Hunter, and a Spotlight

For the VGC, this is a great moment. GEICOGaming has provided the format with a platform that it did not have. Combining an expertly crafted broadcast experience, with the esports exposure their clout brings, something magical is happening; people are starting to see how amazing competitive Pokémon can be.

Kotaku even got in on the excitement, publishing an article on Sunday covering some of the drama of the tournament. In an expertly written piece by Jason Krell, the perseverance of Shiny Pokémon Hunter, Dan “aDrive Clap”, can be witnessed as he overcomes two of the VGC’s most prolific talents. In his piece, Jason documents aDrive’s start as a streamer and singles trainer, and walks through his day one invitational victories.

These are the memories that will resonate with the community and go on to last more than just a season. You can even imagine the aspiring trainers watching the stream on twitch thinking, “If he can do it, I can totally do it!” Moving forward, competitive Pokémon needs more of these moments. Finally, Pokémon could have a chance to go from a blip on the radar, to a dominate esport in the fast growing industry.

Doing Your Part

Now with the tournament concluded and the team reports being published, it is easy to think the moment has come and gone. However, that is the wrong attitude to have. If you wish to see competitive Pokémon continue to grow with events like this, now is the time to act. Once you’ve done that, let GEICOGaming know what you thought and how much you appreciated them getting behind this event.

If you haven’t already, follow @GEICOGaming and @ONOGesports on twitter. Once you’ve done that, let them know you want them to keep supporting the VGC. Maybe Game Freak and The Pokémon Company will even take notice and address the aspirations of the competitive Pokémon community.

Follow me on Twitter: @aeroashwind

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