Tag Archives: Pokemon Center

News

Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo Reopens 24 August 2026

July 29, 2026 Jax

Japan’s largest Pokémon store has a confirmed comeback date: Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo, the iconic flagship location inside Sunshine City in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, will reopen on Monday, 24 August 2026 — five months after a tragic incident forced its indefinite closure. For Singapore fans who put this Ikebukuro landmark at the top of every Japan itinerary, the wait is nearly over.

A Tragic Closure: What Happened on 26 March

On 26 March 2026, a fatal stabbing occurred at Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo. A stalker entered the Sunshine City store and killed a female employee before taking his own life. The Pokémon Company immediately closed both Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo and the adjacent Pikachu Sweets by Pokémon Café out of respect and concern for staff and customers. Other Pokémon Centers across Japan and the official online store remained in operation throughout the closure.

Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

This wasn’t just any store going dark. Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo is the largest Pokémon Center in the world, occupying the second floor of Sunshine City Alpa in Higashi-Ikebukuro and stocking more than 2,500 items — from limited-edition plush and stationery to exclusive regional products and trading card supplies. Its closure for five months has been keenly felt by Pokémon fans visiting Japan.

Confirmed: Reopening Monday, 24 August 2026

In an official announcement published on 27 July 2026, The Pokémon Company confirmed that both Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo and Pikachu Sweets by Pokémon Café will resume operations on Monday, 24 August 2026.

“We sincerely apologize for the concern and inconvenience caused during the temporary closure,” the company stated, with the goal of creating “an environment where customers can visit and shop with peace of mind.”

Key details for the reopening:

Partial renovations have been carried out during the closure period
Employee safety measures have been significantly strengthened
Temporary entry restrictions will be in effect after reopening — the specific admission method will be announced separately
No campaigns or events will be held at this location during August; expect the usual event schedule to resume from September onwards
The Pokémon Company noted the date “could still change depending on circumstances”

What’s Inside Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo

Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

For those visiting for the first time, Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo is far more than a souvenir shop. Alongside thousands of Pokémon products spanning plush toys, clothing, accessories, games, cards, and collectibles, the complex houses several dedicated zones:

Pikachu Sweets by Pokémon Café — Pokémon-themed desserts, drinks, and sweets
Pokémon Card Station — a dedicated area for Pokémon Trading Card Game products, booster packs, and singles
Pokémon GO Lab — a zone for Pokémon GO players with themed activities and exclusive merchandise

Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

The store operates daily from 10:00 to 20:00, and is a three-minute walk from Higashi-Ikebukuro Station.

Inside Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo | Tokyo Store Tour 2026 — via Rokka Biyori | Explore Japan with Rokka on YouTube

Planning Your Visit from Singapore

The 24 August reopening lands squarely in Singapore’s August school holiday period, when Japan trips are among the most popular destinations for families and groups. If you are heading to Tokyo this August, Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo is finally back in play — but plan ahead for the entry restrictions that will be in effect. The admission process will be detailed by The Pokémon Company before opening day, so check the official store page and the Pokémon Center’s social channels before your visit.

For more Pokémon news and Japan gaming updates, stay tuned to GameTrader.SG.

Game News, Shop and Merchandise, Singapore Gaming Scene

Pokémon Center Singapore Wave 2 Drops 7 August — Pikachu Durian, Kopi and Pandan Charms Confirmed

July 21, 2026 Nova Solaris

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Three weeks on from the grand reopening of Pokémon Center Singapore at Jewel Changi Airport, the store’s second wave of commemorative merchandise has confirmed its launch date and full SGD price list — and it’s a genuinely local lineup worth planning a trip for. Wave 2 hits the shelves on 7 August 2026.

Everything in Wave 2 — and How Much It’ll Cost

The complete confirmed product list for the 7 August launch, with SGD prices direct from the official listing via NintendoSoup:

Pikachu Bag Charms (3 designs: Durian, Kopi, Pandan Cake) — S$23 each
Peranakan-Pattern Pouches (Light Blue or Green) — S$55 each
Embroidered Tote Bag (Pikachu & Solgaleo motif) — S$48
Graphic T-Shirts (Adults S/M/L) — S$35 each
Graphic T-Shirts (Kids 110 cm / 130 cm) — S$29 each

All items are Singapore-exclusive and will only be available at the Jewel Changi Airport store — there is no confirmed online shop listing for these Wave 2 items.

Pokémon Center Singapore 2026 FULL Tour + New Eevee Collection [4K] — via Attractions Asia on YouTube

Pikachu Goes Local: Durian, Kopi and Pandan

The headline items are three Pikachu bag charms, each holding a different Singapore food icon. The durian charm leans hard into the love-it-or-hate-it king of fruits, the kopi charm gives you Pikachu cradling a cup of local black coffee, and the pandan cake charm rounds out the trio with one of Singapore’s most-loved green-hued treats. At S$23 each these sit in comfortable impulse-buy territory — expect all three to sell fast.

Pikachu Durian bag charm — Pokémon Center Singapore Wave 2 — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Pikachu Kopi bag charm — Pokémon Center Singapore Wave 2 — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Pikachu Pandan Cake bag charm — Pokémon Center Singapore Wave 2 — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Pouches, T-Shirts and a Tote

The wearables and carry-goods skew toward the Peranakan-inspired design language the store adopted with its renovation. The pouches (S$55 each, available in light blue and green) feature an intricate Pokémon pattern on the inner lining that draws on traditional Peranakan tile motifs. The tote bag at S$48 is embroidered with Pikachu and Solgaleo — the store’s new symbol Pokémon — and the graphic tees carry the same Singapore-cityscape Pokémon artwork from the first wave.

Pokémon Center Singapore Peranakan-pattern pouch in green — Wave 2 — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Pokémon Center Singapore Wave 2 graphic T-shirt — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Getting There on 7 August

Pokémon Center Singapore is at Jewel Changi Airport, #04-201 & 202, open daily from 10am to 10pm. The store had queue restrictions during the July 1 reopening rush, but demand for Wave 2 could be brisk — follow the store’s official Instagram (@pokemoncentersingapore) for any early-queue updates nearer the date. Wave 2 is a genuine Singapore exclusive, so if you’re visiting friends or family in late August these make solid gifts that you simply cannot order online. Find the full Wave 1 and Wave 2 rundown on other Singapore gaming merch news on GameTrader.

News, Shop and Merchandise

Pokémon Center × Sean Wotherspoon: Pikachu, Charizard & Bulbasaur Get the Vintage Treatment

July 19, 2026 Nova Solaris

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Two worlds that feel like they were always destined to collide: Pokémon Center and Los Angeles designer Sean Wotherspoon have announced a limited collaborative plush collection featuring Pikachu, Charizard, and Bulbasaur — each reimagined using vintage-inspired fabrics and handcraft-forward construction. Pre-orders open 23 July 2026 at Pokémon Center Japan, with a global rollout expected to follow.

Pikachu, Charizard and Bulbasaur vintage plushies from the Pokémon Center × Sean Wotherspoon collaboration — Image courtesy of Pokémon Center / Sean Wotherspoon

Who Is Sean Wotherspoon?

Sean Wotherspoon portrait — Image courtesy of Pokémon Center / Sean Wotherspoon

Wotherspoon is the founder of Round Two, a vintage and sneaker boutique with outposts in Los Angeles, New York, and Tokyo. He is probably best known outside streetwear circles for winning the Nike On Air design competition in 2017 with the Air Max 1/97 “Sean Wotherspoon” — a corduroy-panelled sneaker that became one of the most hyped Nike releases of the decade and remains highly traded today. His aesthetic is rooted in 1970s–1980s Americana: chenille patches, boucle textures, varsity-jacket colour blocking, and a deliberate handmade quality that pushes back against polished mass production.

He has collaborated with major brands including adidas, Hot Wheels, and Levi’s, but a Pokémon tie-in — a franchise with its own deep 1990s nostalgia DNA — is arguably the most natural fit he has had in years.

The Plushies: Vintage Fabrics, Pokémon Souls

Pikachu plush close-up showing vintage corduroy fabric from the Sean Wotherspoon collaboration — Image courtesy of Pokémon Center / Sean Wotherspoon

The three plushies each carry Wotherspoon’s signature material language. Pikachu is rendered in a warm golden corduroy with contrast-stitched facial features and a red-velvet inner ear. Bulbasaur uses a sage-green boucle body with the iconic seed bulb rendered in a deeper forest-green pile fabric. Charizard is the centrepiece: its wings are patchworked from multiple flame-toned fabrics — rust, amber, and burnt orange — giving it a look closer to a collectible craft object than a mass-produced toy.

Charizard plush close-up showing patchwork wing fabric from the Pokémon Center × Sean Wotherspoon collaboration — Image courtesy of Pokémon Center / Sean Wotherspoon

All three are sized as display plushies rather than standard shelf plushies — approximately 30 cm each — and each comes packaged in a branded round tin decorated with vintage-style Pokémon artwork. The tin alone is being discussed heavily in the collecting community as a reason to pick up the set.

Pre-Order Details and Singapore Access

Pre-orders open at Pokémon Center Japan online on 23 July 2026. Individual pricing has not been confirmed at time of writing, but the collection is expected to be in the ¥4,000–¥6,000 per piece range based on comparable Pokémon Center limited plushies. A bundle option for all three is also anticipated.

There is no confirmed Singapore or Southeast Asia release through official channels yet. Singapore fans have two realistic options: use a proxy or forwarding service to order from Pokémon Center Japan, or watch Pokémon Center Online for a potential international drop, which has happened with previous high-demand collaborations. Given Wotherspoon’s global profile and the three-Pokémon breadth of the collab, an international rollout is plausible — just not confirmed.

For ongoing updates on Pokémon merchandise and collaborations reaching Singapore, check our Pokémon section.

News, Shop and Merchandise

Pokémon LEGENDS: Z-A Mega Plushies Drop Today — Starmie, Greninja, Zeraora and Lucario Z

July 16, 2026 kindaixin

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Four new Mega Evolution plushies inspired by Pokémon LEGENDS: Z-A went on sale this morning at Pokémon Center Online Japan — and Mega Starmie’s unsettling humanoid legs are already the talk of the fandom. The collection also includes Mega Greninja, Mega Zeraora, and Mega Lucario Z, drawing from both the base game and its paid Mega Dimension expansion.

The Full Drop — All Four Mega Plushies at a Glance

All four plushies went live at 10:00 AM JST today, July 16, at the Pokémon Center Online Japan store and at physical Pokémon Center locations across Japan. Here’s what’s in the collection:

Mega Starmie — ¥5,500 (approx. S$49 before shipping) · 30×16×36 cm · 348g
Mega Greninja — ¥5,500 (approx. S$49 before shipping) · 31.5×36×53 cm · 244g
Mega Zeraora — ¥6,050 (approx. S$54 before shipping) · 32×17×39 cm · 316g
Mega Lucario Z — ¥6,050 (approx. S$54 before shipping) · 19×23×42 cm · 241g

Mega Starmie plush from Pokémon LEGENDS Z-A at Pokémon Center Japan — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Mega Starmie and Mega Greninja — The Base-Game Pair

Mega Starmie is the undoubted centrepiece of this wave. Its Pokédex entry in LEGENDS: Z-A notes that its “movements have started to feel more human-like” — the plush leans fully into that with two elongated humanoid lower limbs that double as legs. It’s the Mega most fans are here for, and at 36 cm tall it’s a substantial shelf presence. The design has been viral ever since LEGENDS: Z-A first revealed it, and this is the first official soft-toy version.

Mega Greninja — also introduced in the base game — is the tallest of the four at 53 cm, making it the most imposing on a display. It includes an attachment string if you prefer it suspended rather than standing. Both carry the ¥5,500 price point.

Mega Greninja plush from Pokémon LEGENDS Z-A at Pokémon Center Japan — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Mega Zeraora and Mega Lucario Z — From the Mega Dimension DLC

Pokémon Legends: Z-A – Mega Dimension | Get Charged Up with Mega Zeraora! — via The Official Pokémon YouTube channel

The ¥6,050 tier covers the two Mega Evolutions that arrived with the paid Mega Dimension DLC. Mega Zeraora gave the Mythical Electric-type a sharper, more aggressive look that divided and ultimately won over LEGENDS fans; the plush at 39 cm captures that energy well. Mega Lucario Z — the second DLC pick — takes Lucario’s signature steel-and-aura silhouette to a more intense place, and at 42 cm it holds up well next to the taller Greninja on a shelf.

Mega Zeraora plush from Pokémon LEGENDS Z-A Mega Dimension DLC at Pokémon Center Japan — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Mega Lucario Z plush from Pokémon LEGENDS Z-A Mega Dimension DLC at Pokémon Center Japan — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company

Getting Them in Singapore

This collection is currently Japan-exclusive, available at Pokémon Center Online Japan and physical centres across the country. Singapore fans will need to import: Pokémon Center Online Japan does ship internationally, though you’ll want to factor in shipping costs and any applicable customs duties on top of the yen prices listed above. SGD equivalents above are approximate at current exchange rates and do not include delivery.

The Pokémon Company has been rolling out LEGENDS: Z-A Mega plushies steadily since the game launched — earlier waves included Mega Dragonite and Mega Raichu X and Y — so if your favourite Mega isn’t in this drop, there’s a reasonable chance it will appear in a future wave. Check our shop and merchandise section for updates, and browse our game news feed for the latest Pokémon Centre drops and local gaming news.

Event, Shop and Merchandise, Singapore Gaming Scene

Pokemon Center Singapore Reopens at Jewel Changi Airport

July 2, 2026 Jax

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Pokémon Center Singapore has reopened at Jewel Changi Airport with its most dramatic transformation yet. Closed since April 1 for a full revamp, the store reopened on 1 July 2026 with a heritage-rooted interior, a new symbol Pokémon, and an exclusive merchandise line you can only get here in Singapore — making it the first full-scale redesign of a Pokémon Center outside Japan.

First look at revamped Pokemon Center Singapore in Jewel Changi Airport — via CNA on YouTube

Solgaleo Steps Up as the New Symbol Pokémon

The biggest visual change is who greets you at the entrance. Solgaleo — the radiant Legendary from Pokémon Sun — is now the store’s symbol Pokémon, standing proudly at the façade alongside Pikachu and appearing on the official logo. Inside, the redesigned space draws on Singapore’s traditional architecture: look out for Peranakan tile-inspired patterns worked into the display fixtures, archway shelving units, and a sweeping interior that feels unmistakably local without losing the warmth of a proper Pokémon Center.

Wide interior view of the revamped Pokemon Center Singapore at Jewel Changi Airport — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company / Pokémon Center Singapore

Pokemon Center Singapore merchandise shelves with Flareon display and hundreds of plush figures — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company / Pokémon Center Singapore

First Wave: 12 Singapore-Exclusive Items, Including That Kopi Set

Twelve lifestyle items launched with the reopening on 1 July, all designed specifically for this store. The first wave features original artwork of Pokémon set against a Singapore-inspired cityscape — an illustration that feels like a love letter to local fans. Also in wave one: a Kopi Cup & Saucer Set that is exactly what it sounds like and is already generating a lot of buzz. None of this merch is available at any other Pokémon Center globally.

First wave merchandise for Pokemon Center Singapore reopening, including Solgaleo plush, cityscape artwork frame, kopi cup and saucer, sticker sheets and more — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company / Pokémon Center Singapore

Second Wave on 7 August: Pikachu Holding Durian, Kopi, and Pandan Cake

The second merch wave lands on 7 August 2026 and leans even harder into Singaporean identity. Coming then: pouches with a Peranakan-inspired Pokémon pattern on the inner lining; Pokémon graphic T-shirts; and a tote bag embroidered with Pikachu and Solgaleo together. The absolute standout is a set of three Pikachu bag charms — each tiny Pikachu clutches a different iconic local treat: a cup of kopi, a slice of pandan cake, and a durian. These are the kind of Singapore-only collectibles that disappear fast.

Three Pikachu bag charms holding kopi cup, pandan toast/kaya toast, and durian, exclusive to Pokemon Center Singapore — Image courtesy of The Pokémon Company / Pokémon Center Singapore

How to Visit: Queue Tickets and Opening Hours

The store is at Jewel Changi Airport, #04-201 & 202 (78 Airport Boulevard, Singapore 819666), open daily from 10am to 10pm. During opening week (1 to 5 July 2026), same-day queue-entry tickets are needed — these are distributed on-site from 8:30am on a first-come, first-served basis, with admission from 1pm. Follow the official Pokémon Center Singapore Instagram for the latest on queue updates and the August merchandise wave. For more Pokemon and pop-culture events in Singapore, check our events archive.

Community, Event, News

Pokémon Center Singapore Reopens at Jewel on 1 July 2026

June 29, 2026 Xian Skyrider

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Mark your calendars, Trainers — the Pokémon Center Singapore reopening lands on 1 July 2026, and the revamped store at Jewel Changi Airport is unlike anything the franchise has done outside Japan. After closing in April for its biggest makeover since 2019, the world’s first permanent Pokémon Center outside Japan returns with a new Legendary mascot, a fully Singapore-inspired interior, and 20 exclusive items you won’t find anywhere else.

The Pokémon Center Singapore reopening: what’s new

This isn’t a quick touch-up. Pokémon Center SINGAPORE is the first Pokémon Center store outside Japan to receive a full-scale redesign, and the team has leaned hard into local identity. The shopfront has been reimagined to evoke the Singapore skyline, with shelving and display nooks modelled on the city’s beloved shophouses, complete with Peranakan tile-inspired backdrops and arches.

The store keeps its prime spot on level four of Jewel Changi Airport — address 78 Airport Boulevard, #04-201/202/203, Singapore 819666 — and trades daily from 10:00am to 10:00pm. If you’ve shopped here before, expect the same airport-connected convenience, just with a glow-up that finally makes the place feel unmistakably local.