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Pokemon TCG announces return of mega evolution with new expansion set releasing September 2025
Pokemon TCG announces return of mega evolution with new expansion set releasing September 2025

Express Tribune

time13 hours ago

  • Entertainment
  • Express Tribune

Pokemon TCG announces return of mega evolution with new expansion set releasing September 2025

The Pokémon Company International has announced a new expansion set for the Pokémon Trading Card Game, reintroducing mega evolution to the game. The expansion will be released on September 26 2025, and marks the first set in the Mega Evolution Series, bringing back mega evolution Pokémon to the TCG. Mega Evolution Pokémon were first introduced in the XY Series in the mid-2010s. The upcoming set will feature Mega Evolution Pokemon ex, including Mega Lucario EX and Mega Gardevoir EX, alongside new Stadium and Pokémon Tool cards designed to enhance gameplay. According to the announcement, the expansion will include 10 Mega Evolution Pokémon EX, 22 illustration rare Pokémon, 22 ultra rare Mega Evolution Pokémon EX and Trainer cards, and 10 special illustration rare Mega Evolution Pokémon EX and Supporter cards. The set will be available in various formats, including Booster Bundles, Booster Displays, Sleeved Boosters, three-booster blisters, Elite Trainer Boxes, collection box sets, and Build & Battle packs. These formats will allow players and collectors to access the cards in multiple ways, whether expanding competitive decks or adding to personal collections.

Bill aims to enhance credit guarantees
Bill aims to enhance credit guarantees

Bangkok Post

time3 days ago

  • Business
  • Bangkok Post

Bill aims to enhance credit guarantees

The draft National Credit Guarantee Agency (NaCGA) Bill mandates that all financial institutions contribute to a credit guarantee fund in exchange for a guarantee system that reduces their lending risk. According to Deputy Finance Minister Paopoom Rojanasakul, every financial institution providing credit to companies or businesses will be required to contribute to the credit guarantee fund established under this law. He said the fund will be sourced from three channels: government contributions, contributions from financial institutions, and fees collected from entrepreneurs requesting credit guarantees. Mr Paopoom said the government does not intend to set high contribution rates. The purpose of the fund is to build a higher-quality credit guarantee system, which should reduce the risk borne by financial institutions. Though the contributions made by institutions will account for only one-third of the fund, they should benefit significantly from reduced lending risks, he said. The exact contribution rate from financial institutions has yet to be finalised, but it is expected to be set at a very low level, said Mr Paopoom. The ministry held discussions with financial institutions regarding their contributions to the fund prior to the drafting of the law to gather feedback on the pros and cons. As with any legislation, there are winners and losers, but the key is to assess the overall national benefit, he said. This system represents a vital enhancement of the country's financial capacity, said Mr Paopoom. The draft aims to reform the current credit guarantee system operated by the Thai Credit Guarantee Corporation (TCG), making it easier for entrepreneurs to access loans. A survey revealed that 40% of the country's 3.2 million small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) still face difficulty in accessing credit through formal financial systems. The draft stipulates financial institutions must contribute to the NaCGA fund, which will serve as a source of funding for credit guarantee operations. The government's contribution is estimated at 10 billion baht, while entrepreneurs also pay guarantee fees. The draft requires financial institutions to contribute to the fund at a rate not exceeding 0.3% of the total outstanding business loans of commercial banks and specialised financial institutions. The effective rate will be issued later via a ministerial regulation, said Mr Paopoom. The credit guarantee fee charged by NaCGA is based on the individual risk profile of each entrepreneur, unlike the current portfolio-based fee system that does not reflect the specific risk of individual loans. Under the new model, the agency assesses the credit risk of each loan application requesting a guarantee. Once approved, the entrepreneur can use the guarantee certificate to apply for a loan from a financial institution. The scope of NaCGA will be broader than that of TCG, he said, able to guarantee loans from commercial banks and non-bank financial institutions, as well as guarantees for debt instruments or asset securitisation. However, this does not include equity instruments or loans provided by other businesses involved in capital sourcing, as determined by the policy committee, and excludes equity or equity-like instruments. NaCGA may also guarantee loans provided by other funding-related businesses, as determined by policy directives, excluding equity or quasi-equity instruments. This broader mandate is designed to better address the liquidity needs of entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs eligible for guarantees from NaCGA are not limited to SMEs, as other types and sizes of businesses may also qualify, as defined later by the board of directors. The agency can also propose plans directly to the cabinet in urgent cases where there is a need to support entrepreneurs or promote credit access in alignment with government policy goals, such as the development of strategic sectors or the national economy. Beyond improving SMEs' access to formal credit and reducing reliance on informal funding sources, NaCGA is expected to serve as a stabilising mechanism in times of economic volatility, particularly during crises marked by a high level of risk and uncertainty in the financial system, said Mr Paopoom.

Prime Day Deal: Make the Lorcana Fan in Your Life Happy With 25% Off an Archazia's Island Booster Box
Prime Day Deal: Make the Lorcana Fan in Your Life Happy With 25% Off an Archazia's Island Booster Box

CNET

time4 days ago

  • Entertainment
  • CNET

Prime Day Deal: Make the Lorcana Fan in Your Life Happy With 25% Off an Archazia's Island Booster Box

Prime Day is now in day three, don't think about it for too long, which means that we're over halfway through the immense sales event. There are plenty of things on sale, but outside of all the usual stuff like laptops and TVs, there are also some really good toys on sale. One great example of this is this Lorcana box. Lorcana is the Disney-infused TCG that's been doing great ever since it launched, and this Archazia's Island box is currently 25% off. There's no telling how long this deal will last though, so if you want it, snap it up. The Archazia's Island set only released in March of this year, and while Reign of Jafar is newer, this one still has a lot of excellent cards that are seeing plenty of play. The game itself is a blast, and getting a whole box means plenty of chances to open up some amazing new legendary cards to add to your collection, or maybe even complete a couple of decks. Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money. This is a great gift for any Lorcana fan, whether they're a veteran or brand-new to the game. It's also a great way to introduce someone if they've been wanting to start and you need more people to play with. Why this deal matters Lorcana is a great TCG, and one that has the mighty of Disney behind it. Because of that, discounts on these cards don't come around very often. So, being able to save 25% on a whole box is a great deal, and one you should snap up if you're a fan.

Pokémon North American International Championships 2025 report
Pokémon North American International Championships 2025 report

Metro

time21-06-2025

  • Entertainment
  • Metro

Pokémon North American International Championships 2025 report

The final national stage of the Pokémon championship season has ended with a tense showdown between US and Canadian teams. Pokémon competitive play reached fever pitch at this year's North America International Championships (NAIC), which was held in New Orleans last weekend and saw record numbers of competitors. The event is a vital checkpoint for Pokémon pros en route to the 2025 World Championships, and is the last chance for competitive Pokémon players aiming for the World Championships, to be held in Anaheim Californian in August. The fact that the Grimmsnarl ex deck – with its spooky VooDoo green and purple card art – from the new and extremely popular Destined Rivals set was the talk of the meta couldn't have been more fitting for The Big Easy. The Pokémon World Championships began in 2004 and focused primarily on the Pokémon Trading Card Game (TCG), but it has since grown to include dedicated competitions for Pokémon video games, such as Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, Pokémon Go, and Pokémon Unite. Every year, as a precursor to what is known to competitors as Worlds, Pokémon players from around the globe battle it out for the chance to earn championship points for both the TCG and Video Game Championships (VGC). I spoke to Chris Brown, Director of Global Esports and Events Producer at The Pokémon Company International, on how to make these events easily accessible to viewers at home: 'New for this event we have, for the first time, built in closed captions, but not just closed captions in English, we've also generated them in French, Italian, German, and Spanish. 'I think that's super important too, because it makes the game more accessible. Maybe you start to play again as you're watching somebody play online, you start to feel like you're almost in one community with them. 'We're constantly playing with those things and trying to evolve. Going past that, we have things like Twitch drops, viewer rewards… we've given a little carrot out there for you maybe to load the game up and bring somebody back into the game who hasn't played it for a little while. We're constantly playing with those things and trying to evolve the viewership and the at-home experience for our fans.' Sign up to the GameCentral newsletter for a unique take on the week in gaming, alongside the latest reviews and more. Delivered to your inbox every Saturday morning. NAIC 2025 saw over 6,2000 competitors, registered from over 50 countries (including 40 from the UK), in what is now the largest Pokémon tournament outside of Asia. In these highly competitive tournaments, each game has its own format and set of rules, including different divisions for pros, seniors, and juniors. Cash prizes are determined based on the amount of players in each tournament, with a prize pool of over $500,000 (£371,000). In order to qualify for the Pokémon TCG World Championships, a player must earn an invitation by gaining enough championship points by the end of the competitive season, through placing high enough or winning official Pokémon tournaments. After a busy initial two days of competitive play, Sunday saw an early start for the MOBA style Pokémon Unite and the Final Stretch competition, where Team Luminosity (Canada) did it again in their third win in a row this year and one of the most brutal eSports matches I've ever seen. The score at one point was 1,231 to 11 and sometimes it looked personal between these two North American teams. Sean 'Slash' Tucker, captain of Luminosity, told me: 'It's incredible to win all three ICs so fa,r for Pokémon Unite, but we're not done making history.' Things slowed right down for the final of Pokémon Go, which came down to a best of five featuring two North American players: 'Unstoppable' Ilqm and ItsAXN – with the Lapras vs. Lapras showdown we all wanted to see. Former World Champion ItsAXN proved superior, with a 3-0 sweep to become the first Pokémon Go trainer to win two international competitions. From the kitchen table to the TCG Juniors Final, things took an adorable and unique turn with two siblings, Annabelle and Kenji Oono, facing off after a special family handshake. Dragapult ex reigned supreme with Annabelle beating her brother but giving him a consolatory hug. I spoke to Annabelle just after her win: 'It felt amazing, it felt like a dream because it's just so hard to get to this goal and it felt like we've both won.' TCG Masters saw championship staple Gardevoir ex come to the fore, as two North American players went head-to-head. Riley McKay vs. Isaiah Bradner was extremely close, as they pulled out plenty of Munkidori for psychic damage with VooDoo Mind Bend and Adrena-Brain abilities. Bradner pushed for the win, combining consistency, tech utility, and matchup resilience, which should serve as a blueprint for top-tier players heading into Worlds. In an exciting turn of events for European competitors, the Masters video game final was completely dominated by Italian players this year. While Marco took early terrain control, ultimately Frederico Camporesi, with his fairy electric Miradion/Lunala core, took the championship with another Miraidon win and an impressive prize of $15,000 (£11,000). So, this year strangely enough a European won the North American Championship, and an American won the European Championship. I spoke to Rose Gregson, in attendance from the UK and competing in TCG Masters, who ranked in the top eight at the Latin America International Championships. 'The Pokémon TCG community is gaining an incredible amount of new players very quickly, and I believe the Pokémon company is doing a good job of matching those expectations,' she said. 'Something that would support players of all levels would be the official Pokémon company hiring pro players to create educational content in how to improve at the game for the official channel, such as the recent WolfeyVGC and Cybertron collaboration stream they did for the VGC Grand Challenge. 'A similar idea on the official Pokémon stream would be during stream downtime to get players to review their own official stream matches, so they can walk through why they made the decisions they did. From the meta continuously evolving in a positive direction, I have hope that the three-prize Pokémon won't be as good as they previously were, however only time can tell from if they have learnt from past mistakes.' 'My favourite Pokemon currently is between Jolteon and Origin Form Magearna, however it changes all the time, with Gardevoir and Palafin in a close second!' During the event, there was a chance for North American players and spectators to visit the pop-up Pokémon Center, which was themed around the Year of Eevee celebration and packed with those keen to get their hands on some exclusive merchandise featuring Psyduck and Ogerpon. Personally, I was saving my pennies for the Worlds retro style merch, featuring a 1950s drive-in aesthetic. More Trending In addition to the Pokémon Center pop-up store, there were big queues for the origami workshop, board game area, and Play Lab – which allowed fans and visitors to learn the basics of the Pokémon Trading Card Game, and which for taking part you received a beautiful Glaceon pin. It's going to be a busy summer for trading card games, Star Wars Unlimited Galactic Championships is just around the corner, held for the first time in Las Vegas this July, and Disney's Lorcana World Championship is just a couple of weeks away, at the end of June. It's being held at Walt Disney World but is somewhat of a low-key affair, with only the 28 qualifying players invited and no public or press invites. There's nothing low key about Pokémon these days though, from the spectacular opening ceremony of NAIC, which showcased the best of Mardi Gras, to the increasing global recognition. Now all the Worlds slots have been filled, and the metagame continues to evolve, as the fierce matches, breakout decks, and format defining plays have finally paved the road to Anaheim. Email gamecentral@ leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter. To submit Inbox letters and Reader's Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here. For more stories like this, check our Gaming page. MORE: PS5 is more profitable than all other PlayStation consoles combined MORE: Every Nintendo Switch 2 launch game reviewed – all 25 games so far MORE: Switch 2 third party games sold 'below our lowest estimates' says publisher

Google Cloud 一度死機,多個主要網站、香港台灣日本均受影響,現已回復正常
Google Cloud 一度死機,多個主要網站、香港台灣日本均受影響,現已回復正常

Yahoo

time13-06-2025

  • Yahoo

Google Cloud 一度死機,多個主要網站、香港台灣日本均受影響,現已回復正常

在我們這邊大約凌晨 2:46,Google Cloud 出現了首個服務警訊,狀況一直接續至凌晨 5 時就開始逐步回復正常,但真正全面回復就是到了剛剛早上 9 點的時候。這次 Google Cloud 服務死機的影響範圍是掀連全球,香港、台灣、日本、歐美等地都不例外,而在 DownDectoer 上更顯示全球多個主流網站都有大量的回報,包括 Spotify、Discord、AWS、Google Meet、Snapchat、 TCG》遊戲也不能玩。 更多內容: Google Cloud Service Health Google Cloud outages: Spotify, Discord, Snapchat and more were down for hours 緊貼最新科技資訊、網購優惠,追隨 Yahoo Tech 各大社交平台! 🎉📱 Tech Facebook: 🎉📱 Tech Instagram: 🎉📱 Tech WhatsApp 社群: 🎉📱 Tech WhatsApp 頻道: 🎉📱 Tech Telegram 頻道:

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