All competitors are fighting towards prizes and Championship Points, which are required to get invited to the Pokemon World Championships this summer. That event takes place in San Francisco from August 19 to 21 and is invite-only for competitors--anyone can purchase tickets to attend the event.
The core Pokemon games used for this year's competitions are Pokemon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby. You can watch the US National Championships from home via Pokemon's Twitch channel.
Pokken Tournament received a score of 9 in GameSpot's review. Critic Tamoor Hussain concluded, "Nintendo’s Wii U provides a paucity of fighting games, but Pokken Tournament has redeemed that drought by being one of the best on any platform. Frequently magnificent to look at, delicately designed, and rewarding for players across all skill levels, it’s the Pokemon fighting game deserving of a 20-year wait."
The first Pokemon from Sun and Moon, other than the starters, were revealed at E3. The new collectable critters were announced alongside a new four-player, free-for-all battle mode.
Japan is set to receive two Pokemon-themed New 3DS systems this year, featuring Pikachu and Sun/Moon's legendaries. Pikachu looks like he's been chalked onto the front of a 3DS, while the legendaries look like stencils--both are very nice.
Additionally, an artist imagined what Pokemon would look like if they were Canadian. His results are in, and they're awesome. The Canadian Pokemon resemble Tim Horton's coffee cups, hockey pucks, and gravy-and-cheese-smothered poutine.