The crowd had started lining up since early morning to get hold of the rare Magikarp Pokemon promo card, one of the franchise’s characters.
A Pokemon event in South Korea had to be cancelled on Friday (May 1) after nearly 40,000 people flooded Seoul Forest, located in the Seongsu-dong area. In a social media post, Pokemon Korea announced the cancellation of the event, which had been organised as part of its 30th-anniversary celebration, “Pokemon Mega Festa” alongside the Seoul International Garden Show.
The crowd had started lining up since early morning to get hold of the rare Magikarp Pokemon promo card, one of the franchise’s characters, along with a themed sun visor in exchange for collecting stamps. A combination of Labour Day holiday, a rare collectible, and scalpers looking to make quick money through resales led to the heavy turnout, which overwhelmed the organisers, according to a report in The Korea Times.
“The “Magikarp” promo card that was scheduled to be given away today has been cancelled for on-site safety reasons. Registration will be accepted via an online form at a later date, and further details will be announced on Pokemon’s official social media channels,” read the statement by Pokemon Korea.
“We plan to accept necessary information, such as your name, address, and Trainer ID via an online form. Please check the official Pokemon social media channels on Monday, May 4, for details. Everyone who meets the requirements for today’s Stamp Rally will be able to receive theirs, so please feel free to return home.”
‘Don’t Hold These Events’
Immediately after the event was cancelled, scalpers started selling the promo cards for as high as 25,000 (Rs 15,110) to 33,000 yen (Rs 19.945), according to a report in Vice.
Meanwhile, angry Pokemon fans took to social media to slam the organisers for not anticipating the rush, causing trouble to those who came from far to attend the event.
“From now on, don’t hold these f***ing crowded events, especially during holidays,” said one user, while another added: “Understand this, okay? Please hold such events only in regions outside of Seoul.”
A third commented: “From dawn, we were lining up in front of forest like shrimp on a stick. Suddenly, they changed the line positions, so people started running. When the folks who’d already been lining up complained, they just made a whole new line in the opposite direction.”
