$2 Million Up For Grabs At 2015 Pokemon World Championships

The Pokemon Company on Thursday announced the first details for this year's Pokemon World Championships, which features a prize pool of $2 million in cash and scholarships.

To advance to the 12th annual Pokemon World Championships, which will be held this year August 21-23 in Boston, Mass., players will first need to make it through regional qualifying events.

The Winter Regional Championships for Pokemon Omega Ruby and Pokemon Alpha Sapphire, along with the Pokemon Trading Card Game, will be held in more than 40 countries this year.

For the US, the Winter Regional Championships begin next weekend in Missouri, Oregon, Virginia, California, and Florida.

• St. Louis, MO: February 14-15, 2015, at the St. Charles Convention Center
• Portland, OR: February 14-15, 2015, at the DoubleTree by Hilton
• Doswell, VA: February 14-15, 2015, at the Exhibition Hall at the Meadow Event Park
• Lancaster, CA: February 14-15, 2015, at the Pioneer Event Center
• Kissimmee, FL: February 28-March 1, 2015, at the Park Inn by Radisson Resort & Conference Center

The Pokemon Company said the St. Louis Winter Regionals will be streamed live on Twitch, though streaming information for other events was not shared. For more on this year's tournaments, including details about rules and format, head to the event's website.

In other Pokemon news, The Pokemon Company has announced that Pokemon Bank subscribers who access their account between February 27 and November 30, 2015 will receive special versions of the following Pokemon: Meganium, Typhlosion, and Feraligatr.

They are level-50, and each comes with a hidden ability not available through normal gameplay, The Pokemon Company said.