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Pasco family competing in national Pokémon tournament

Pikachu, energy cards, Poké powers.

These are the weapons of battle in the Kaplan household. While other families watch movies or play board games together, the Kaplans strategize for ultimate domination.

For hours a day, they collected cards, built decks and battled each other in the Pokémon Trading Card game. They honed their skills to be the best, and next month their talents will be put to the test when the family travels to the national competition in Indianapolis.

Three Kaplan brothers – twins Derek and Evan, 9, and Jaron, 12, will be competing in the national tournament, along with their dad, 48-year-old Todd Kaplan, all of whom have won lower-level tournaments leading up to next month's competition.

The obsession began two years ago when Derek and Evan started playing the game with friends. Soon older brother Jaron started playing, too.

The game is based on the Pokémon video game, launched in 1996. Players use cards depicting Pokémon characters and powers to battle and determine an ultimate winner.

The boys moved from playing friends and each other to competing in tournaments. It wasn't long before Mom and Dad got hooked. Now, they compete alongside their sons.

"Instead of sitting on the sidelines watching them, I decided to learn what it was all about," said Todd Kaplan. "I have always liked card games of strategy, and this is a challenging game, no matter the age."

Still, Kaplan understands that some might find it odd that a grown man spends hours playing a game based on cartoon characters.

"Most people have the wrong idea what the game is all about," Kaplan said. "There is a great deal of skill, math and problem-solving involved. Plus, it's a great way for my family to spend time together."

In fact, the Kaplans plan many of their family trips around Pokémon tournaments and competitions. They have traveled to about 50, including ones in Hawaii and Colorado.

With all this game play, the Kaplans have amassed quite a card collection of more than 10,000 cards. In the past two years, they have spent about $2,400 just on cards.

"I don't even want to think about what we've spent when you factor in all the traveling," said Loni Kaplan.

The only Kaplan member not to have caught the Pokémon fever is oldest brother Adam, who at 15 spends his time playing bridge in a professional league.

All the Kaplans agree that 9-year-old Derek is the best player in the family.

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Counting Down the Top Ten Video Games Ever Made. EVER!

Before I get to the list, let me first say that I’ve played a lot of video games. From Super Nintendo and Game boy to Xbox 360 and PC, I’ve definitely been around the block a few times when it comes to entertaining my thumbs. However, I also HAVEN’T played a lot of video games. This may seem contradictory to my earlier statement, but let’s face it, not every person has played every video game. Even big name game websites have trouble ranking games because the “rankers” may be biased towards a game they played versus a game someone else said is really good. Therefore, I should probably rename this article “Top Ten Video Games Ever Made (among those I have played)”.

So, without further glitter, here is the list:

10. Kingdom Hearts, (2002 PS2)

Kingdom Hearts was an extremely unique game in that it combined traditional role playing elements (save the world, save the girl, spiky hair, level-up), with fantastic action battles and reminiscent Disney characters, plots, and storylines. The game was an absolute blast to play through several times, and paved the way for a (less successful) sequel. The battles were built right into the worlds (no need to switch to a different screen to enter a battler), and took strategy along with traditional hack and slash methods. Additionally, watching Donald Duck and Goofy demolish heartless after heartless will always reserve Kingdom Hearts a special place in my heart.

9. The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, (1992 SNES)

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is without a doubt the first game that I really truly became obsessed with. The massive spectrum of the game was quite remarkable for 1992, and the seamlessness in which the world of Zelda worked was unimaginable. The action was intense and at times, excruciatingly frustrating. The sound and color was outstanding. This is definitely one of the few games that got my heart pounding faster than the “beep beep” that meant my health was waaay too low.

8. Metal Gear Solid, (1998, PS1)

Metal Gear Solid combined excellent graphics, intense action, a unique storyline, and a complete bad ass that we just loved play as into one beautiful package. This was an action game through and through to the core, and yet during some of the cut scenes, we couldn’t help but feel like we were watching a movie or deeply involved into a square rpg. Metal Gear Solid set the tone for 3 sequels, each arguably better than its predecessor.

How to Draw Pokemon, Gotta Catch 'Em All

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