Chapter 0: Pokémon

            Pokémon is a video game franchise with spin-off games, toys, and other media. That is the hierarchy for thinking about Pokémon. Nothing comes before the storyline games. Everything about Pokémon is based on the cartridge games where the point is to collect Pokémon, gym badges, and compete against your friends.

           Pokémon is one of my biggest hobbies. I would list it as separate to video games on my list of hobbies. I like Pokémon, and you can’t convince me it’s a kid’s game or other biased comments. I’m also aware that I can’t convince the outright haters to stop hating. They’re gonna hate till the end of time. I can give reasons why you should like Pokémon, but everyone’s heard those before.

           

            I am directing this post at those of you who think something “wrong” happened with Pokémon somewhere along the way, and now you’ve decided to turn your back. I’m going to tell you why Pokémon isn’t bad— why it continues to be an entertaining and engaging video game.

            I know your arguments. I know where you think Pokémon turned sour after ten years, but that’s actually where you turned sour. This is what I hear all the time about the new Pokémon games:

“All the new Pokémon look ugly!”

“There are too many Pokémon now!”

 “They’ve lost all their creativity!”
“They’ve made the game too complicated!”

            A lot of comments and those of the same ilk stem from not accepting changes as good things. A good example of this is Facebook. My Psychology teacher showed us a Facebook page and prompted the class “Facebook made some changes a while back, right? And everyone complained? Can you remember how the old one looked?” There was an energized silence in the room as everyone struggled to remember what the Facebook page used to look like, but to no avail. In this situation, there was the disadvantage of not being able to reference the old page, unlike being able to play an older Pokémon game. Referencing the old page could unearth features that were good as well as bad.

           

            Pokémon games keep what is good, and make changes for the better. We can go back to the older games and see why improvements were made. Gamers are quick to criticize sequels for not being up to par with the original game, but in sticking close to a formula that works, Pokémon games improve with each new generation.

“All the new Pokémon look ugly!”

            I know you’re all attached to your favorite “classic” Pokémon that you thought were “badass” before you even knew what “badass” meant.

I’m not making the claim that Generation V Pokémon are the coolest, but when you take a comparison of the video game images for these Pokémon, I dare you to make the “ugly” claim.

                         

I’m not dissing the design of the Generation I pokemon, in fact, I do think Charizard looks cool. The Sugimori art is great, and that is probably the image you have in mind when you think of Charizard. That’s great, except that’s not the “classic 150” Charizard that you know as “badass.” It’s an improvement.

“There are too many Pokémon now!”

            Is 649 Pokémon too much for you? Why is having so much variety a problem? There are so many different aspects of Pokémon that 649 possibilities (and really a lot less since battling involves mostly fully evolved Pokémon) is only scratching the surface. Around one hundred total new Pokémon, and maybe sixty fully evolved ones, every three years is not a difficult task. With the easy access to online Pokédexes everywhere, all you need to memorize is a name and associate it with a type, ability, and certain key stats and moves. Competitive battlers don’t have an encyclopedic knowledge, but they do learn to remember key points of each Pokémon from experience.

“They’ve lost all their creativity!”

            Here again we come upon the complexity of the Pokémon universe, and how there are more uncreated Pokémon than real ones. New moves, attacks, and type combinations add to the depth of the game every time a new generation of Pokémon is released. No one knows how Game Freak comes up with new Pokémon. They might come up with ideas based on how the current game is played or they might just come up with ideas straight out of their heads. The one thing for sure is that not all of the ideas they have can be put in a game. There is no guarantee that the “Original 150” that you love are the whole picture of the original concept. A Game Boy game cartridge is severely limiting once you’ve stored information on 151 different characters. There are plenty of creative ideas that are tested in each new game as new technology emerges. The ability to invent increases the creativity of the developers.

“They’ve made the game too complicated!”

            I won’t say Pokémon isn’t complicated. In fact, that’s why I play it. There are complex data behind every Pokémon that we had no clue about back in elementary school, and the games have stayed that way. If I asked an “Original 150 lover” what DVs or EVs were, all I would get in return would be a blank stare. Sure, DVs changed to IVs and have 31 values instead of 15, but I bet none of those involved in the “complication” claim would have any idea about that. I didn’t know about IVs and EVs till late Generation III, and all the knowledge did was make me love Pokémon more. There’s so much to Pokémon that is easily understood but mastered over time that makes it an addicting game. So to all you naysayers, complication is good.

Who the heck doesn’t like breeding? Who the heck doesn’t think Dark and Steel Pokémon are cool? Who in their right mind would tell me it’s more fun to play a game where you have no idea what to expect out of your Pokémon except they look “badass”? My Pokémon look badass and can kick yours.

Childhood, Victory, and Freedom

Ian