The Pokémon franchise has captivated audiences worldwide from generation to generation. But what is it about Pokémon that has captivated the people for all these years? Is it the characters within the game, the story plot, the setting, or the phrase "gotta catch 'em all"? Each Pokémon game consisted on having a focus ( a representation on what the game is about). Analyze each game of Pokémon and discuss what these games are talking about.
Interesting topic! Perhaps it's the desire for young people (or anyone of any age, really) to travel and adventure. I know more than a handful of people with wanderlust. And to top it all off, there's success as a champion at the end. – ChristinaGilbert8 years ago
I would also consider how Game Freak balances the popular appeal of Pokemon with the international competitive battling community. They need to have cute and cool Pokemon that are fun to use in the story, and they also need to energize and maintain a diverse meta-game. – bshoalz8 years ago
Maybe a large part of the charm of the games comes from the manga and animation. – yigu81158 years ago
Pokemon is always an interesting topic to tackle. I'd say, when attempting to answer the question of why Pokemon has such a massive appeal, you will need to take pretty much everything you can think of into consideration. Not just the games themselves and their stories, but the art styles they incorporate, the human desire for collecting and completion, and of course Pokemon as a franchise, and how it has been marketed throughout the years. – Yanni8 years ago
Are pokemon starting to cop-out on there designs i.e. A sword, machines you find in your home, a garbage bag. I kind of think they are. Some of the pokemon I like and I'm not saying they are bad mons, so don't be offended but are their designs lacking?
The first games had pink goo Pokemon, ball Pokemon, upside-down ball Pokemon, mole Pokemon, three mole Pokemon, magnet Pokemon, three magnet Pokemon. Design concept is something that hasn't always been present in every Pokemon species from the first games, and while I do agree that some of the newer Pokemon have poor design choices, that could be said from the beginning as well. They aren't all going to be winners, and with the soon-to-be over 800 species nobody is going to like all of them. I certainly don't, but as with everything it's just a matter of opinion and there's nothing to stop someone from using six Charizards or only legendaries or just the cute ones if they so choose :) – Nayr12309 years ago
Very interesting topic - scope for an interesting article here – J.P. Shiel9 years ago
I disagree with you completely. There are many questionable designs from the first generation. I'm not hating on them or anything because I love Pokemon as a whole but the argument on newer Pokemon being uninspired is pretty unknowledgable. There was a magnet Pokemon, rock Pokemon, goo Pokemon, and even a Pokeball Pokemon. Oh and there's one that's just a reversed Pokeball Pokemon. A lot of Pokemon were probably created and used later. I believe that was stated by the company. Some Pokemon were supposed to be in previous generations such as the second generation Pokemon being in the first. – melvin28988 years ago
I agree that the designs are lacking in originality and quality in comparison to the original Pokemon. But there could many different reasons in this decline of design. Could it be due to a running out of ideas because all of the good ones are already used? Could it be that the Pokemon designers feel rushed due to an increased want for their games now that they have a more developed fan-base and standing in the gaming world? Or could it be due to a laziness developed through the awareness that their fan base is developed and going nowhere? Or could it simply be a misplaced sense of nostalgia that regularly comes with video games in that old games are always perceived as better? There are many avenues with which one could take this topic. – mattpellegrino8 years ago
There are hundreds of Pokémon now. Shouldn't be that surprising that 20 years later, they are running out of unique ideas lol. Same goes for shows like the Power Rangers as well. Producing unique content for fantasy shows isn't difficult, but keeping that content fresh for years, or even decades is almost impossible. At least the games stayed good and the story still flows well. That is pretty much all you can ask for. – MikeySheff8 years ago
I would say that during Pokemon Black and White, Pokemon designs started to decline and the fans were well aware of it too. Since the release of Sun and Moon, Pokemon designs have become more interesting in my opinion and they have introduced different forms of fan favorites. Can we really blame them for being short on ideas after 20 years? – DjLarry8 years ago
An in-depth look at the far reaching effects of the newly released mobile AR game, factoring in the sociological implications of a game that requires people to explore the world and interact with each other, the benefits and dangers of said interactions, and the lasting power of nostalgia.
I bet you could find an interview with the Pokemon GO producers and what they wanted the game to do for people in terms of getting them outside. – LaRose8 years ago
CNN just released a newsclip on this topic. – Munjeera8 years ago
Pokemon Go has definitely been in the new a lot lately, with police departments issuing safety warnings and a Holocaust museum asking players not to visit if they're just going to play the game. It might be hard to look at the far reaching effects since the game hasn't been out that long, but it would definitely be interesting to see what these effects could be. – S.A. Takacs8 years ago
Pokemon Go was a fun experience at first, it's a shame the hype died down when it did. – Analyzion8 years ago
Pokemon Go! is a revolutionary gaming app that has taken the world by storm. Many say the app is a positive influence on our lazy society; the app gets people outside and active, as well as encourages conversation and interaction between strangers. However, some say the craze is having a negative effect on communities with obsessed Pokemon Goers trespassing on property, getting hit by cars and even causing accidents while playing behind the wheel. Is this app truly a benefit to the gaming world or is it too much of a hindrance on everyone else?
^^^ummm, maybe I should learn how to "world," ( which should be word) my comments more concisely :-) – danielle5778 years ago
Interesting topic! You might want to mention the new update, which makes it impossible to play the game while in the car (or even running, to an extent). If you go faster than a moderately paced walk the game now freezes and says "You're going too fast! Are you a passenger?" and restarts. – Lauren Mead8 years ago
Take a look at the Pokemon television series and note how its fundamentals and style has changed throughout the years and seasons. How is the formula for each episode different? How have the type of characters changed? Why might have of these changes occurred? What do these changes reflect?
Explore the various discourses with in the Pokemon series (and there is enough information in the Indigo League seasons for this) on issues regarding animals in captivity. If Pokemon creatures are seen as pets, trained animals in captivity, or beasts of burden, what are some examples of the ways that the series treated different philosophies and consequences of humans keeping control of highly "evolved" creatures?
I haven't seen the black & white seasons but in the game team Plasma focused on liberating pokemon, yet they were still the bad guys. It would be good to take a look at their actions/mission and how it interacts with how pokemon are seen/treated. – LaRose9 years ago
I just re-watched the first few episodes and it is mentioned that "wild pokemon are jealous of captured pokemon" and therefor act aggressively towards them. I found this an odd explanation but it kind of answers why pokemon also resist capture, they want to play hard to get and be with the best possible trainer; it's not because they don't want to be captured. However I find this dangerously supportive of a "no means yes" mentality... – Slaidey9 years ago
One thing we need to be careful of when looking at Pokemon is reading them as animals too eagerly. From an exclusively Western perspective, this is certainly the case, as many look like animals, and humans cannot understand their speech. In the anime, they are shown to have a language (not spoken by humans) but in the games, they seem only capable of the roars, cries and sounds we associate with the concept of "animal." But a reading of Pokemon in its original, Japanese context reveals a more complicated relationship. One thing to understand is the concept (not unique to Japan) of "discipleship." Basically, a common trope of Japanese and other Asian fiction is of a martial arts master who encounters an attacker while in the wilderness. The two fight, but the master bests his assailant. After being beaten, the would-be-attacker asks to join and learn from the master. Anyone who has caught a pokemon in-game can attest to this narrative being built into the game mechanics. The wild pokemon always initiates the encounter, often in the wilderness. The player has the option to flee, but only in rare exceptions will the wild, aggressor pokemon do so. Catching a pokemon, in most cases, requires a demonstration of the trainer's superiority via lowering its HP. Now, without knowing this context, the situation does look pretty bad, and it's understandable why people react with discomfort at witnessing what they see as forced animal combat. But not only does pokemon draw its ideas from cultural tropes which have nothing to do with animals, many pokemon have no animal characteristics. Some look like plants or snowflakes, and even garbage bags and ice cream cones. In Pokemon's in-game discourse, pokemon are never framed as animals. Instead, they are seen as partners, working alongside their human counterparts, reflecting an image of positivity. Children and adults alike playing pokemon are encouraged to forge bonds and strife for their goals alongside partners who may not look like them, but share their outlook and ambitions nonetheless. – magicmark9 years ago
I would like to clarify that the topic specifically mentions the tv series (not the games) and the indigo league to narrow it down. – Christen Mandracchia9 years ago
Ok, I can see the pokemon-as-animals argument more in the Indigo League arc for sure. But don't you feel the focus of that is a bit narrow? It's like saying (only example i could think of off the top of my head) that Star Trek Next Generation has Natasha Yar as its protagonist, and only using Season 1 as an example. I think narrowing focus is a good idea for the sake of keeping an article manageable, but I don't think the rest of the series outside of Indigo bears the argument out. – magicmark9 years ago
The Indigo League has 82 episodes which counts as several seasons in a normally syndicated tv series. Since the Indigo League was the first installment and covers a complete arc from beginning to end, it is quite sufficient especially since subsequent seasons follow the same format. If following seasons refute the animals in captivity argument that Indigo makes, and the author would like to comment on this phenomenon, I would suggest that the bulk of the article focus on Indigo with a brief paragraph or two summarizing how future seasons have remained consistent or have strayed from the ethics of the first installment. – Christen Mandracchia9 years ago
That's a really good idea - comparing the seasons to see how the discourse changes. I like it! – magicmark9 years ago
Chronicle and explain how the Pokemon franchise exploded from its birth until the present day, including any speedbumps and mistakes along the way.
Some things to consider: innovative gameplay, use of new technology to reward interactivity, cross-media integration. – Austin9 years ago
This article could also have an opinionated end drive: "so... when should pokemon STOP?" As a child who grew up on pokemon and still loves the games as an adult, I find the tv show just silly. There are only so many adventures to be had, until they just redo them with new characters and different pokemon. And the pokemon they are coming up with now are getting watered down... the trash pokemon, the diaper pokemon, the fetus pokemon... When will it all become too much? Are they milking the franchise? – Slaidey9 years ago
Pokemon has a very special place in our hearts, and analyzing the reasons in a well written article would be an interesting read. Besides that, I wholly agree with Slaidey's comment and have nothing more to add. Just read that comment twice for me. SO TRUE. "Are they milking the franchise" could be well explored, and this topic in all is a perfect topic. – Abhimanyu Shekhar9 years ago
I think it would also be cool to talk about how the players have evolved alongside the new technology/gameplay involved in the franchise e.g. how once upon a time, we're all having some light fun training a Pikachu by defeating anything and everything that comes along, and the next minute we're dedicating whole forums to EV Values and Shiny Egg Farming. – Isaac Bernamont9 years ago
Pokemon was the first anime/gaming property that was released after my birth. I've enjoyed both the anime series and video games since. The questions I think are important is what draws fans to the series? What keeps us playing? As they add more and more Pokemon will there be a point when it becomes too much? – Jiraiyan9 years ago
Man, I can't even imagine a world WITHOUT Pokemon. I was born the same year the first Pokemon game came out in Japan, so I have zero perspective on that. You might also want to compare it to other cultural phenomena if you can; the West sure has it's phases. – Helmet9 years ago
While I'm also an avid fan of Pokemon--I lived my childhood in Pokemon Ruby--this topic seems far too broad to be sanctioned into just one article. You could write an entire book entailing the rise of Pokemon from the late nineties to its status in the present-day world. And what do you mean by "speedbumps and mistakes"? Financial miscalculations? Creative errors? Repetitive repetitiveness? Anyone of these could be turned into an article of its own. Personally, I see this as a possible series of articles exploring the various trials and tribulations of the franchise as a whole. It seems that, much like the beloved series itself, you could milk this thing for quite some time, so I wouldn't go condensing pages worth of content into a single article. – JKKN9 years ago
I agree with JKKN that this topic is very broad. The idea of a series of pieces on the franchise is good, but I think you could possibly narrow your idea down to be a paper on the latest games vs. the earliest, and how the franchise has changed to fit into an evolving marketplace of gamers. – Kathleen Lassiter9 years ago
I spent a fortune on these cards for my older son and nicknamed it "Expensimon." Thankfully, the craze died out by the time my younger son was born. All other franchises are milking their "great" 20 even 30 year old ideas, so why shouldn't Pokémon cash in? Maybe all those cards I bought will be worth something one day. I live in hope : ) – Munjeera9 years ago
I also agree with JKKN, especially since the Pokémon franchise has so many aspects: the television series, the trading card game, the video games, etc. A series of articles would definitely cover this topic better, as there are too many nuances to address in a single article. – handerson9 years ago
I'm sure that you've all heard it before: "Pokemon? That's a child's game. Call of Duty/Battlefield are adult games!" While I do believe that Pokemon games have started out to be just a game for only a child audience, I can't help but feel that the games have taken a complete shift in audience growth. You will notice many older audiences playing Pokemon and not just playing it but knowing the more complexities of the mechanics within the games that children have no idea nor any concept of. For example, IV's and EV's were something that pretty much were non-existent in the minds of players when Pokemon Red, Blue, and Green Versions were released (as well as Yellow). These new mechanics in the games revolutionized the way players interacted with each other to a whole new level of complexity. Before it used to be "Trade me your level 100 Mewtwo for my level 50 Mew." But nowadays we have players talking like this: "I'll trade you my Shiny Bulbasaur with it's hidden ability for your Ditto with maxed IV's and EV's!" Not only that but with the addition of new battle methods such as double, triple, rotation and even inverse battles the inclusion of these stats affecting IV's and Ev's have driven players to catch multiple of the same Pokemon just to get even one that has at the very least one or two IV/EV's maxed out. Those are the Pokemon that have the best chances of becoming either a wall or sweeper in online battles. So, are these games more children friendly still? Or is Nintendo secretly turning their consumers into full blown tacticians and strategists?
I feel that pokemon can appeal to different audiences, which is why it's a popular franchise. You can either enjoy it casually or seriously, so there's no right or wrong way to play it. I know Fire Emblem is also a strategy game, but compared to Pokemon, there is no pressure to EV train if you don't want to. It really depends how seriously the player wants improve their team. – YsabelGo9 years ago
