Happy Pokemon Week, folks! Well, by the time you read this, Pokemon week would have already passed. But that’s given us all some time to digest the content of the Pokemon Direct from February 26 and the various things done to celebrate Pokemon’s 25th anniversary, right? Let’s break it all down.
Sinnoh Remakes
And here it is, folks. After the success of Fire Red and Leaf Green, Heart Gold and Soul Silver, Omega Ruby, and Alpha Sapphire comes Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl! We’ve been waiting for them, clamoring for them, outright begging for them and we’re finally getting them!
Generation 4 was one of my favorites. From the varied environments to the cool Gym leaders to the awesome Monster design, Generation 4 was just a really solid outing for the franchise.
Of course, what we saw was just a teaser. This game is being developed by ILCA Inc alongside Junichi Masuda. For those who’re unfamiliar with ILCA, they’re the developers of Pokemon Home, the online storage system for Pokemon that took over from Pokemon Bank. They’ve also worked on other game series; Dragon Quest X1, Metal Gear Rising; Revengeance, Nier and Yakuza 0 to name only a few. The style they’ve picked for the game is very true to the original sprite art for Diamond and Pearl… I’d honestly say a little TOO true to it. I like stylized art and I’m especially a fan of sprite-based art, but taking those squishy li’l Fisher-Price looking characters from the original and making them out of polygons makes the game’s design feel a little dated right out of the gate. Still, graphics are always secondary to gameplay in my book and I’m sure that this remake will deliver the same solid experience Generation 4 gave us originally, with the new quality of life updates we’ve come to expect from these remakes.
These titles are due out toward the end of the year. My guess is some time in November, but don’t quote me on that.
Pokemon Legends: Arceus
Now this. This is an absolute Chef’s Kiss from me.
Look at that open world. This is what I see in my head when roaming the Wild Area in Sword and Shield. This is the kind of thing I know many fans gave wanted since forever – an open-world Pokemon game that really feels like a trek into the wilderness.
The action looks like…. well. Action. There don’t seem to be any menus to select turn-based moves, here. That marks it as a pretty solid departure from the core Pokemon series, much like Final Fantasy switching from turn-based to action-based in recent installments.
Also? Lore. This game is set in the past. The Pokeballs have clasps on them, like luggage! And a little jet of steam puffs out upon completed capture of the ‘Mon. I can’t wait to adventure in this re-imagined version of Sinnoh and find out more about it. Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum were very lore-heavy games. You kind of have to be lore heavy in a game where you can…. y’know. Catch God, Time, and Space.
This game is set for release in 2022.
Post Malone covers Hoot-Hoot and the Qwillfish!
So, I never thought I’d see Post Malone associated with Pokemon. It’s just not a combination I would have expected…. these dots don’t seem to connect inside my head.
Well, luckily enough, I don’t run things over at the Pokemon Company because someone over there thought it would be a good idea, and boy-howdy, they’ve got something here! The virtual concert saw a CGI Posty dance and sing his way through a few of his own songs as well as a cover of that quintessential 90s hit I Only Want To Be With You, originally sung by Hootie and the Blowfish. Not only that, but he did so through a series of Pokemon-inspired environments, all ridiculously well-rendered and gorgeous; plains, forests, the beach, a reef, and a magma-filled cavern. Various Pokemon suited to these areas interacted with him throughout the songs and it was honestly a blast to watch.
The cherry on top, though, was Jigglypuff.
Well, Trainers! There’s my thoughts on this week’s news. There’s sure to be a lot of speculation and excitement leading up to the release of these new games so stay tuned!
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