The End of Pokemon...(Speculation)

[TrevorGruen]

As said, this is a thread for speculation, so if u have any ideas or opinions, please add to the thread.

Anyway, while playing pokemon White earlier i got thinking "how much longer can this franchise survive"? i mean while there is always room to improve the engine and design, there has never really been any story to build on or improve, no real improvements or renovations in the gameplay (i.e. combat), and after creating somewhere around 600 pokemon, how many more can they come up with? This all seems to me like the franchise is on its last limbs, and yet the games still sell very well, there is still a large fanbase behind the games, and a tv show and card game that is still enjoyed today. Will the franchise every die, or will we still be playing it on our DS super mega ultra lite on doomsday?

 

[Catalyst6]

"Seven Year Rule:
A gimmick or storyline may be reused freely and safely after seven years of dormancy."
(quoted from TvTropes)

Pokemon has a very high turnover rate, or to put it simply, a new kid is born every minute, and every kid loves pokemon. EVERY kid. Don't believe those who say differently, they are going to hell for lying.

 

[Galliam]

I think its about time for a major leap forward type revelation with it. Instead of making it backwards compatable with the earlier games, they should make a new generation, with no new pokemon, allowing it to span ALL the continents and revamp their fundamentally flawed system. It is becoming unsustainable in my opinion, but as long as people keep buying it, they'll keep making stupid looking pokemon and repackaging their game.

A few improvements I can think of off the top of my head would be:
1. Do away with HMs taking up a move slot. Like completely. HM slaves are a painful evil
2. Instead of having 100000 moves to choose from but only about 10 good ones, have movesets that upgrade as pokemon level. Every few levels you're allowed to add points into improving a moves power, accuracy or adding an effect. etc
3. Cut the crap with team rocket, galactic, magma, aqua etc. If they're evil, make their actions have some level of peril other than ooh they're mean to pokemon. Blaaah
4. Like I said before, let it span ALL the continents so you can collect ALL the pokemon and beat every regions gym challenge and maybe even a new story for every region.
5. Try try TRY to make pokemon that aren't completely ridiculous.

Just some ideas I've had, but I think they need to innovate along these lines.

 

[Eri]

Pokemon is not dying anytime soon. That I can promise.

 

[ZiggyE]

A popular intellectual property by Nintendo? Dying? It'll be a cold day in Hell when that happens.

 

[sylekage]

It will die someday, but I don't think it'll be anytime soon. I bet our grand kids will be playing it, with baffled looks on their faces when you try to explain who Pikachu is.

 

[Firoth]

If it was ever on a 360 or PS3 or even a computer, I might even try it.

I'm really surprised they haven't really done that for the Wii yet. A full Pokemon game like for the various Game Boys. They had something like that for the GameCube, but, it was severely trimmed down. They could do better, easily.

 

[r0kle0nZ]

Me being a pokemon fan from the begining, think they are running out of ideas. However, as with every series that needs to be taken behind the shed for a "talk", they will continue to live. Instead of going to. . . the "farm". . .

 

[Johnnyallstar]

It will wake up when Ash finally snaps out of his comatose state, and dies from brain damage...

Oh you meant the games? Probably when somebody manages to dethrone them by having a similar system, yet much deeper and more satisfying. Or, they can completely change their path and basically relaunch the series by going deeper into what can be done, rather than rewashing and adding new pokemon.

 

[Urgh76]

Me being a pokemon fan from the begining, think they are running out of ideas. However, as with every series that needs to be taken behind the shed for a "talk", they will continue to live. Instead of going to. . . the "farm". . .

I am now sad

OT: If it is gonna die, it's gonna go out with a bang, that's for sure

 

[TrevorGruen]

im not saying its LIKELY to die, im just wondering when it will, if ever. Galliam, those are all the best ideas anyone has ever suggested about how to improve the franchise, many of which i started hearing around fire red and leaf green, nintendo is ignoring us. we are not DEMANDING these improvements so nintendo refuses to put that amount of work into them since they know we buy them even with all the lacks in renovation. Hell they made such a big deal of seasons and slight 3d in white and black that if thats what they think impresses us, they really wont ever improve the way we want it.

As for the mario comparison, i have to redirect you to yahtzee (love how he has never even mentioned pokemon).

 

[daltonlaffs]

Pokémon will never die. Its fanbase just keeps growing, and so few people ever leave it.

As for new Pokémon, I imagine that it will even out at 999 or something like that. Not just for "hurr they can't add more than three digits" reason, but at about 1000 of them, I think they'll just have to admit that it's not fair to expect any more than that to be collected by even the most dedicated fans.

After we run out of new Pokémon, though, the series will have nowhere to go but up. With the same however-many in each game, they can start making sequels that improve everything else -- battle system, graphics, story, extras, etc. -- and moving it to the newer consoles as they go. I don't think Pokémon will disappear until long after I've had a physical Poké Ball that summons holographic Pokémon, and even if it does before then, it will certainly make a comeback.

 

[ZiggyE]

How about a pokemon game that doesn't make you the trainer, force you to catch pokemon and beat gym leaders?

How about you are the pokemon? Or maybe real time battles? More RPG elements? A more intricate story.

Really, all nintendo is doing is doing the SAME THING OVER AND OVER AGAIN with relatively minor changes which makes doing the same thing over and over again easier.

 

[TrevorGruen]

It will wake up when Ash finally snaps out of his comatose state, and dies from brain damage...

lol when you first said ash, the first thing that came to my mind was Evil Dead... that could be cool.

anyway, here are some more replies =D

sylekage: that wont happen, nintendo still milks pikachus fame too much.

Firoth: they could, but they wont. they make more than enough money with the minimal effort they do now, why the extra work?

r0kle0nZ: the series doesnt need to die, just needs improvements. Imagine if final fantasy was still 2d and had never gone 3d?

urgh76: now it wont, a franchise with so little improvement will fizzle and die or live on as a god.

 

[JordanXlord]

It won't die, they've yet to try everything with it, like make it more RPGish for the RPG fanboys, like maybe some optional side quests, the ability to take up team rockets offer and join them, rising to be the top boss of the organization, join the police and take Team Rocket down, ummm, a pokemon game where you play as the pokemon like you would a Street fighter character and fight like that (they've got quite a roster already) basically it'll evolve into something else. (once it reaches level 80)

...interesting


I would totally join Team Rocket...I love being a villian