Pokemon is a very nostalgic experience for most, to say the least. And yet, a big part of former fans hated the new pokemon designs, calling them unoriginal and uninspired, while still heralding the design of the generation they grew up with.
I think this nostalgia paired with dislike of the new generation comes from something that made the first games we experienced so great and is sorely lacking in not only todays Pokemon games: Discovery.
With that I don't mean that the games itself have none of it, far from it. But we experience it less, because we know almost everything there is to know about a game beforehand.
Think back. The first time playing Pokemon, you didn't know what kind of Pokemon they were. You had no idea what you would find in the next patch of tall grass, no idea what your Pokemon could became once they evolved (Though the cleverclogs of you may have had some ideas regarding your starter and the box art of the game). You discovered all that while playing, so you were still suprised many hours into the game.
I think this feeling of discovery is part of the Pokemon nostalgia, and it would explain why so many didn't like the new games as much: We don't discover during playing anymore. At least not nearly as much. Nowadays, you know every detail about a game before it comes out. Trailers, coverage, leaks, fans seek out any information about a game while it is still in development. Some out of making an informed buying decicion, some out of simple curiousity.
But in turn, we discover less while playing the game itself. We aren't suprised by new Pokemon anymore because we have seen the whole list months before release. Heck, there are even players who chose their starters based on stats (I see pie charts and Microsoft Excel in the future of those people).
I don't think this problem is only related to Pokemon. So, do you think that we discover less during gaming today because we know so much more about games before they come out? Is this detrimental to enjoying a game? If yes, what could be done about it?
I think this nostalgia paired with dislike of the new generation comes from something that made the first games we experienced so great and is sorely lacking in not only todays Pokemon games: Discovery.
With that I don't mean that the games itself have none of it, far from it. But we experience it less, because we know almost everything there is to know about a game beforehand.
Think back. The first time playing Pokemon, you didn't know what kind of Pokemon they were. You had no idea what you would find in the next patch of tall grass, no idea what your Pokemon could became once they evolved (Though the cleverclogs of you may have had some ideas regarding your starter and the box art of the game). You discovered all that while playing, so you were still suprised many hours into the game.
I think this feeling of discovery is part of the Pokemon nostalgia, and it would explain why so many didn't like the new games as much: We don't discover during playing anymore. At least not nearly as much. Nowadays, you know every detail about a game before it comes out. Trailers, coverage, leaks, fans seek out any information about a game while it is still in development. Some out of making an informed buying decicion, some out of simple curiousity.
But in turn, we discover less while playing the game itself. We aren't suprised by new Pokemon anymore because we have seen the whole list months before release. Heck, there are even players who chose their starters based on stats (I see pie charts and Microsoft Excel in the future of those people).
I don't think this problem is only related to Pokemon. So, do you think that we discover less during gaming today because we know so much more about games before they come out? Is this detrimental to enjoying a game? If yes, what could be done about it?
