The format of these posts is simple: let’s discuss a specific game or series!
Let’s discuss the Pokémon series. What is your favorite game in the series? What do you like about it? What doesn’t work for you? Are there similar games you like or even prefer to the original series? Feel free to share anything that comes up and react to other comments. Let’s get the conversation going!
If you have any recommendations for games or series for the next post(s), please feel free to DM me or add it in a comment here (no guarantees of course).
Previous entries: Like a Dragon / Yakuza, Assassin’s Creed, UFO 50, Platformers, Uplifting Games, Final Fantasy, Visual Novels, Hollow Knight, Nintendo DS, Monster Hunter, Persona, Monkey Island, 8 Bit Era, Animal Crossing, Age of Empires, Super Mario, Deus Ex, Stardew Valley, The Sims, Half-Life, Earthbound / Mother, Mass Effect, Metroid, Journey, Resident Evil, Polybius, Tetris, Telltale Games, Kirby, LEGO Games, DOOM, Ori, Metal Gear, Slay the Spire
Rambling post incoming:
I love the series, but man am I frustrated by it.
I love when they try to tell a story. Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow is simple, but effective.
The others just build on this, but the best team is still Team Rocket to me. Actual gangsters instead of maniacal, delusional gits who want to end the world… It’s too much.
Team Skull are wonderful as well.
Black and white had a great story and I really, really like Bianca’s journey in that game. She’s not very good at what she does, but she’s compassionate. A little sheltered too. Her dad is always asking her to come back home because he doesn’t believe in her, and with failure after failure almost goes along with it and gives up. I love that she doesn’t.
I also like the villain speech here that Pokémon don’t like being used for fighting, but I really believe that it could’ve been better if they didn’t undermine their own point by fighting with pokemon. I mean, I get that the main dude, Ghetsis was just bluffing, but everyone else believed it, so why didn’t they choose non -violence?
After the series went 3D, I’ve disliked it. I liked X and Y, but I felt like it was a little too light on new stuff. Only 60ish new pokemon feels a bit low. There’s a good game there somewhere, but… It’s not where I want it to be.
Sun and moon was the same. Love the new ideas, but it’s getting bogged down a smidge by performance and repetition.
Sword and Shield definitely has great things going for it with vibes, but lacks substance. No caves, no dungeons, just a led-by-the-hand tour.
The DLC was a smidge better, but even then a little lacking.
Scarlet/Violet barely holds together. It’s ugly as sin, its level progression is whack and the open world does it NO FAVORS! All I want is for pokemon to seem like actual animals in the wild. I wanna see them interact with each other, but they NEVER DO.
Legends Arceus was also the same here, though I like the battle mechanics here. It feels unfinished and while pokemon in your party can interact, the world itself feels… Lacking.
My favorite game in the pokemon series (including spinoffs) would be pokemon mystery dungeon for the story, and Pokemon Snap for the interaction.
Core series would be either Black and White or Heart Gold/Soul Silver. Those games really spoiled us