About the bottom:
They showed off battling in the first trailer and I remember hearing something about them trying to make a connection to the next Pokémon game. Maybe it will intergrate with Z? Or XZ YZ? Or Generation 7 perhaps?
Every single time I hear about this game's development, I'll be honest - I try to stay optimistic.
but I simply can't stay optimistic about this game. All that funding? Barely any details on how data works? Pokemon available in the area being limited?
I'm sorry but this sounds nice in theory - but I don't expect this to be worth all the hype (or lack of, considering it seems it can go both ways here) they're trying to give it. I don't like the fact that it's obvious development of the actual main series games has been hurt by it.
I would like to see more before saying "Hey, I'm interested." because we don't want little details like this.
We want to know what we're dealing with, what we have to expect, what we have to prepare for, etc. I don't like that they think they're not alienating people when the entire premise of this game already alienates those without a well paying job, a good phone, time, etc.
I was disappointed/let down when this game got revealed.
I continue to be let down. I want to know more than what they're telling us because they SHOULD be telling us more. When I can actually be excited about this game - it'll be when we actually get solid information, not hints and more questions.
Honestly, I haven't cared at all about this ever since it was announced. And I still don't see what's so special about it... I don't even have a smartphone, I have no interest in mobile phones. I rather stick to the main games...
Is some of it new? Seems like I've heard it all before... Maybe I'm confusing confirmed information with past speculations? It's been so long since we've heard anything...
Suddenly, I feel my heart sink into the deepest depths of let down-ness, as I come to realize that I may not be able to obtain my signature and most beloved pair of pokemon and their empowered evolutions, Gible and Piplup. My eyes bud tears as my lip wiggles and cheeks flush. "My life is over. I shall never be the best there ever was," I whisper, crawling on the ground to assume the fetal position. "To catch them all is my real test, and I got a hot heavy helping of Fire/Flying Gale Wings F using Brave Bird." I let the Magikarp blanket me and consume my energy so I may join them in their school of red and gold. Once complete, I flop into the river and join them on their international journey of evolution and splash bouncing. They clearly do not know what they are doing, but I know what they must do. In order to prepare them for GO, I train them all, for that is my new cause.
Long story short, I don't think I'll be able to get a Pip or Gib
It would be awesome if this game was released on 3DS as well, it would work well with the idea of carrying your 3DS around with you for streetpass. And it provides a way for kids to enjoy this who don't have a smartphone.
The combination of free to play, a different developer, micro transactions and being a smartphone app has me doubting any connectivity between this game and the main series. Making this a lite version of the main games won't work smoothly in my opinion considering what the game is being built off of (free to play smartphone app with microtransactions); the main games are way too big to be condensed down to a smartphone game.
I personally think this is the best thing to come to Pokemon since its inception. I find the main series games absolutely awful and so having something with subtle connections to the main game yet distinctly its own thing is intriguing to me. The fact that this is turning out to be a social game that can be played anywhere, regardless of town size, especially interests me as someone who has only lived in rural small towns before, and so never had someone to play them with.
inb4 Canada (where I live) gets all the Ice types... (and Bidoof)
Do you have a source for that? The only thing I can find is that they're planning on interacting with the main games, but I can't find anything confirming that their plans are reality.
Phones can't connect with a 3DS so the only form of connectivity possible is by transferring from GO to Bank (which uses a cloud server, which phones can access) to 3DS. Anything more than that is wishful thinking and I'd be surprised to see anything further due to hardware limitations.
Why does this game need to interact with the main games?
Honestly IMO the main games have been very stale gameplay wise for a long time. It's absolutely awesome to see Pokémon try new things.
However... being a smartphone game makes me feel like the battle system is gonna be a dumbified version of what we've been used to. I have the unnerving feel that the biggest point of this game is gonna be Pokémon collecting, and while that sounds awesome by itself, this thing would be really stupid if that's all there is to it.
I actually like that some Pokémon will be biome specific, and they said on the interview that we'll be able to trade to get the mons we can't find, so I'm not worried about that.
And about them worrying to not alienate people anywhere from playing this and finding Pokémon, that's something really good in my book. The more people are able to play this, the more I can show off my 16 years of Pokémon knowledge
Do you have a source for that? The only thing I can find is that they're planning on interacting with the main games, but I can't find anything confirming that their plans are reality
Then you found the same sources I did, haha. The interaction between PoGo and the main series has been announced since Day 1. As I said though, we don't know at this point what that interaction will entail, whether it's items, HA Pokemon, Eggs, something like the Pokewalker, or anything else under the Poke-sun.
Masuda and Ishihara (CEO of Pokemon Co.) are working very closely with Niantic, and if they said they're planning on making them link up with the main series games, idk how, but it's going to happen. And there's actually many ways for it to work. Cloud storage in the Bank, the GTS (remember Pokecheck?), codes, the list goes on, and there's probably a bunch of things I haven't thought of (but maybe Niantic/Pokemon have!).
There's also rumour the beta testing will start in Feb around the 20th anniversary and 3DS release of R/B/Y; and PoGo will release this Spring (i.e. when it starts to get warm so that people in the North will actually want to go outside haha). If they push it to the Winter, it's going to be too cold, and they'll have to compete with the tons of other holiday releases (and who knows... perhaps even the NX...). Hence why I think it needs to release Spring, or Summer at the latest. But heads up, this spoiler tag is completely speculation.
Also re: PoGo delaying Gen 7 / "Pokemon Z": yeah, that's a possibility with Pokemon being so involved in this game's development. They're coming in at an awkward time in general though, between 3DS, NX, mobile, trying to finish Volcanion + Zygarde Complete etc. So it's almost to be expected. Gen 6 was quite the jump from Gen 5 and it's gonna be tough to 1-up that in Gen 7. And I'm sure it's a headache to collab the mobile world with Z vs. Gen 7 or even both.
I actually posted that interview to my Tumblr a few days ago -- I encourage everyone to read through it when they get the chance, it's long but it's interesting if you're into entrepreneurship, game design, evolution of ideas, how company collabs work, transferable skills, etc. I think the interview shows they're putting a decent level of thought and love into this game, and really trying to make it a success. They even worked with Miyamoto and Iwata. The main series sells like hotcakes regardless of how much they choose to innovate. This is uncharted territory, and dare I say it Pokemon's (and Niantic's) shot to, at least temporarily, return to its glory days as a global phenomenon -- this time on the backs of adults, the same ones who were kids during Gen 1-3ish. Yes, not everyone has a smartphone, likes location services, etc. etc... I know it's a stretch, but hear me out. This is exciting stuff, rife with possibility if they manage to pull it off well.
I think given the very limited info we have so far, we should try to be a little more non-judgmental. I get that PoGo is taking us diehards on a bit of an emotional roller coaster. We want every game and every product to do justice to the franchise. However this does have the potential to completely shake up and revitalize the fan base, pulling in a ton of new kids and old people who have lost touch with the series. And, this can be done without touching the basic formulas of the main series. For better or worse depending on your thoughts on them; but (at least financially) for Pokemon Co., it's definitely the former.
You know, I also have found myself without much patience to keep playing the main series games, but really, a dumbified version (with maybe the only main point being catching the pokémon) app for smartphones which the only different thing that offers is an increased social interaction with other people?
Yeah right, sounds much better.
Besides, I don't like other people...
