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Pokémon GO is fun, sure, but it isn’t the Pokémon you remember

Our geek culture columnist, Matthew Herst, a Pokémon fan from way back, pinpoints how GO fails to live up to the series’ reputation
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The depth that has been a boon for the franchise is sorely lacking. And for me, the depth and sense of adventure you get from exploring a foreign world are what draws me back to Pokémon time and time again.

I’ve been a Pokémon fan since I was four years old. I didn’t even get my hands on the games until I was eight or nine, but I still knew the name of every colorful critter and had stickers of the various monsters lining my walls. 

When I finally got my first Gameboy and received Pokémon Fire Red several months later, I spent countless hours in the Kanto region (the setting of the first games) building up my team and conquering gyms. 

Every time a Pokémon game has come out since, I’ve been there on day one to pick it up. I have a long-standing love affair with the series, so when Pokémon GO was announced last year my mind started to race at the possibilities. 

The first trailer showed people catching, trading and battling in real life. While this was clearly just a concept, it teased certain features. It was clear the experience could be enjoyed with friends, as you explored the world together, catching Pokémon and filling up your Pokedex. 

Not only this, but trading – a feature that is still missing – was shown, as was battling outside of the confines of a gym.

The marvelous trailer melded CGI and practical effects to show (as close as possible) what it would be like to co-exist with Pokémon. But Pokémon GO isn’t this. You walk around staring at your phone screen, hoping a new creature pops up along your route so you can enthusiastically swipe your finger across the screen and capture them. 

Don’t get me wrong – it’s plenty of fun and addicting in a way that’s a little frightening, but it isn’t really Pokémon. It’s missing some of the key aspects of the series that have allowed it to remain as popular as it is for the past 20 years. 

Every Pokémon game begins with you choosing one of three starters. While the options change with each new generation, the three types remain the same: fire, water, and grass. After you select your partner, pick up your Pokédex from the professor and buy a few poke balls, you’re ready to go. 

This is when the meat of the game presents itself. You wander through tall grass, caves, forests and other locals as you travel between towns. This will cause you to run into wild Pokémon. You can’t just throw a ball at them and claim them as your own; you’ll have to do a bit of work first. 

Pokémon is what is known as a turn-based RPG. This means that each side takes turns selecting moves and trying to defeat their opponent. So you select from a pool of moves (four maximum) and whittle down the wild Pokémon’s health until it’s low enough that you can capture it with ease. 

You can then use your newly obtained compatriot in battle, which helps them gain experience, gain levels, and, in time, evolve. You can then use your team of specially assembled monsters to take on the eight gym leaders. They stand as the best of the best and essentially act as the boss battles for the series. Each leader specializes in a different type of Pokémon, forcing you to adapt in order to defeat them. And because of this, each victory is that much sweeter. 

This is the core of Pokémon — this is what captured the hearts and minds of millions. There is a true sense of progression as you train your team through battle, catch new Pokémon, take on gym leaders, and explore the vast worlds filled with colorful characters, locals and creatures. 

Because you choose which Pokémon you want to make up your team of six, there is also a much more personal investment than in Pokémon GO. Everyone favors different Pokémon, which leads to an entirely different team composition. You can build out the strongest team based on stats alone, or simply choose six that have the coolest designs, ensuring that no matter who you choose, you’ll be sure to wow. 

Pokémon GO is certainly for a wider audience, one that may recognize a Pokémon or two as they wander the world, eyes glued to their phones, but they don’t need to have a deep love for the franchise. 

And that’s the issue: The depth that has been a boon for the franchise is sorely lacking. And for me, the depth and sense of adventure you get from exploring a foreign world are what draws me back to Pokémon time and time again. 

Because of this, each second I spend throwing flinging balls at Pokémon mysteriously floating in midair above my bed makes my mind wander to Pokémon Sun & Moon – the new Pokémon adventures that are slated to come out this November for Nintendo 3DS. 

As the start of the seventh generation of Pokémon, it’ll feature more than 100 new monsters to discover and catch, and new locations to explore. It will be a continuation and evolution of the gameplay and systems that have been refined and built upon for two decades. 

I’ll continue to check Pokémon GO as I wander throughout the city, seeing if any of my favorite critters rear their heads, but as soon as Sun and Moon hits store shelves, I’ll be glued to the small screen of my 3DS, getting to know the newest generation of Pokémon. 

Matthew Herst is a Carleton University communications student, video game journalist and Sudbury.com’s resident geek writer. Yeah, this guy loves video games. Besides Sudbury.com, you can also find his work on TheNerdStash.com. Follow him on Twitter @supergurst.
 


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