Home

 › 

Articles

 › 

Pokemon Overload: Is There Too Much?

Pokemon Overload: Is There Too Much?

I love Pokemon just as much as the next person. Some of my earliest gaming memories are of playing Pokemon games. I had Red (and Blue I believe), Yellow , and many more of the ever evolving assortment of titles in the franchise. I even continue to buy them. When Pokemon Go was announced, I got myself into the beta and played it a little more after it fully released. I am the target audience, the millennial who grew up watching the television show and has a major attachment to it. Even still, I’m sensing a bit of an upcoming burn-out. There are almost too many Pokemon games releasing nowadays.

This was spawned by a bevy of announcements from the Pokemon Company. They revealed Pokemon Quest , a free-to-play title for the Nintendo Switch and mobile devices that looks like a Minecraft mod. That was available around on the console right after the announcement. In June, it’s coming to Android and iOS devices too.

At the same time they also told the world about Pokemon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Pokemon: Let’s Go, Eevee! These are the same game, but one has Pikachu as a starter and the other Eevee. They’re a throwback to Pokemon Yellow , and your starter rides on your shoulder or hat. The Pokemon Company has even brought back the concept of the Pokewalker from Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver with the Poke Ball Plus that acts as a Joy-Con, Pokemon Go Plus and pedometer. As you’ve probably well guessed, it’s a Poke Ball that allows you to take a Pokemon with you. You can also use it with Pokemon Go to catch new creatures while you’re out and about, to then transfer into Pokemon: Let’s Go . The Pokemon Company is incredibly confident that this multimedia mash-up will be a hit, as they’re planning to ship out double the numbers of Super Mario Odyssey for release day.

Even further, The Pokemon Company also clarified that they have yet another Pokemon title up their sleeves. The is the core Pokemon RPG for the Nintendo Switch (2019). That is three (four if you count the Pokemon: Let’s Go variants) Pokemon games all announced at one time! That doesn’t even count the fact that Pokemon Go is still very much alive and Detective Pikachu released just before these announcements.. As I stated in the beginning, I’m all for Pokemon games of all sorts. I’ll play as many as I can afford/get my hands on. But how much is too much? We all know too much of a good thing is true. There are only so many cheesecakes you can eat in one day! So how many Pokemon games do we need at one time to feed our inner nostalgia monsters? Probably not this many.

It doesn’t help that games aren’t as good as they could be. The initial responses to Pokemon Quest were very middle of the road. No one has really said they hate it, but not many are saying they love it either. The reactions to Pokemon: Let’s Go are very similar. Some are excited about it because it introduces things like co-op, and brings back the Pokewalker style peripheral with the Poke Ball Plus (I want one at least). But it combines a console title (Switch) with a mobile title ( Pokemon Go ). Many people have moved past Pokemon Go and don’t agree with the melding of the two. I personally gave up on the mobile title a long while ago. I just don’t leave the house enough to play it!

Pokemon Overload: Is There Too Much?

With so very many Pokemon games coming out, it feels a bit hard to be excited for them. At the very least, most people’s wallets aren’t going to be able to keep up. Pokemon Quest is free, but the two Pokemon: Let’s Go games are $59.99 each, and that doesn’t even include the price of a Poke Ball Plus. I imagine the core Pokemon game will probably be a similar price. Needless to say, a great many people are probably going to choose to buy one or the other rather than both. I can’t help but feel like enough is enough! It almost feels like if I see Pikachu’s smiling face one more time I’ll explode! And that’s a shame. Because Pikachu is still adorable. Even though he’s everywhere.

What do you think? Are you experiencing Pokemon burn-out? Or are you super excited for all of the above mentioned games? Let me know in the comments!

To top