We’ve come a long way since the days of Pokémon Red and Blue. 151 pixilated pocket monsters quickly grew to 718 existing in three glorious dimensions. And that isn’t even counting the three newest types that may have recently been discovered! But it’s not just the creatures that have grown and become more diverse, it’s the worlds themselves, too. As a gaming franchise, Pokémon has continued to evolve just like the titular characters themselves. And, while this is certainly a great thing, there’s an undeniable magic in those original titles. Lead Pokémon Art Director Ken Sugimori apparently agrees, as he stated such in a recent interview with “We Love Pokémon” magazine.
Speaking about the next generation, Sugimori stated his desire to see the franchise return to simpler designs and attacks, rather than continue to expand the way it has over the last few generations. Sugimori cited the Ghost-type Gengar as one of his personal favorite Pokémon designs. Sugimori was quick to point out that this is by no means a sign of where the series is headed, but rather a personal preference.
While the entire thing is hypothetical at this point, it does bring up an interesting question about the future of the franchise. At what point will there be “too many” Pokémon? Finishing the Pokédex was once a foreboding, yet accomplishable feat, but has now become unlikely to impossible for most gamers. With the recent resurgence of retro style titles and graphics, perhaps gamers would be receptive to a Pokémon title that returned to simpler 8-bit roots and a smaller number of creatures? Since Pokémon Red and Blue have yet to appear on the 3DS Virtual Console service, perhaps an 8-bit recreation of the original titles with some modern day improvements would be an interesting compromise.
What do you think? Has the Pokémon franchise become overly complex? Or is part of the appeal of new Pokémon titles actually finding and capturing new pocket monsters? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
Source: Siliconera