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When was the last goodPokemongame?
No, fan games and ROM hacks dont count.
I expect some of you might sayPokemon Legends: Arceus.
The enlightened among you might even sayNew Pokemon Snap.
Some misers might say Pokemon Crystal, but well disregard you because youre being facetious.
My point is that the mainline games have been stagnating for years.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violets open world built on the Wild Area, butnot in any meaningful way.
It also tanked performance in a manner that was unforgivable for the biggest franchise on the planet.
To go further back, Pokemon Sun & Moon were okay.
The monster designs were top notch, but the game held your hand to a painful extent.
The entire first island is tutorial!
Those of us who wanted a challenge had it torn from our hands with a smile and a wave.
Gen 5 was reviled upon release, but did a lot right.
I believe that Gen 5 were the last great Pokemon games.
Sorry, the last greatmain seriesPokemon games.
Legends: Arceus took creature catching to unprecedented levels as we yeeted balls left, right, and centre.
The differing weights of the different balls made the mechanic feel thoughtful and realistic.
New Pokemon Snap might be the best looking Pokemon game ever made.
And this is where Pokemon can learn from Call of Duty.
If I wanted to give Pikachu an AK47, Id playPalworld.
Some games are better than others, but overall fans tend to be happy.
Thats less often the case with Pokemon.
Pokemon Scarlet & Violet sold like hotcakes, but were derided critically and memed endlessly.
Thats why Pokemon should take the Call of Duty approach.
Let each development team work on their game for three years, alternating releases so fans are always satisfied.
Call of Duty releases rotate between Infinity Ward, Treyarch, and Sledgehammer Games.
Each has its own specialty and narrative approach, but every game is unmistakably Call of Duty.
Why cant Nintendo do the same to support Game Freak and give the players what they want?
While Game Freak tackles every main series release, other studios are drafted in for remakes or spin-offs.
ILCA applied a chibi art style to Brilliant Diamond & Shining Pearl.
Bandai Namco Studios worked on the Snap sequel.
A lot of this comes down to perception.
What Pokemon games are perceived to be part of the main series.
Which ones are relegated to spin-offs.
Because it dares to try something new.
These innovative approaches to the stale creature catching of Pokemon should not be forced into spin-off games.
The development cycles of main series Pokemon games are rough.
These devs dont get five years to work on Tears of the Kingdra.
Let the Legends team cook whatever it wants without relegating its ideas to a spin-off.
A lot of this is about perception.
That momentum has already begun with the Legends series, but it can go further.
The worst case scenario in Pokemon Go nearly came to pass.
