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Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Printable Version

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Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Kyng - 03-22-2019

At the beginning of his "What if Pokémon ended at the 4th generation?" thread, @"BrynStevens" stated the following:

BrynStevens Wrote:The game series is still going strong after 23 years, and we have an 8th generation on the way. But, because of how the story was in the Diamond/Pearl/Platinum games and that we had legendaries that were connected to the Pokemon universe (as well as a godlike entity that governed everything beneath, nevermind having created it), I personally think the games should've ended at the 4th generation and, I held such thoughts about it for a long time now, pretty much when Diamond/Pearl were just released.

I thought this could spark an interesting discussion; however, I thought it was a discussion that would be better off in its own thread, separate from the "What If" discussion. Hence, this thread :P . 

So, do you think Pokémon should have ended earlier? If so, when exactly do you think it should have ended?

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Detective Osprey - 03-22-2019

I never want it to end. :/

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Moonshroom - 03-22-2019

Ending it after beating the final trainer at Mount Slver was the perfect end way... it should have ended there and it would have been immensely satisfying.

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Deleted User 8 - 03-22-2019

As I said later in that other thread, it should've, after Generation II. Even Game Freak originally wanted to end it from there for several reasons (I can't remember what they were exactly. Bulbapedia does indeed state this). I can agree of what @"Dust Bowl" said also. That final battle with Red was the most memorable of all, and it would've been mighty enough to wrap up the whole story for good.
 
(03-22-2019, 05:35 PM)ObsessedwithBirds Wrote: I never want it to end. :/
Well you know the saying, "all good things must come to an end". Everything in life can't last forever, even your favourite things.

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Detective Osprey - 03-22-2019

I don’t want it to end anytime soon.

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Moonshroom - 03-22-2019

Do not worry, it will go on as long as it is profitable.

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Kyng - 03-22-2019

Well, 'forever' is a very long time :lol: . However, that doesn't mean it can't last for decades. Mickey Mouse is nearly 100 years old, and I don't see him going anywhere!

With that said, if Pokémon begins to struggle at any point (and, right now, it shows no signs of struggling), then it probably would be better to end it while it's still well-regarded by a large number of fans - rather than limping along with fewer and fewer fans over the years.

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Deleted User 8 - 03-22-2019

Well it has to end at one point, whether any of you like it or not. I mean, we have nearly a thousand critters now and all that really only for the $$$. There's no denying that the series had become a cash cow in recent years and it clearly shows.

And meanwhile, the genwunners would've wanted it to just end after Yellow, or just leave it as Red and Blue, in which the two colours together make their very own rose-tinted glasses.

(03-22-2019, 05:48 PM)Kyng Wrote: With that said, if Pokémon begins to struggle at any point (and, right now, it shows no signs of struggling), then it probably would be better to end it while it's still well-regarded by a large number of fans - rather than limping along with fewer and fewer fans over the years.
Pretty much what I was going to say.

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Pyrite - 03-22-2019

I don't really see a problem with it not ending any time soon. It's not as though youngsters aren't getting into it. However, as I said in the other thread, I do think things are becoming more complicated in a bid to entice in the younger audience. Things like Mega Evolution, Z-moves and Ultra Beasts, to me at least, are just an attempt at 'trying a new big thing' that just doesn't really help. The games were already difficult, and it seems like their way of compensating for all the complicated plot is by dumbing down the game itself. Removing the need for HMs, making EV training easier, adding in help from the Amie, and making the Gyms and Elite Four much easier to beat. It means they can get away with a stupidly complex plot. I'd say that there are way too many legendaries nowadays as well, especially in comparison to ordinary Pokémon, which aren't really given much chance to shine anymore.

Now, don't get me wrong, I still love Pokémon (I really enjoyed X and Y, Mega Evolution aside) and I certainly think it's something we should be allowing the younger generation of people to experience. I mean, there's a reason it's so popular, after all. The games are good fun, and even the newer versions still are. I guess for me, there's this strange dissonance between the game getting easier (tending towards a younger audience) and the story getting more complicated (tending towards and older audience). It's almost like they're trying to push for both, and it's kind of weird.

I don't think that merits it ending, though. The new Gen VIII starters show that they're still capable of coming up with interesting Pokémon, and the setting for the new region also looks really curious. I'm certainly willing to give it a chance yet. The fact that they're trying new things rather than just sticking with the same old format at least shows that they're putting some effort into the franchise, rather than coasting along on their present popularity and milking it for all it's worth.

I'm also thankful that it didn't end really quickly, as I wouldn't have had a chance to play it. I guess I would have been okay with it ending after Gen IV, because I still think that was the best series of games they produced, and had the best Pokémon in it. But now that we've gotten so far I really want my 3D Gen IV remakes. :P That, and I will maintain that Gen VI is also amazing, and has some really strong ideas and Pokémon.

RE: Should Pokémon have ended earlier? When? - Jarkko - 03-22-2019

(03-22-2019, 05:48 PM)BrynStevens Wrote: Well it has to end at one point, whether any of you like it or not. I mean, we have nearly a thousand critters now and all that really only for the $$$. There's no denying that the series had become a cash cow in recent years and it clearly shows.

And meanwhile, the genwunners would've wanted it to just end after Yellow, or just leave it as Red and Blue, in which the two colours together make their very own rose-tinted glasses.
(03-22-2019, 05:48 PM)Kyng Wrote: With that said, if Pokémon begins to struggle at any point (and, right now, it shows no signs of struggling), then it probably would be better to end it while it's still well-regarded by a large number of fans - rather than limping along with fewer and fewer fans over the years.
Pretty much what I was going to say. 

I think it became a cash cow long ago. Seriously, it's a good business move on Nintendo's part. But I never was a fan of it, so anything I say on the matter won't go over well with anyone else. :P In honesty, though, if it becomes such where the same plot and mechanics are rehashed over and over again with a few detail changes and gets stale (some would argue it's happened already), it would be good to put this one to bed.

That's what happened to Mega Man. The original series got mostly boring after MM3, but they're on 10 now - it did have one more decent spinoff game called Mega Man and Bass but the other spinoffs kinda sucked. Mega Man X took a much darker approach, and had a good storyline until X5, when the original creator planned to end it. That series went to X8 and had the spinoff Command Mission. Admittedly, they did try new things with X7, but they failed miserably. Sigma was killed off at the end of X8, so I doubt that series will come back. Mega Man Zero was really nothing special, and I don't have any plans to play ZX or Advent or any of the other spinoff franchises. Heck, I think Battle Network is a Pokémon knockoff to a degree.

The key to keeping things fresh is making sure to overhaul things every now and again. The franchise I think that has done this the best within the realm of RPGs is Final Fantasy, even if there are certain commonalities between every game. Other franchises that have done this well (in spite of a few misfires) are Castlevania, Metroid, and even Super Mario Bros. (Granted, the last has the cash-cow element as well, having gone back to the 2D format in one spinoff series for nostalgia value. ;) Even those have some new gameplay elements introduced though.) 

In closing, though, I also agree with what Chris said.