Summary
I’m not the world’s biggest roguelike fan. I loveHadesfor the narrative threads it weaves through its procedurally-generated biomes and repeated runs, but I’ve never got along with many others. That is, untilPokemonfan games likePokemon Emerald RogueandPokeRoguehit me right in the nostalgia.
Over the weekend, I reached floor 180 of PokeRogue and came face to face with the Champion. I’d been carried thus far by a combination of Skeledirge (my starter, who is broken when using his signature move, Torch Song) and Wo-Chien, who I caught around floor 100. By the end, my party was around level 180, one-shotting most wild encounters and Elite Four ‘mons. Mega Pidgeot came in clutch, but I never did find a use for my Terastalisation.
I’ll be honest, the Champion wiped the floor with me. My party wasn’t balanced, and only three of my six Pokemon were any good. I was soon back to the start, picking my opening party again, with nothing but a few more options to show for my hard work. In a regular roguelike, this kills all my motivation. But in aPokemonroguelike, I know I have just 179 battles before I can face the Champion again.
Roguelike DLC Is So Hot Right Now
“But Pokemon is a creature-collecting RPG!” I hear you shout, scream, wail. You’re not wrong, but that formula is growing stale. While Legends: Arceus refreshed the formula a little with real-time Poke Ball yeeting, Scarlet & Violet might be the worst Pokemon games I’ve ever played. Technical issues aside, the exploration is dull, the battles easy, and the story completely non-existent.
However, only one of those things matters in a roguelike. Big games are hurtling towards roguelike modes with reckless abandon, no matter whether it fits their game or not. Most triple-A releases just want morecontent, something to keep players coming back for run after run, even if it doesn’t fit with their games’ core premises.
The Last of Us Part 2 is the most egregious example of this. This is a game that you play for the gripping story, and maybe the stealth gameplay. The combat isn’t fun – it’s specifically intended not to be. Shanking a dog to death is meant to make you reflect on the cycles of violence within the game’s narrative, and the wider power fantasies that video games bestow unto us. Except now we have a roguelike where you can’t really stealth and just have to murder loads of people in a row! Yay!
I question what the Molotov rain mode has to say about the inherent nihilism of humanity.
Apparently, God of War Ragnarok better implemented a narrative into its roguelike mode, and I can attest to the fact that its action-RPG combat is more suitable for the genre, but it still strikes me as a cheap attempt to stay relevant. The fact that developers like Naughty Dog and Santa Monica Studio are chasing roguelike modes, trying to squeeze their games into an ill-fitting trend, doesn’t seem right to me.
But Pokemon works perfectly. Whether it’s just the battles, like PokeRogue, or a more involved Nuzlocke-esque experience like Pokemon Emerald Rogue, turn-based battles with tough catching rules works well. Every trainer battle is a puzzle to solve, a chess match with 1,000 possible pieces. It’s engaging, exciting, and everything that modern Pokemon is not.
The Problem With Pokemon
Pokemon is chasing an unattainable dream. It clearly wants its Breath of the Wild moment, that magical open world that captures the imagination of millions. However, it’s being held back by the might of the wider Pokemon machine. This isn’t just a game series any more, it’s plushes and trading cards and anime, and everything has to slot into the correct timeline for the billions to keep rolling in.
Game Freak can’t take any longer than a couple of years to make the next big Pokemon game. While the scope gets wider and wider, the deadlines get tighter and the finished products get worse. We’d all appreciate the developers taking five years to make the next Pokemon game, and to actually finish it, but it’s simply not going to happen.
The slight delay toPokemon Legends: Z-A, presumably to launch with theSwitch 2, and its focus on a smaller area, Lumiose City,might suggest that Game Freak is taking this advice on board, but only time will tell.
If the relentless timeline is inevitable, unchangeable, why not pare the scope back? Instead of creating a half-baked open world with nothing to do, why not focus purely on the mechanics? Why not create a roguelike Pokemon game? Fans have flocked to fan made versions, so the desire is proven.
If that’s too risky a move, make it a postgame option, or DLC. Fans love the Battle Tower and other such competitive challenges, and adding in a few roguelike mechanics to these would be relatively simple. Pop it in Prism Tower in Pokemon Legends: Z-A. I don’t care how it happens, it just needs to be implemented. If fans can make it work out of passion, without being given a single dollar for their hard work, a billion-dollar company can at least give it a try. Give Pokemon fans what they want, Game Freak. Give us an official Pokemon roguelike.
Next:I Need To Play Nintendo’s 2D Version Of Breath Of The Wild
