Some people may say that NS's "Pikachu Eib", some people think it is "Sword and Shield" or "Jiao Diamond Replica", and many people think that it has changed since "Sun and Moon"...

When did Pokémon start to become bad?

Everyone will give different answers to this question. Some people may say that NS's "Pikachu Eib", some people think it is "Sword and Shield" or "Jiao Diamond Replica", and many people think that it has changed since "Sun and Moon"...

At this time, some friends may be wondering why the word "rotten" was quotation marks in the title - in fact, the orthodox work of "Pokemon" has never become bad.

Someone must have wanted to swear , but don’t worry, listen to let’s finish. The reason why "Pokemon" makes everyone feel that it is getting worse and worse is actually very simple and common.

Players who are familiar with the history of the game must often hear that Atari collapsed. It was a crisis in which shoddy games filled the market and ultimately led to consumers no longer trusting the game. And Nintendo , a small poker workshop, began to dominate the world since then.

The game console market back then was almost monopolized by Japan - Nintendo, Sega and Sony . The performance of the game console at that time could only render exquisite 2D pixel images, or basic 3D images. This is the case with home computers, so there is no need to say more about handheld computers.

Therefore, during the years when Nintendo and Sony flourished, many of the games we are familiar with today came from Japan. And these games often have one feature: freehand painting.

Realistic and freehand styles are two completely different styles, and there is no difference between better and worse.

Looking back at the art of Eastern and Western paintings over the past few hundred years, although realistic and freehand painting are blended with each other, Western paintings, especially European paintings, always give people a real impression; while Eastern paintings, especially traditional Chinese paintings, focus very much on freehand painting. In fact, you can see similar comparisons from the game industry today.

The so-called 3A masterpieces in Europe and the United States often like to use realistic style . Not only that, they also need to be realistic in the role movements, expressions, and physical effects.

And many Japanese masterpieces are completely opposite. They often use cartoon styles. Many interactions are done . For example, when the character eats, he opens his mouth and makes a meaning, and then the rice in the bowl disappears instantly...

This comparison has existed since the birth of the game, but in the era of PS3/X360, it was further magnified.

With the advent of the high-definition 3D era, more and more Japanese manufacturers are out of touch with the times, which makes many players who like Japanese games feel that Japanese games are in decline.

With the formation of European and American games, more and more 3A masterpieces are more realistic in scene rendering, and the richness of the characters' movements and expressions is several times higher than before. Manufacturers are using slogans like "Immersive" to promote to players how important it is to have realistic pictures of the game.

It was during that time that the "freehand painting" in the game became synonymous with "low technical strength", "not enterprising" and "backward era" in the eyes of many players.

Japanese game manufacturers are also distracted. Under the siege of European and American games, fell into the trap of blindly pursuing high picture quality - I didn't learn the advantages of realistic games, but instead exposed the shortcomings of freehand painting.

And the "Pokemon" series has been sticking to the handheld platform for many years. Until the end of the 3DS career, Nintendo no longer launched pure handhelds, and GF finally woke up and began to test the waters of high-definition.(Of course, as Nintendo's "money printing machine", the high-definition work of "Pokemon" must have started one after another a few years before the NS was released)

But GF is not stupid enough to step on all the traps that the predecessors have stepped on, and does not disrupt their basic structure because of radical high-definition strategy.

"Pikachu Eib" can be regarded as the first experiment in high definition. Not only that, the game also tried to bring fresh blood from "Pokemon Go" and apply mechanisms such as "Minglei" to the game. "Bao Go" may not be felt clearly by domestic players, but according to my friends in Tokyo and Los Angeles, the effect that year was still very obvious. Many players who have abandoned their pitfalls for many years have returned from the work "Pikachu Eib" because of Go, and are still playing Pokémon.

Although "Sword and Shield" has been criticized by many players in the process, while further trying large scenarios, it has also explored new mechanisms. In fact, as early as this work, GF realized that open 3D maps need to be guided by clear visual goals - this is the Extreme Cave and the light columns above.

In the two DLCs of "Sword and Shield", GF further explores the design of terrain height difference. At present, these designs also provide a lot of experience for "Arceus" and the upcoming "Zhu Zi". Although "Jing Diamond Replica" was criticized very badly, it was outsourced to ILCA due to GF's construction period problems. The main problem of the game is that the development team is not good at aesthetics and lacks experience in the game's art style.

Despite this, this work is also an important practice for "whether Pokémon is still suitable for 2D design", and this is also the first time that an orthodox work has been developed using the mainstream commercial engine (Unity).

Don’t underestimate this change. Using mainstream commercial engines for game development will have an important impact on the construction period, visual effects and other aspects of the game. Perhaps in less than three years we will see the benefits of this transformation.

"Arceus" must not be said more. This is obviously a test of the design and technology of the open world of "Zhu Zi". These "Pokemon" on

NS are indeed lagging behind the times in many aspects, and there may be many elements that make you dissatisfied - but in fact, this series has never really "rotten", and GF is not bad, but In every game, tries to lay the foundation for subsequent works with feasible solutions.

They are not even more confused and blindly pursue the concept of other games because the game is behind.

Today's GF technology power is still visible to the naked eye.

But this brings about the lag of the picture, the unstable frame number, or the disorder of physical judgment. And those freehand parts of the game - such as Pokémon's skill special effects, passing an item between characters, and opening their mouths to eat - no matter how powerful the GF's technical power is, it must be like this.

Just as no one complains about "Breath of the Wild", Link picks up Apple and does not bend down to pick it up. The performance (visual effect) and interaction (gameability) of the game must be divided into primary and secondary, and it must also match the art style .

As the saying goes, good steel is used on the edge. As a studio with more than 20 years of game development experience, GF has a clear mind of the primary and secondary relationship of expressiveness in the game.

Is Pokémon really bad?

Perhaps it is just under the influence of games such as Mario and " Zelda ", which makes us have higher requirements for the world's number one IP.

"Pokemon" does not have the flexible actions and ultimate levels of "Malio", the exquisite puzzles and real interactions of "Zelda", the magnificent map and unforgettable plot of "Alien"...

But does "Pokemon" really need these? may be needed to a certain extent, but if these are taken as the core of the game, then someone may be shouting "Pokemon has changed its flavor."

Of course, like many of you, also has a hundred swear words to scold for the low technical power of GF.

But as a technical background, the editor also understands the slow growth of GF technology level. For an important work like "Pokemon", it is really not possible to catch up in one or two years by recruiting a few technical experts.

Fortunately, Pokémon has always had the technology to catch up with the present, and on this road, they have not lost their original intention of the series "Pokémon".

I believe that after having the experience of "Zhu/Zi", the future "Pokemon" will enter a more rapid development stage and usher in a new era.

At this time next week, players who purchased the digital version have already played "Zhu Zi". We will also unlock the game as soon as possible and bring you the review of this game as soon as possible. Please stay tuned~