Why Do We Like It?
A Pokémon hater, logically, will most likely not find anything particularly captivating or interesting about the Pokémon video games, animé, cards or other merchandise. Thus it would be only natural for one to ask himself, Why are they all so obsessed with a dull video game and a children's cartoon?
Various different Pokémon fans will answer this question differently, but this section will detail the main four types I've found to exist.
Reason #1: The Strategy
Many people like Pokémon because of the games' complicated strategy. While the in-game challenge level is not very high (although I find the Pokémon games to have an interesting pick-your-own-difficulty nature - see Fancy a Challenge?), the game offers for intense strategic two-player game which only the very best of battlers can master. This potential has caused the development of for example the IRC bot RSBot and the downloadable multiplayer PC program NetBattle, both made for online player-to-player Pokémon battling with teams created on the spot instead of forcing the player to go through the hassle of breeding moves onto the Pokémon, trading and training it all the way to level 100. Competitive battling, as it is called, in Pokémon is in fact so big that there is both a large, popular website entirely devoted to strategic articles and information intended for competitive play (Smogon) and most largeish Pokémon forums such as the Serebiiforums contain whole sections solely for team ratings.
Reason #2: The Gameplay
It is undeniable that many people like Pokémon's form of game - simply the monster raising RPG with strategic battling involved. Many agree that the Pokémon games are very addicting. One of the things that I love most about the Pokémon games is that you don't just beat the game and then let it rot on a shelf - you can actually play for countless hours training your beloved Pokémon to the extreme, and during all this training you can acquire a certain bond with the Pokémon and the game feels more like a part of your life.
Reason #3: The Monsters
Some people simply adore certain Pokémon to bits - in some way or another, that particular Pokémon might simply seem to them like the most brilliant thing ever invented. Then that certain Pokémon simply appeals to the person more than any other character they have seen. In other cases it is not that extreme, but most Pokémon fans have at least one absolute favorite Pokémon. The monster designs matter more than one might think - on virtual pet sites, for example, I often register from word of mouth only to find that I don't like any of the pets, and despite the ability to play fun games or whatever else, I can't make myself stick around at the site if I don't like the pet designs. Those who like the Pokémon's designs and style can like Pokémon as a whole even if they don't play the games, watch the animé or anything.
Reason #4: The Creative Potential
Then finally, many Pokémon fans see the potential for creation in the concept of Pokémon and the Pokémon world, which has for example resulted in various philosophical ponderings of mine which I have included in my fanfiction, and of course my Pokéball Theory. I guess you could say that I find Pokémon inspiring, and that is also the case with many other Pokémon fans. Another branch of this is those who like to for example draw Pokémon realistic-style or create fake Pokémon.
So there you have it - the four main reasons that we like Pokémon. Obviously, if you are not already a Pokémon fan yourself, this section is not intended to persuade you to like it (although of course it technically might interest you) but rather to give you a certain understanding of what Pokémon fans are thinking.
Page last modified February 08 2006 at 23:38 GMT
