#also this isn’t like an invitation post to hate on gamefreak/nintendo or whatever

[thetabbybadger]

So even though I’m in the height of my mtg mood right now, my brain has starting thinking about pokemon again (not that it ever really stops, it’s always there…. lurking….)

ANYWAY, I’m just thinking about whatever the new main-gen game will be and what would be my ideal version. (I feel like I made a post like this once but I couldn’t find it so HA I get to make it again >:3c (or for the first time who knows, not be and certainly not tumblr))

So I do really love the open world we’ve been getting, but I do miss the classic pokemon feel of set paths etc. I think I’d like to see a return to what sword/shield did but just a bit…. better 😅 I’d love to see much of the game be set paths like old pokemon games. I really like the bike in swsh and how it upgraded to have your “HMs”. I wanna go back to needing like Cut and Surf and Strength, but I do NOT want to go back to needing an HM work-horse. I think a mixture of bike upgrades, and Pokédex upgrades that can be used to power up your pokemon to perform feats would be my favorite. The system in Sun/Moon wasn’t bad, but I like the self-sufficiency and plus, in obscure places or weird times it feels weird flavorfully that ride pokemon would just be available at your constant beck and call (it’s a game mechanic, not meant to be looked into too much but I am Looking).

Anyway, with this we could bring back exploring random out of the way spots that maybe you almost miss cause you didn’t cut a little tree and explore. We could get back strength puzzles. I wouldn’t mind bringing back gen 3 bike mechanics as well (although I think we should be able to just switch gears and not have to swap out the whole-ass bike). Bring back flash and defog for certain areas.

Speaking of puzzles, I think caves having weird layouts and things like rock puzzles and ice floor puzzles would be neat to have back. I was so mad at them at the time, but there is something classic about them. Maybe even buildings with good ol’fashioned teleport puzzles.

Back to my original point, yes set paths BUT I do like the open areas. I like how swsh had The Wild Area. I would like a new game to do a similar thing with set paths but also a similar concept to a wild area, ideally at least a few. Along with that, flavor-wise I liked camping better than just picnics. Though I think you should be able to switch pov, I liked that in camps you could play with pokemon and talk with them individually. But I liked in picnics being able to run around and pose with my pokemon and also bath them. Keep the baths! I would also like the return of individual playing and some kind of Pokemon Amie equivalent.

I also want each town to be on its own, um load screen I guess? I think the fact that there weren’t barriers in scarvi was one of it’s biggest stability issues. It also I think contributed to the different cities/towns not really feeling different from each other (some were really unique, but, to me at least, a lot felt like they just blended together because i could just run in and out and it wasn’t too different from their surroundings. Which is a shame because i think a lot had neat potential. I love the snow town, that one felt unique with spooky candles and ice, and the town with the fountain by the desert and the elevator was kinda cool. But nothing hits quite like that mushroom fairy town in swsh. Or even the cool steam-punk big city! Also being on their own loading screen lets them have passive pokemon doing cute things in the city instead of random wild ones that you can maybe encounter or maybe not or maybe they’ll just despawn if they take 2 steps in the wrong direction.

Also not having to go into a store for the poke center was convenient but I miss going inside. Maybe road-side ones can be like the ones in scarvi but I want full pokemon centers in the cities/towns. Same with other stores. Ultimately it doesn’t reeeeeally matter, but it felt more immersive to go into shops and buildings. I don’t mind some stands here and there, but LEMME IN LEMME IN!

ALSO! Just make all the clothing/accessories in one store pleeeeease. Each town can have its own store that sells different stuff, but I don’t want to have hunt down like the sock store and the glasses store separately.

I would love to see contests come back and they also make a bigger plot point. In fact it would be kinda cool if at the start of the game you could pick which route you’re more interested in and maybe whichever you pick is what your main plot is based on. Or barring that, just at least having its own relevant story plot, even if you do it after the main gym story.

Also just leaning more into the rpg aspect. Maybe some more side-quests. I loved the school system and like bonding with the teachers in scarvi, that was so cool. I’d love to see it go further and get cutscenes or plot points if you befriend people. I also loved how fleshed out the rivals(?) were and how they were full characters. I would love to see your dialogue options having even slight impact on the game, even if it’s just how other characters react to you. (I would super love a full pokemon rpg but I could settle on at least being able to treat my character as a character and it affect interactions at least a little bit).

Speaking of side-quests more just little things. I liked working with the photographer lady in the DLC. Also, maybe making photography another side-quest-plot thing you can do. Maybe a part-time job working for like a magazine and they want certain pictures. Idk I just like the idea.

I’d love to bring back the old way of breeding. Or maybe just make both ways available.

I love the exp. share but I know some people don’t so I think it would be nice if it was toggle-able.

I want to be able to have a room/home base that I can CUSTOMIZE AND DECORATE!!! We had dorms in scarvi, why couldn’t we at least hang up a poster or pick our bedding color?? Dx Heck, even if it’s the room in our house or something.

I looooved that they added custom ball-throwing animations. I think they should start with a few you can choose from at the beginning and add more as you go. It should also be free and something you can do at any point. Maybe see the animation when you pick it.

Also I loooooove that customizing your appearance was free and available at any time, keep that. Also make more hair work with more hats. That was the biggest bummer for me. Lots of cool hair options, lots of cool hats, no way to have them both T-T

I am mixed on how I want wild pokemon. Overworld is soooooo much more convenient, but there’s something classic about tall grass. I think I wouldn’t mind if it was a mix like swsh did but I would change it up a bit. More like scarvi where they don’t despawn if you move away from the area (unless you go to new loading screen). Unlike swsh though I wouldn’t want any pokemon to be exclusive to tall grass, maybe more common, but not exclusive. That was very frustrating to me.

Ahhhh I probably have more but I’m getting sleepy. Maybe I’ll add more tomorrow, but it was just on my mind. I can already think of a coupple tidings I wanna add 👀