Current Events > Can you imagine a Pokemon game with the graphical fidelity of a PS5 game?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Man - wouldn't that be nice.

But instead we get Game Freak and their early PS2 looking ass games.

it's called Palworld

Its not really something i think about. SMT demons are functionally pokemon if you want something else to play

nekrodev posted...

it's called Palworld

thats like, more of a broad resource and crafting game isnt it? Pokemon aesthetic aside

UndefeatedGOAT posted...

thats like, more of a broad resource and crafting game isnt it? Pokemon aesthetic aside

Yup

UndefeatedGOAT posted...

thats like, more of a broad resource and crafting game isnt it? Pokemon aesthetic aside

I mean, yeah, there's way more to it than just "pokemon w better graphics", but it does have the pokemon mechanic, and it's def the most important aspect of the game.

TheSavageDragon posted...

Yup

thanks for the support, we need to squash these replies early

A lot of Pokemon fans don't give a shit what the games look like and don't even care about the actual gameplay outside of obsessing over battle stats and stuff like that.

UndefeatedGOAT posted...

thats like, more of a broad resource and crafting game isnt it? Pokemon aesthetic aside

And not really what I imagine when I hear "PS5 Graphics"

The worst part is, it's not even the Switch's old ass hardware holding them back. Clearly we've gotten nice looking games on the Switch.

The problem is Game Freak themselves. They aren't capable of producing an HD game, I just don't believe it.

Give them Switch 2, the games will still look like ass.

nekrodev posted...

it's called Palworld

Palworld is just a bunch of free assets scattered haphazardly across a big map it's not exactly a graphical powerhouse even by last gen standards.

nekrodev posted...

I mean, yeah, there's way more to it than just "pokemon w better graphics", but it does have the pokemon mechanic, and it's def the most important aspect of the game.

to its popularity probably, but when i play a crafting game, the crafting resource gameplay loop, and tricking my monkey brain into doing pointless shit is what defines the genre to me

SilvosForever posted...

They aren't capable of producing an HD game, I just don't believe it.

And even the not-great looking games they produce kinda run like shit. Also the mainline series on switch has quite possibly one the worst online systems in any major video game series.

UndefeatedGOAT posted...

to its popularity probably, but when i play a crafting game, the crafting resource gameplay loop, and tricking my monkey brain into doing pointless shit is what defines the genre to me

Except, YOU'RE not the one constantly mining or farming or crafting, your Pals are. And your pals will do infinitely more damage than you, until very late game, anyway - so they're also your main weapons.

If you were to actually play the game, you'd understand - catching and utilizing the Pals is the main thing in the game.

nekrodev posted...

Except, YOU'RE not the one constantly mining or farming or crafting, your Pals are. And your pals will do infinitely more damage than you, until very late game, anyway - so they're also your main weapons.

If you were to actually play the game, you'd understand - catching and utilizing the Pals is the main thing in the game.

that doesnt sound like pokemon at all, sounds like cookie clicker crafting

UndefeatedGOAT posted...

that doesnt sound like pokemon at all, sounds like cookie clicker crafting

what part of - catch monster -> level up monster -> have monster fight / do other thing - doens't sound like pokemon?

nekrodev posted...

what part of - catch monster -> level up monster -> have monster fight / do other thing - doens't sound like pokemon?

pokemon is a jrpg, smt is closer than palword, this should be very obvious

I've played Pokemon since Gen 1 and don't remember a time that the games were EVER a graphical powerhouse, so I'm baffled where this obsession with the visuals has come from in recent years

Also, the games themselves look fine. They're not top-of-the-line by any means, but anybody who thinks this...
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/f/f52478f5.jpg
...is "early PS2 graphics" look like has clearly never even been in the same ZIP code as a PS2.

You want to criticize the games on how their actual performance is? That's fine, and I'll join in with you, because Scarlet and Violet run VERY rough and deserve to be criticized for it until Game Freak fixes it, if they ever do. But let's not ruin our arguments by getting into hyperbole, okay?

Like CRON said, the games got their reputation and fanbase based on their creature design and gameplay, especially the PvP and trading aspect, not on how pretty they are.

And let's be honest, Pokemon's biggest problem in recent years is with the rapid turnover cycle for generations that's forced by every other aspect of The Pokemon Company. Cards, merch, anime, spinoff games, all of it constantly needs new Pokemon to sell new products, and that falls on the main series' development team to get those new games out NOW. Without those games, the other branches have nothing new to sell, so there's a ton of pressure on them.

And the games themselves have become far too big for a 3-4 year lifespan to support anymore. 1000+ Pokemon now exist, not including things like regional variants or alternate forms, and it's an expectation that every new generation will add at least 100 more. You want to know why Dexit became a thing? That's why. And now they're working with 3D models and graphics and explorable open worlds, so things like map design are more complicated than when it was a top-down grid system.

And yes, there are fixes to this problem, the most obvious ones being "make the development cycle longer" and "embiggen the Game Freak team". A life cycle of 6 years would give them plenty of time to make main series Pokemon games truly great again, but as I mentioned above, the other arms of The Pokemon Company won't want to delay their own projects for that long. So the real solution is to put more manpower into Game Freak, and it's absolutely baffling why they won't do that.

PBR is still the best looking Pokemon game and that came out 18 yrs ago.

TMOG posted...

Without those games, the other branches have nothing new to sell, so there's a ton of pressure on them.

They seem to do fine selling 500 different versions of Charizard cards judging by the card collections of children I know.

Yeah I don't really care about the graphics besides maybe a couple especially shitty textures.

Having the performance that's standard on current gen consoles would be great though.

UndefeatedGOAT posted...

pokemon is a jrpg, smt is closer than palword, this should be very obvious

Depending on how stiff your definition of JRPG is, Palworld is also one - as it is developed by a Japanese studio, and features almost identical mechanics in some respects as Pokemon / SMT - however, it's also more than that, too.

But, if you want a game that's similar to Pokemon, but looks better, and doesn't suck - and is being actively expanded upon, it's probably the only thing that even exists at this point.

Palworld is good because you are just having fun messing around in an obviously shitty world. The game mechanics and physics are just so damn lackluster but simple enough for you to still enjoy.

If it was an actual Pokemon release, people would rip it to shreds.

Game Freak needs to hire more competent developers...

seems like they're great at 2D portable games but havent quite nailed it when transitioning to 3D.

Dakimakura posted...

Palworld is good because you are just having fun messing around in an obviously shitty world. The game mechanics and physics are just so damn lackluster but simple enough for you to still enjoy.

If it was an actual Pokemon release, people would rip it to shreds.

you mean like they're already doing w/ the actual pokemon releases? lmao

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/4/4ce09916.png

nekrodev posted...

Depending on how stiff your definition of JRPG is, Palworld is also one - as it is developed by a Japanese studio, and features almost identical mechanics in some respects as Pokemon / SMT - however, it's also more than that, too.

But, if you want a game that's similar to Pokemon, but looks better, and doesn't suck - and is being actively expanded upon, it's probably the only thing that even exists at this point.

my definition is very stiff

when definitions become more broad they become less useful

Yes, I can imagine it.

But you would probably not think it so since the actual mons themselves will still just be the same solid smooth colors, just with slightly more polygons.

Intentionally cartoony looking worlds like Pokemon's don't scale that much with improved fidelity. On the flip side, this is why something like Mario Sunshine looks surprisingly good when all you do is up the resolution. The latest Unreal Engine or whatever's realistic-ish blend of brown and some green and stuff isn't going to help something like that.

nekrodev posted...

you mean like they're already doing w/ the actual pokemon releases? lmao

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/4/4ce09916.png

Modern releases are lackluster compared to expectations.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/0/0bdcff6c.jpg

Shotgunnova posted...

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/0/0bdcff6c.jpg

I would play that - no sarcasm.