3 ms·

Expect that Pokemon has done the exact opposite: it deliberately has not upped the age of the target audience of the core product. Ash is still ten years old, a

Expect that Pokemon has done the exact opposite: it deliberately has not upped the age of the target audience of the core product. Ash is still ten years old, after adventuring for 20 years. And he's still "relatively unexperienced". Time doesn't pass. Pokemon has diversified the franchise selection though, there are now many goods (themed tableware etc.) aimed for more mature audience.

jerf 8y ago
I've seen at least 3 or 4 posts to the tune of "I'm 23, and I just can't get into this latest Pokemon game. It's so easy, not like they used to be! Am I a bad person?" If you value your karma score, on no account should you say anything like "It's OK, Pokemon is a game designed for children, and while that doesn't mean you must now make an angry face at it, growl, and loudly announce that you're too grown up for it now, it does mean that you're likely going to want to move on. Consider {GAME LIST} for similar more mature takes on the ideas." In the meantime, my 8 and 10 year olds, while not necessarily mega-fans, are decently into it, and will probably be even more so when they actually get their hands on the games. System is working as designed.
- Noos 8y ago
  The Pokemon games are very complex for games designed for children, as are games like Yokai Watch. The first game is probably one of the most complex 8-bit console RPGS, I'd think. But they really aren't children's games in the usual sense of being designed specifically for them into well into the later lifespan. I think the later games make more concessions to them, but it feels more like it was just a normal rpg that somehow got big for kids due to ancillary merchandise, like trading card games and cartoons.
  - jerf 8y ago
    "The Pokemon games are very complex for games designed for children, as are games like Yokai Watch" This is one of those "don't underestimate children" times. I was playing Ultima 4 at the age kids play Pokemon nowadays. But it's definitely designed for 10-14 year olds, and I wouldn't even be surprised a 14 year old not wearing nostalgia goggles would actually start to notice it's getting kinda easy. A lot of that "complexity" is just fluff. Non-competitive Pokemon is still like most other (J)RPGs; ultimately, an answer to every problem (not the answer, but an answer) is to trade time for levels and just blast your way through the next boss. And time is what kids have at that age. A systemic problem with the genre and the exponential-power-gain treadmill. There are solutions, like the Shin Megami Tensei approach of greatly raising the power of non-level-related elements, or the Disgaea approach of just embracing it and going nuts, and some other things (Elder Scrolls has tried a couple of solutions though I'm not in love with either of Oblivion's or Skyrim's attempts to solve this) but the exponential-power-gain approach is still pretty dominant.
  - sandworm101 8y ago
    Pokemon is inappropriate for children imho. The messages it sends, the capturing and fighting of animals, are not good. It is a modern incarnation of past hobbies (fighting insects) that today are totally unacceptable. Many also criticize the potter franchise for similar reasons.

jerf 8y ago

I've seen at least 3 or 4 posts to the tune of "I'm 23, and I just can't get into this latest Pokemon game. It's so easy, not like they used to be! Am I a bad person?" If you value your karma score, on no account should you say anything like "It's OK, Pokemon is a game designed for children, and while that doesn't mean you must now make an angry face at it, growl, and loudly announce that you're too grown up for it now, it does mean that you're likely going to want to move on. Consider {GAME LIST} for similar more mature takes on the ideas." In the meantime, my 8 and 10 year olds, while not necessarily mega-fans, are decently into it, and will probably be even more so when they actually get their hands on the games. System is working as designed.

Noos 8y ago
The Pokemon games are very complex for games designed for children, as are games like Yokai Watch. The first game is probably one of the most complex 8-bit console RPGS, I'd think. But they really aren't children's games in the usual sense of being designed specifically for them into well into the later lifespan. I think the later games make more concessions to them, but it feels more like it was just a normal rpg that somehow got big for kids due to ancillary merchandise, like trading card games and cartoons.
- jerf 8y ago
  "The Pokemon games are very complex for games designed for children, as are games like Yokai Watch" This is one of those "don't underestimate children" times. I was playing Ultima 4 at the age kids play Pokemon nowadays. But it's definitely designed for 10-14 year olds, and I wouldn't even be surprised a 14 year old not wearing nostalgia goggles would actually start to notice it's getting kinda easy. A lot of that "complexity" is just fluff. Non-competitive Pokemon is still like most other (J)RPGs; ultimately, an answer to every problem (not the answer, but an answer) is to trade time for levels and just blast your way through the next boss. And time is what kids have at that age. A systemic problem with the genre and the exponential-power-gain treadmill. There are solutions, like the Shin Megami Tensei approach of greatly raising the power of non-level-related elements, or the Disgaea approach of just embracing it and going nuts, and some other things (Elder Scrolls has tried a couple of solutions though I'm not in love with either of Oblivion's or Skyrim's attempts to solve this) but the exponential-power-gain approach is still pretty dominant.
- sandworm101 8y ago
  Pokemon is inappropriate for children imho. The messages it sends, the capturing and fighting of animals, are not good. It is a modern incarnation of past hobbies (fighting insects) that today are totally unacceptable. Many also criticize the potter franchise for similar reasons.