We’re just a few weeks away from the Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 release of Pokemon Champions. This new battle simulation game is the future of Play! Pokemon events and championships as the new go-to for Video Game Championships going forward. It’s also a free-to-play game that will feature a monetization structure where players use Victory Points to recruit and train their Pokemon. While mobile games with in-game currency aren’t new to Pokemon championships, I’m still hesitant about how this switch could impact the franchise’s future.
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Historically, the Pokemon VGC has taken place on the current main series game. That means that, for the past few years, players have battled it out competitively in Pokemon Scarlet & Violet. In theory, it makes a lot of sense to transition competitive play to a more consistent, dedicated platform. But where players once had a relatively even playing field in terms of investment (buy one game and its DLC), the monetization structure of Pokemon Champions potentially adds a new wrinkle to the competition.
Mobile Games Aren’t New to Pokemon Championships, But Pokemon Champions Is Still a Shift
Of course, Pokemon Champions is hardly the first free-to-play game to make its way to the competitive stage. Pokemon Go has been a part of competitive Pokemon play for years, after all. And that game certainly rewards players who put money into it, to a certain extent. Paid features in Pokemon Go let you increase your storage and get useful items. But you can arguably still power up your team just by playing the game, earning the Stardust and Candies you need to power up your Pokemon. And of course, adding Pokemon requires catching them in the game, with luck being a factor in your Pokemon’s stats.
That’s where Pokemon Champions feels different. I got a chance to play the game during a preview event, and I couldn’t help but notice how much of the game relies on its Victory Points (VP). Unlike a traditional Pokemon game, your Pokemon don’t get more powerful when you battle. Instead, you use VP to tweak stats, abilities, and movesets. All Pokemon are at a fixed level, which isn’t dissimilar from how VCG has always worked. What is different is that altering your Pokemon’s stats seems to be more a matter of how much in-game currency you have.
In games like Pokemon Scarlet & Violet, boosting your Pokemon’s power is a matter of sinking time into the game. Items like Vitamins and Bottle Caps can be acquired for in-game currency, earned through playing the game itself. But with Champions offering VP for sale, players could potentially just sink money into the game instead of time. And I’m not sure how to feel about that. It could create a new level of uneven playing field for competitive play, but it’s also indicative of the growing cost of being a Pokemon fan.
Being a Pokemon Player Keeps Getting More Expensive, and It’s Hard to Keep Up
Everywhere you turn, the cost of staying engaged with Pokemon just seems to keep going up. I’m lucky enough to already have a Switch 2, but I’ve seen so many Pokemon fans struggle with the Pokopia FOMO this past month. The shift to the new console was inevitable, but many fans can’t afford to shell out not only for a $70 game, but also the $450 console to play it. Needing the newest Nintendo console to play the latest Pokemon game isn’t exactly new, but with the price of games going up and overall inflation, it’s become an increasing pain point for many. And that’s not the only way that Pokemon fandom is getting pricier.
These days, there’s a whole rotation of Pokemon mobile games out there. If you’re even remotely trying to keep up with Pokemon Sleep, Pokemon Go, and Pokemon TCG Pocket, you’ve got a ton of mobile games trying to get your money already. And those are just 3 of the most popular options for freemium play in the Pokemon universe. Add that to the never-ending onslaught of adorably tempting merch, and it’s easy to dedicate far too much of a shrinking budget to Pokemon. And we’ve not even touched on the ridiculously high resale prices of Pokemon cards these days, which remain tricky to find in the wild.
Yes, you can enjoy Pokemon without playing every game or sinking money into free-to-play options. And you don’t need the latest Umbreon plush (I say, as it stares at me from my desk). But seeing a game that relies heavily on its in-game monetization for basic elements like training and acquiring Pokemon become the new go-to for competitive battles does feel like yet another way that Pokemon fandom is getting more expensive. It’s a continuation of a trend that may well end up causing some fans to lose a bit of their love for the franchise, for the sheer fact that they can’t afford to keep up.
What do you think of Pokemon Champions being the new default for Pokemon VGC? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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