Folks have been waiting so patiently for Pokémon on the Nintendo Switch, and while the game is definitely in the works, we’ve yet to see any footage or learn much more about the new mainline entry. The game is going to be a Big Deal™, but Game Freak doesn’t want people to blow our expectations out of proportion.
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In the latest issue of Game Informer (via Nintendo-Insider), Game Freak co-founder Junichi Masuda opens up about his thoughts and concerns leading up to the game’s eventual launch. “What I’m really curious about and really excited to see, will be the main way that people play the Switch,” he said.
“Will it be home for the most part? Will it be out and about? I think that is really going to depend on where the person lives, maybe,” Masuda continued. “Depending on the country, maybe the main style of playing will be different. As we’ve been saying a lot, we always focus on, when designing the games, thinking about how the player is going to play the game – how they’re going to enjoy it, and what kind of experiences they are going to have. I’m really just kind of excited to see where the main style of playing is going to land.”
But the transition to a fully featured, HD-capable home console is new territory for Game Freak, and Masuda wasn’t shy about the challenge that presents to the team. “It’s definitely different this time,” he acknowledged. “Just playing it at home is kind of a little bit different than the portable systems we’ve made games for up until now.”
“We see that expectations are very high”
Pokémon Sun / Moon director Shigeru Ohmori chimed in to add that fan reaction was overwhelmingly positive following the announcement of the game. “It definitely is really fun to see that,” he said, “but at the same time, it is definitely a lot of pressure, so we’re going to do our best to create a game that answers those expectations.”
Masuda agreed wholeheartedly. “Of course, it is very difficult to make the game, so I hope people don’t get their expectations up too high,” Masuda admitted. “We’ll do our best.”
It’s hard to imagine a more unorthodox method of getting your fans excited for a game. If this were a Western developer, we’d have guarantees thrown left and right that this is going to be the most ambitious and amazing game in the series by far, but here we have Game Freaks’ co-founder telling us to simmer down a little bit.
It’s strange, but nothing to get worried about. This isn’t his way of telling us that Game Freak isn’t up to the task. Instead, I think he’s simply telling us in his humble way not to expect Game Freak’s HD console debut to be the most cutting edge and a radical departure from the Pokémon formula that we know and love.
This is going to be Pokémon. On the Switch. And that’s exactly what we want. Do Masuda’s comments have you worried about Pokémon on the Switch?
