PokEAmon: The Game that Never Was

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From the “Hm, That’s Interesting” Department: Electronic Arts was once working on a Pokémon competitor! Nic Watt, the very successful* founder of game development studio Nnooo, was a former developer at EA and shared a few details about the game that was supposed to take on Pokémon and dominate the handheld market:

“EA wanted this game where the idea and it was going to be their Pokémon game. They didn’t have an RPG in the handheld space and they really wanted one. We did a lot of paper-based prototyping for the battle mechanics and even made a whole card game. Then we got the people from Criterion – who worked on Burnout and with the studio – in [to test it]. That’s the good thing when you have a company of 300 people, you can just ask “do you guys want to come in and play our game for the afternoon.” The team did find it hard because the prototyping was so long, and a lot of things got reset from time to time. But by the time I left, it still had not hit full production and I know that was really tough for a lot of people.”

It’s interesting to speculate about what a monster catching game from EA games would have looked like and whether or not it would have given our favorite juggernaut series any serious competition. It appears that this was back before Nnooo was founded in 2006, so it is likely that the game has been indefinitely shelved, but who knows what the Nintendo NX may inspire them to resurrect?

Speaking of Pokémon competitors, did you see the new trailer for Digimon World Next Order?

<3 PJ

Source: finder.com.au | Via: My Nintendo News

FEATURED DISCUSSION: Moves that should change in Sun and Moon?

*During my research for the article I was surprised to discover that Nnooo has primarily produced DSiWare/WiiWare/shovelware titles 🙁 Why, Mr. Watt?! Whyyyyy?!

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484 thoughts on “PokEAmon: The Game that Never Was”

  4. I could image paying DLC to unlock legendaries, the Elite Four, and Pokeballs. EA is just a money hungry gaming giant. Also, I’ve seen the S/M anime trailer. I didn’t watch XYZ, but why did people think Serena was coming with Ash? They’ve always dropped every female. Is it because of their relationship? Honestly, I will agree that Ash looks weird, but Serena was going to be dropped no matter what.

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    • People wanted Serena to come along because she was the only female companion to openly admit that she had feelings for him and it kind of sucks to see it confined to just XYZ. I’m sure most people knew she wouldn’t come with, but denial is powerful lol.

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  5. No, no, no, no, no. Nope, don’t let EA touch it. They would ruin the franchise with microtransactions and a lack of care towards the franchise like Battlefront.

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  7. Why not have it bought by Disney? They’ve already got Marvel and Lucasfilms already, I don’t see them stopping anytime soon. They might end up having a crossover with Lilo and Stitch or have it in the Kingdom Hearts universe.

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  9. Pokemon by EA.

    Only 5 types in the Game. The rest will be a paid DLC.

    Any moves over 80BP have to be bought through microtransaction.

    Abilities on Pokemon can be changed for a small fee of £15.

    Reply

  10. It probably wouldn’t have been that bad, Disney did ok with Spectrobes.
    It probably wouldn’t have been a strong competator, but might have been a good game in its own right.

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  11. I just want Pokemon Conquest 2 tbh, I really enjoyed that game and I really enjoyed grinding and “evolving” the Samurai Warrior characters. It combined two of my favourite franchises together!

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  13. Um, you know… it’s interesting. I wonder what their angle would be because the difference between a franchise success and immediate failure is attempting to be too much like the competition.

    I think pokemon works because it fulfills a real-life wish, and then creates a world around that. A Pokemon clone probably shouldn’t base itself on the same wish, but there are a lot of options. Knowing this is Western studios, I don’t know which ideas would be best: I think one could go a Harry Potter route and do Pixies, Fairies, and Gnomes where kids could use a camera to try to find them in their gardens, or do something with Robots and make it with Pet and Partner AIs like the first part in Big Hero Six. I think Voodoo also could be kind of interesting to try if you want to go a Toys to Life route (But you have to be culturally sensitive to do such). I just am kind of skeptical of EA’s creativity, sadly.

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  15. The 2-parter for the finale of the XYZ Team Flare arc was by far the best in the history of Pokemon. Not by, “Pokemon’s standard,” but by it’s own merits. The music, the pacing, the epic revelations, and Lysandre’s fate were all amazing! 8/10!

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      • Yes. Normally, the average Pokemon episode is a solid 6/10 and overall the Team Flare arc was a 9/10. However, the first episode in the two-parter had much better pacing and was more developed than the actual finale. The finale had many plot issues, was rushed, and they tried to fit in too many things at once. The pros were of course Lysandre’s death, Perfect Zygarde, and the Save Chespin scene. There were too many things keeping it from actually getting a perfect score. Episodes that deserve a 10/10 are the ones like Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood, Legend of Korra, Avatar the Last Airbender, etc…

        ARC: 9/10
        Episode 42: 8.5/10
        Episode 43: 8/10

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        • I agree the ending was very rushed.

          As much as enjoyed the Gym Leaders and Champions playing defence for Ash and Alain and the Zygarde Complete part, I feel the ending could have been paced a bit better. Everything just sort of concluded in less than 5 mins.

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    • Honestly the best I’ve seen. A solid 10/10 when it comes to evil team arcs.

      Also it made me actually like Diantha. She’s now really cool in my opinion. I felt she was a bit overshadowed by Steven in the last three episodes, but they really showed her champion strength in the finale.

      And the Gym leaders showed up outside their respective Gym Episodes. I only wish Wikstrom, Drasna and Siebold could have appeared somehow as well, hell everyone else was there.

      My one pet peeve though is why is everyone only using their signature Pokemon, surely they have other shit they could have thrown out. Steven should have been flying around on his Skarmory or something to make him even more epic.

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  16. I know this isn’t the anime article, but I didn’t get the chance to say this there: Why are the trial captains in school with Ash? I mean, they look much older than he does, and yet they’re in the same class? What? I feel we may be in for something worse than unova. *shudders*

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    • Honestly we don’t know what the school is really for yet. I doubt it’s as important to the over all story as people are making it out to be. For all we know it’s a school to become a captain or maybe they’re taking lessons on how to ride Pokemon. They do show ash riding a Sharpedo after.

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      • If that’s true then they shouldn’t be showing it as the main premise of the show. If it really was just to teach him how to ride pokemon and how to use Z-Moves, then it shouldn’t take up more than 5 episodes. If it was just a sub plot, they’d likely have shown off his actual journey around alola as well.

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        • Well who knows. Maybe not poke rides, but I can’t see the entire SM series being him in a classroom. I’d imagine they do a few episodes there and then everyone separates (except for his travel group) and he starts his journey around Alola. the show is about him traveling and while they may change the reason for him to go on a journey I doubt they’d keep him confined to a small room and treat him like it’s his first time around. even in BW where he was supposed to have been rebooted they at least let him keep SOME qualities of someone who has traveled at least once in their life……Albeit not much was left in the scenario….lol

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          • This is exactly what I’m saying. If that was the case, then why did they show off the classroom aspect as if it was the main premise?

          • It’s probably more so just to tease the show. They don’t want to show too much of his main journey. Also it’ll probably explain the concept of trials to him since this will be his first time not going for badges. Either way I guess we just have to wait and see.

    • Why isn’t he travelling the region? Geez. If he’s going back to school because he realized he’s not smart, then now was not the time. Johto was the time. Also he was pretty good in Kalos. I think the Kalos region was a farewell to the more mature audience and they want more appeal to kids. Because you know, THESE LAST FEW EPISODES HAVE BEEN AWESOME.

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      • I can just imagine ash daydreaming in class about his pokemon league battles in Kalos, and thinking “How the heck did I end up here?”

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    • I thought Ash was going to fight the Trial Captains and try to discover the secrets of Alola. I just hope the school premise is just for the beginning and they soon leave it afterwards. With the quality of XYZ, I really hope they do not fall back.

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      • I’m not going to fault them heavily for this. It’s a frame that almost nobody would see or notice while normally watching. I’d say, if it’s not noticeable during the episode, it’s a miniature animation mistake.

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          • I don’t know how animation works, but even marvels like Gravity Falls and Steven Universe have some errors. Yet, I will agree; this bridges DragonBall Super levels of issues.

          • True, but I (over)analyze Gravity Falls and I’ve never seen anything this bad. The worst I’ve seen is a screenshot of Mabel in Time Traveller’s Pig where she looks weird

        • i agree, it actually looks like a studio ghibli animation and tbh i love it. lets not all forget that its a childs show, they have a young audience which is why they make short side anime like pokemon origins and pokemon generations purely for the much older audience. this looks completely fine to me, i think people are being quick to judge this by just one short trailer of the new sun and moon anime and pick out the negatives that are hardly noticeable. to me, in my very own personal opinion pokemon needed change, just like the new games coming out this year they have changed the formula by having no gyms or a league, this is a drastic change but its something i half expected to happen since it has nearly been 20 years of pokemon doing the exact same plot, same story, same exact thing over and over again. while thats awesome, its got to be changed up abit, because eventually the same story is going to die out. people who have played pokemon from the very first games that came out like myself love the nostalgia, which is why its hard for them to except new changes. me on the other hand can except it, i can easily get used to the changes because it gives us that fresh new feeling, its giving ash as a character a breather from all the leagues he has lost in past generation on the anime. him going to school, the animation’s going to the more cartoon-y look is a great idea for those who love pokemon no matter what age you are, they need to keep the franchise alive and by getting new fans aswel as inspire older fans they will eventually give us a change, like the plot. ash going to school is a great idea, why? because atleast this time he is learning the right way to understand pokemon better, battling better, progressing to be a better trainer than he has in the past. if people don’t agree and quickly judge a short trailer like sun and moon then they obviously don’t care much for pokemon as a whole because if they did they would atleast give the new changes a chance before assuming the worst. people need to stop and think before assuming anything, watch a couple episodes first, dont go “Oh thats shit animation, i quit pokemon forever, what a loads of bs” that’s not a good enough reason to quit pokemon. that’s just you not liking something that some people might actually like.

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      • Lazy animation is present in a lot of anime. Freeze frame except for mouth and eyes when talking, a few still frames to depict a bunch of moves in a fight, and that thing where the screen goes black and a white slash goes across the screen then cuts to the damage.

        XYZ didn’t have a lot of that from what I’ve seen

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      • To be fair XY had a few times where the single frames were a little hard to look at, but over all it was a good series right? So hopefully SM will follow suit

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      • Ash seems fine. I didn’t notice Pikachu until I stopped on it luckily….or rather unluckily…lol I think the animation over all will be decent, but the animators just need to get into their grove in how they do it. Hopefully it won’t take them very long to find their mojo. I like the art style a lot. It’s different from what we’ve seen in the past, but like Alola it’s a breath of fresh air lol

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        • Eh, not all change is good change. But I’m not a heavy anime watcher anyway, the only reason I’m watching now is because I was told it was good (and it most definitely is).

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      • Yeah I’m sure it’ll be polished by the time it airs in November. Even the XY episodes they showed before its official release had errors so I’m willing to bet things will get better

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        Reply

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        Reply

  21. Now that Pokemon XY and Z is coming to a close within a few weeks, here are my favorite moments from the show:
    – All the gym battles were animated so well, the music was epic (I watch RAW or subbed), and overall they were intense, well choreographed, and amazing
    – Korrina’s Arc: her arc with Lucario and trying to control and perfect Mega-Evolution was an awesome ride
    – Summer Camp: entertaining, fun, and enjoyable
    – Clemont and Bonnie episodes: they’re always either emotional, really relatable, or just funny
    – Serena’s haircut scene with the tear jerking music in the background was amazing
    – Showcases were different, unique, and although they could have been done better, they were awesome and enjoyable to watch
    – Ninja Arc: Ash and Senpai episodes are always action packed and awesome
    – Malamar Trio: the trio of Malamar that came from a different dimension were great to watch
    – Team Flare Arc: intense, gritting, and overall the best villainous arc in Pokemon
    – Evolution Arc: the 4-5 episodes with back-to-back evolutions were pure bliss
    – Goodra Arc: although he/she took the backseat after his/her arc, the arc was nonetheless memorable
    – Ash Greninja Arc: emotional, bad-a**, and all around very different and exciting to watch
    – Lumiose Arc: this was at the beginning and was done very well
    – Team Rocket: funny, entertaining, nothing else and nothing more
    – Alan, Mairin, Shota, Shauna, Trevor, and Tierno were great characters and rivals
    – The Mega-Evolution arcs were some of the best
    – Steven, Malva, and Diantha were great as well

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    • Meh I think it’s a little sexist of them for showcase’s to be female only when contests, Gyms, and trials are for everyone

      Not being that guy saying anything rude but it seems just a little sexist

      Reply

  22. So I thought it’d be fun to design my own battle frontier for Sun and Moon. So here’s what I’d like to see in a Sun and Moon battle frontier:
    ———————-
    Battle Tower – same the the originals
    Battle Factory – same as Pt
    Battle Arcade – same as Pt
    Battle Maze – a mirror maze that you have to go through. You have to fight trainers in inverse battles, and when you win, you get to choose to go in one of two directions, where you get more battles, and if you choose 7 right, you get to the brain.
    Battle Dome – (I can’t remember if the name is already used) Basically a place with Battle Royales
    —————
    So if you were put in charge of making a battle frontier in SM, what would you like to see?

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  23. What do people think they do for the number of weeks before the new series starts? Ash slowly gong back to Kanto I suppose. I think there will be at one episode for both Clemont and Serena each to show what they’re going to be doing next. Presumably Serena seeks out Palermo and I think Clemont already said he’d go back to the gym.

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    • We only have 3-4 episodes left after the one in two weeks so I’d say two goodbye episodes and the final episode being Ash’s departure, Serena seeking out Palermo, and Clemont and Bonnie doing their things. Honestly, I’m going to miss the XYZ gang as much as DPP… T_T

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      • Oh sheesh I didn’t realize how little time left there was…..lol Yeah I really liked the XYZ gang. Serena took a little time get going as far as characters go, but I wouldn’t have minded if they stuff around for another series……kind of sad…..I might watch the series over again once it’s done lol

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        • Definitely one of the best alongside Diamond and Pearl. I think if they tied the Team Flare Arc into X and Y, quickened Serena’s goals, and removed the unneeded filler episodes, this series would be damn near perfect. They would have more time to flesh out Team Flare akin to Galactic, explain the Megalith’s relationship with the Sundial, build up to the climax, and then end with Ash’s League battle against a renewed Alain to make the battle even more historic for him: all this time he had been battling as a Judas and now he’s battling as HIM with no one and nothing binding him, but himself. XY and XYZ has been so fast paced, a clear distinction to DP which was TOO long, but that meant more time to tell the stories, but I mean 30 episodes for 1 gym to the other? 😛 xD

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  25. I cannot believe that many of you Pokemon Fans are not recognizing the obvious pattern that occurs in each Pokemon anime series based on each new generatio just to sell their merchandises and make money.

    -Ash goes to new Region
    -Ash meets and joins with new companions
    -Ash has new Starters and catches new pokemon
    -Team Rocket constantly tries to cause trouble and stealing Pikachu, and foiling
    -Ash challenges Gym Leaders or something similar in order to go to the Pokemon League.
    -Ash must face against threatening Team.
    -Ash meets forgettable characters.
    -Ash loses League
    -Ash says goodbye to companions
    -Ash leaves Pokemon with Professor Oak before venturing to new region

    Rince and repeat from the top.

    Perhaps even though this maybe a new refreshing turn from the usual pattern, as long as the company is still making money, Ash will never win and will constantly be a useless money-pumping loser of a mascot role model.

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      • They never will. And with newer audiences replacing the old, they can get away with recycling old plots whenever they like.

        They’re probably racing against South Park, Thomas and Friends, The Simpsons and Family Guy on who could make the longest running nonstop animated series.

        Though what makes South Park and Thomas and Friends special and different is that they take breaks for the most part of the year, and won’t show their work until like near Christmas time. Something of which a force producing money making factory like the rest don’t do and the stories gets stale.

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        • You do realize that South Park and Family Guy are aimed at a much, much older audience than Pokémon right? FG and SP don’t even tie in for other products.

          Reply

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