#gaming article

[wealthytoad]

Commission done

[numberth1rte3n]

TH1RTE3N'S TH30R1E5: The Paldea-Kalos War and GameFreak's Subtle Storytelling

BY NUMBER TH1RTE3N

Pokémon is not known for its storytelling. The creature-collecting titan doesn’t have a history of crafting complex narratives in their main series games. There have been exceptions to this trend throughout the series’ twenty-seven years. Pokémon Black & White and sequels Black 2 & White 2 tell a bittersweet tale that grappled with a compelling question; which was better: a world built of truths, or ideals? In the Sinnoh Region, Cyrus led Team Galactic to terrorize the people and was barely stopped before his goal of using Dialga and Palkia to destroy the current universe and create another to replace it as its new god was achieved. No big deal!

Pokémon does have a history of making references to serious, sometimes dark events that occur in the world. Lieutenant Surge is Vermillion City’s gym leader, and a… war veteran? What? Where’d “war” come from? Does this imply that there are wars in this fictional world, and that both Pokémon and humans fight in those wars, and sometimes they may even DIE in those wars and need to be buried in places like the Pokémon Tower in Lavender Town? Is that a RAICHU???

Despite this endless potential for exploration, Pokémon strays little from its timeless (some Pokémon fans may say “tired”) story formula: start in Place A, pick starter, battle rival, catch Pokémon on the way to Place B thru Z, battle random trainers and a team of bad guys, become the biggest, baddest trainer in the region, rinse and repeat until there are no more Pokémon to catch nor trainers to fight. Pokémon Scarlet & Violet broke away from this tradition more than any previous title with its open-world gameplay though this formula is obviously still widely accessible and fun for at the very least 22 million people as of May.

What about other Pokémon fans that see its narrative potential? The ones that pour through all the game text, looking for the messages hidden by the developers inside of every trash can, lore book, and NPC conversation in every game? Those people sense something buried deep beneath the surface, and as of this latest entry in the series, they may finally get their wish. They'll just have to look inside… a crater?

Enter: The Paldea-Kalos War.

In Pokémon X & Y, the player learns that the Kalos Region was at war with a “neighboring nation” in ancient times. Desperate to decisively end the war, AZ created the Ultimate Weapon, and used it. The Ultimate Weapon released enough energy to create mega stones and spur mega evolution, and it is heavily theorized the Ultimate Weapon was the catalyst for the timeline split referenced in the Delta Episode of Pokémon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire. Something that powerful had to leave a mark, right?

In Scarlet & Violet, Area Zero is a post-game zone located within the Great Crater of Paldea. In the game, the player learns that Paldea was a mighty empire brought low. This begs the question: brought low by what exactly? Maybe something that breaks timelines? Given that there is some evidence that Paldea and Kalos are geographically connected within the world of Pokémon, if it is true that the Great Crater of Paldea was caused by the Kalos Region's Ultimate Weapon attack, it would be the juiciest mystery to ever be thought up by GameFreak, and allow for some absolutely thrilling storytelling through its implications.

If Pokémon were to ever expand its storytelling potential, now would be the perfect time. If the events of several mainline Pokémon games were influenced by firing a weapon so powerful it tore a hole into the Paldea Region, and the Pokémon timeline itself, that would be nothing short of narrative genius. Pokémon will always be timeless, but it has the opportunity to be so much more if it embraces its storytelling potential: immortal.

[yellowsugarwords]

my latest article for CBR is live!! (it actually went live yesterday but I wasn't in town at the time lol oopsies)

ANYWAYS stray is super cool and it's worth your time. it's creative, innovative, and a refreshing take on the genre. :)

Stray Offers a Refreshing Take on Futuristic Adventure Games

Where Stray differs from the other cyberpunk games lies predominantly in the premise, atmosphere, and the feline protagonist.

[selectstarters]

System Shock, CARRION, Haven and other demos will be available on Steam for 48 hours before the Game Awards

From one of our users, HOLYBAGPIPES    

An announcement was made recently by Geoff Keighley, producer of The Game Awards –

“GAMES COME ALIVE AS THE GAME AWARDS INTRODUCES THE GAME FESTIVAL, A NEW 48 HOUR DIGITAL CONSUMER EVENT THAT BRINGS GAMEPLAY TO FANS AROUND THE WORLD DURING GAMING’S BIGGEST NIGHT”

The Game Awards Streams Live on Thursday at 8:30PM ET / 5:30PM PT

The Game Festival Runs on Steam from Thursday at 10:00AM PT

Until Saturday at 10:00AM PT

Check out all of the info, over at Select Starters! 

[selectstarters]

Microsoft reveals Next-Gen Xbox alongside Hellblade’s sequel

From one of our users, QUEEN OF PHILOSOPHY

It all started with an intriguing narration about dreams and how we could model our worlds in our minds. I must admit I was hoping to see a new IP but what ended up happening was one of the most shocking reveals of the night – Xbox Series X (aka Xbox Sex), Microsoft’s next-gen fridge console. And it wasn’t just a name – Phil Spencer came on stage to reveal the face of the monster. 

Take a look:

Check out the whole article, over at Select Starters!