The Lonely World of Young Gamers
I received a phone call recently from my young nephew and he asked me a very simple question: "How do you get stored Pokemon?" He, of course, is referring to the "Bill's PC" system which is featured in every PokeCenter and has been since I first played Game Freak's Pokemon games in 1998. There has never been a deviation in that particular mechanic which allowed you to change your party of six Pokemon when using Bill's PC. I never remember having a problem with understanding that part, when you caught a Pokemon it was taken to "Bill's PC", the text says it now and it did back then. So why could I understand this when I was my nephews age while it took him a great deal more effort? He had no friends to help him out with the problem. No one else in his class plays Pokemon. I was astounded, as when I was his age everyone played similar games and we could help each other. I believe the reason lies in a lack of togetherness that has been brought about by several key marketing and capitalistic tendencies which have permeated the reasoning of exactly HOW a child obtains their entertainment and their non-scholastic education. This lack of cohesion has led to a greater isolation amongst those children who play games, a subculture which is already falsely identified with introversion.
If you asked any child as young as 5 (perhaps even younger) whether they would want an iPad/iPhone or any of the other handhold gaming consoles, they will most likely tell you that they want the Apple product. The parent is also far more likely to purchase it; it serves many other functions, it can watch movies and use the internet, and, funnily enough, it can be used to type out scathing criticisms on social paradigms. It is my belief however, that by making the iPad/iPhone a luxury product it has prevented many children from having access to the console to begin with. Imagine if the GameBoy had cost 600 dollars instead of the 80 that it did? Of course, the iPad is a luxury device so it can afford to cost so much, it can do ANYTHING. But, and this is the point, it is ALSO the premier handheld gaming console and as such, there are many, many children who are missing out on a very powerful social experience. My nephew has a GameBoy 3DSi, a fun device made specifically for gaming and, because of that and Apple's better branding, not nearly as "cool" of a toy to have as an iPad. There is a babel of handheld consoles, from the iPad, the 3DS, and the PSP, all with different libraries and communities, and this has prevented a "sensation" from growing with the iPad conceivably rising to the top due to its alternative selling points.
But I'm talking about how this creates a lonely experience for young people, and how this separate but equal way of console design has cheapened the experience of handheld gaming in general. To explain, let me tell a story from when I was younger. Back when I had Pokemon Red on the GameBoy, I wasn't alone in trying to "Catch 'em all"; I had my entire class along with me in the journey. Almost all of us had a Gameboy, we all HAD Pokemon and we KNEW what it was. It was a phenomenon, we were racing to the Pokemon League together, helping each other out, TRADING with ACTUAL people. This created a very tight social dynamic around Pokemon, it created a community which was engaged in figuring the game out, understanding the world, and plumbing its depths for hidden secrets. It was an adventure.
This adventure doesn't exist anymore.
The internet has gotten rid of the need to explore in games, game designers know this and so they have gotten rid of a lot of the hidden pathways and secrets. After all, what's the point if you can just look it up on Google?. The idea of wired connectivity is obsolete, wireless and Cloud technology is the new thing, you can trade all of your Pokemon across the world without ever laying eyes on the trainer that you are playing with. It's all Anonymous, it has nothing to do with the discovery, and there is little to no camaraderie. My nephew would probably have figured out how to get to Bill's PC on his own, as I mentioned, he's a smart kid. When he asked me for help though, I was reminded of myself when I was his age, asking a friend how to beat Lance in the Pokemon League.
We had the resource of each other, friends AND enemies, to rely on. Now, not many people have the Nintendo 3DSi compared to the iPad. The iPad, which, is mainly a casual console and has no "grand adventure" games on its platform. It has Angry Birds, Cut the Rope, FarmVille, and Pocket God. Fast food gaming. It isn't a console for children who want to go on an adventure, it's a tool for a parent to plug their kid into when they need them to be quiet for a few hours. It is the responsibility of the iPad App creators to make a game which will capture a generation's imagination instead of their wallets. Something to build a community around. Something that will deviate from the norm and recreate the mystery and wonder we felt when we caught our first Pidgey. The iPad is an AMAZING device, and it can accomplish so much if only we had the guts to say that we want for our children what we had. I'm sorry Nintendo, but your handheld just isn't "cool" anymore. Right now, this revolution could happen on the iPad. It only takes one game.
It's not as though this hasn't been done before. Journey by That Game Company created a solo/coop adventure with a grand sense of scope and scale. The addition of the silent partner assisting you and the concept of learning and tutelage is something which is key to the game. It is a part of it. The strength of the Journey lies not only in your own efforts, but in the trials you overcome with the help of your allies and friends. An adventure to go on together and something which will build friendship, rivalry, heart, and skill. It is this kind of mechanic which should be harvested towards handheld gaming. So, I set this challenge to you, the coders, to create the IDEA at the very least, of a game which will give all the kids something to talk about.
This game should have some manner of interactivity within the system which is NOT online multiplayer for this is part of what has created the anonymity which I am arguing against. Of course there should be some layer of multiplayer, but it should be in the form of assistance, of trading perhaps, of duels and temporary alliances. The adventure must be one that can be conducted alone, in a subway, for five minutes at a time. This time constraint is a key part of what the game can be designed around, instead of treating it as a handicap. The game should be simple, concise, and to the point; or at least some of it should be. The combat can be fast and easy to get to, to provide that fast entertainment which what will be its competition will provide so easily. However, there should also be depth, exploration, story, and mystery which will stay for the long term.
I know I'm asking a lot here, and believe me I understand the difficulties involved. But I know that we can do this! We did it before, there are companies RIGHT NOW developing wonderful and beautiful games for both children and adults. Gaming has become a strange beast of isolation within a crowd. That is not how it should be. Gaming should be about the community, about the discovery and the joy of play. About the art which a developer has put their heart and soul into. It can be done. Just remember the feeling of pride you still have in your first starter Pokemon. That feeling right there? We can do it again for our children.
