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Should how the PokeDex works be change?

ZeekSlider

never finished Gen. 2
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One of my biggest complaints about the series outside of event Pokemon is the PokeDex. Why is it? Well, as I've stated before, I have Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and because of the PokeDex, a part of me always tries to complete every entry on the main game version I'm playing. Even though I have things like Bulbapedia at my disposal now, a part of me continues to nag at me to complete it.

I'm rather disappointed to learn that the same mechanics of the PokeDex are still being used to this day. You see a Pokemon, it gets logged but no entry. You have to catch the Pokemon for the Pokedex to have any flavor text about the creature.

Don't you think we are past all this by now? We have over 600 Pokemon in the franchise! Some of which we have only seen but will never be able to catch without cheating or hoping that a really close friend will trade one that isn't a hacked version.

Does anyone think that the PokeDex should already be pre-loaded with all the information on there? Given the technology now, the PokeDex could just unlock entries the moment we see a specific Pokemon and then have a stats sub-category that keeps track of everything else (Seen, Own). Don't you think that would be a better solution than "If you see it, you unlock its slot. If you own it, you get the flavor text with its entry" way of tracking?

And if that is being done as a easy visual indicator as to what you caught and what you didn't, I can think of a better solution that was already in use. In Pokemon Stadium 2, if you owned a Pokemon, there was a red Pokeball next to their name. If you owned a Pokemon in the past but have since evolved or traded it away, there was a grey Pokeball next to its name. If you saw it but never owned it, there was no Pokeball by its name. Why can't the PokeDex do that and still keep the flavor text for Pokemon you've seen but don't own/haven't caught?
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

Nah I like the way the pokedex works and it kinda makes it fell more rewarding once you have finished it.
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

Nah I like the way the pokedex works and it kinda makes it fell more rewarding once you have finished it.

Did the rewards improve after completing the Pokedex? Or do you still get that little certificate?
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

I think it should work like this:
Seen: Number, Name, Synopsis, Wild Locations you've seen it in.
Caught: Number, Name, Synopsis, All Wild Locations, Moveset, Evolutions and how to, Misc Details.

And there should be an option where you can 'connect dexes' with others and 'known details' are transfered...of course, it's not gonna happen =L
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

Did the rewards improve after completing the Pokedex? Or do you still get that little certificate?
You still get the certificate but I mean that it feels alot more rewarding as you put all that time and hard work into catching 'em all.
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

Personally, I like having to hunt them all down, catch and/or evolve them to fill the dex and get all the info. It gives me a lot more to do after finishing the main game, which usually doesn't take very long at all.
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

Well, first off, I understand completely what you mean about the OCD. My brother's been diagnosed with a pretty serious form of OCD, and I have a mild version of it. It doesn't bother me as far as the PokeDex is concerned, but it does for other things (for example, I absolutely have to get every item available in a cave or forest; even the hidden ones. It gives me absolute hell if I don't).

But even if the synopsis' were available from the second you see it instead of catching it (I wouldn't mind, personally), I do think there should be some sort of indicator for what you've caught and what you haven't, and it should be far more important than a little PokeBall symbol next to each Pokemon's name, imo; because otherwise, there'll be a lot less focus on catching Pokemon for many players, and one of the main goals of the game is to catch a lot of Pokemon, and then subsequently train them.

That being said, considering the current award for completing the PokeDex is a piece of crap, an actual real reward would be nice. But I think the PokeDex works fine the way it is.
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

That being said, considering the current award for completing the PokeDex is a piece of crap, an actual real reward would be nice. But I think the PokeDex works fine the way it is.

So if anything, the reward should change, but not how the PokeDex works.

Well, there was that one "Final Game Wishlist" thread where I added on to a user's suggestion about how completing a regional dex would unlock event Pokemon for you to capture. (Finish the Kanto Dex, unlock a Mew encounter; Complete the Johto Dex, unlock a Celebi encounter, etc.) Would that be a change to how the PokeDex currently works that would actually bring emphisis back to the "Catch 'em All" marketing?
 
I made a blog post about "the Ultimate Pokemon game" I added a section to it about the Pokedex. My idea is that you see every Pokemon in the Pokedex, but you cant see the info, forms or anything like that until you catch it. Check it out if you like :)
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

So if anything, the reward should change, but not how the PokeDex works.

Well, there was that one "Final Game Wishlist" thread where I added on to a user's suggestion about how completing a regional dex would unlock event Pokemon for you to capture. (Finish the Kanto Dex, unlock a Mew encounter; Complete the Johto Dex, unlock a Celebi encounter, etc.) Would that be a change to how the PokeDex currently works that would actually bring emphisis back to the "Catch 'em All" marketing?

Yep, that sounds like a good idea to me; and iirc, the director of GameFreak in the original Japanese Red and Green games did in fact reward the player with a Mew if s/he completed their entire PokeDex.

As far as the Catch 'Em All slogan goes... I'm guessing it was removed because, as more and more Pokemon were created, it became harder and harder to catch each and everyone, and now it's gotten to the point where it may not even be possible to complete half the PokeDex in a specific version alone. So, if they're going to bring back the marking slogan, they really gotta increase the amount of Pokemon available in the games, rather than have players rely on stuff like the Dream World.
 
Re: Should how the PokeDex work be change?

Well, there was that one "Final Game Wishlist" thread where I added on to a user's suggestion about how completing a regional dex would unlock event Pokemon for you to capture. (Finish the Kanto Dex, unlock a Mew encounter; Complete the Johto Dex, unlock a Celebi encounter, etc.) Would that be a change to how the PokeDex currently works that would actually bring emphisis back to the "Catch 'em All" marketing?

That's actually a fantastic idea. I'm not keen on changing the way the 'Dex itself works, but giving an actual incentive for completing it would be awesome. I remember finding out what the reward was in Pearl, and it's honestly the only time I ever raged at a video game (other than the last part of Golden Sun). Not to mention it'd be great to get a rare Legendary without having to leave your house. :-D
 
^You can get rare legendaries by wi-fi. But you and the others are right that an actual, usable award for completing the pokedex is long needed. I believe that even a Liechi berry is better reward than a certificate
 
Well, I just realized that the fatal flaw in my suggestion is that some time in Gen. 4, the event Pokemons started to increase in number. I mean, even the Gen. 5 event Pokemon have at least 2 confirmed ones with a few others waiting to be distributed.

If that whole "Complete a region dex, get an event Pokemon" thing did in fact happen, how would they go about rewarding, say, Jirachi and Deoxys at the same time?
 
Please note: The thread is from 13 years ago.
Please take the age of this thread into consideration in writing your reply. Depending on what exactly you wanted to say, you may want to consider if it would be better to post a new thread instead.
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