The best age for Player Characters?

[Almonds]

lol, still a lot of people favor mid-teens In the B2W2 promo vid, the Kyouhei and Hue seemed like they were around 13 - 14, though.

 

[Dragonfyre]

Early to Mid Teen. I'm just not comfortable with the default age of ten anymore, and any more than that is a smidgen too old. Ten always seemed too young and unrealistic, no matter how utopian the Pokémon world might be. Besides, the audience seems to have grown. Does anyone here actually like playing a twerpy 10-year-old?

 

[scarlettpeony]

I think kids respond equally well to playing older heroes as they do to younger ones. A little kid of ten probably likes the idea of playing an older character. Ultimately, it makes no difference to the story as the protagonist is silent and interpretations of the game scenes are up to the player. I also feel that Pokemon up until recently has failed to grow with its audience. A lot of the people who still play the games are 1st generation Pokemon games fans. I am one of them. I was eight when I first started playing and I know back then I used to idolise the teenage life (God knows why!) because it promised freedom and maturity.

Besides I have always found it odd how people in the games were willing to let their ten year olds wander around a region filled with criminals who want to steal their Pokemon and presumably leave them defenseless.

For me, mid-teen is the best age range for the heroes as it means they are not children throwing themselves into dangerous situations but they are also on the cusp of adulthood and so their journey with their Pokemon will be about discovering who they are. It was a theme I appreciated in B/W with Cheren and Bianca trying to figure out who they were and what they wanted to do with their lives.

 

[Achrom25tic]

BW player characters are about 14-15. Mei and Kyouhei seem around 13-14. Not much older than pre-teen to teenaged.

 

[NuvemaHillShipperSonic!]

I voted Mid-Teen because Sonic the Hedgehog is officially 15 in the Sonic games and I consider Hilda to be 15, also!

 

[Fair Verona]

I honestly think variety is the best when it comes to ages. Instead of making all of them 10, or all of them 16, why don't they just make different ages. I think it's weird that there was a pattern of only 10 years olds becoming champions. I think adding variety in age adds variety to the different characters and their designs.

 

[Ranger Jack Walker]

Honestly, it doesn't matter. I mean, even in BW, aside from their appearances (which can be decieving) would you even know that Hilbert and Hilda are supposed to be older? It's never a plot point and it should stay that way. Just make their appearance ambiguous enough that they can be any age you want and not state any specific age for the characters and everything should be fine.

 

[Caitlin]

I'd prefer early 20s. However, I'll be voting for late teens.

When I do writing, the main characters, trainers, gym leaders and friends are usually in their late teens or early twenties and I keep my characters in school till the age of 16. It just feels right. A young adult is much more capable of defending themselves in the wild, making critical decisions, etc.

 

[Somari]

Early to Mid Teen. I'm just not comfortable with the default age of ten anymore, and any more than that is a smidgen too old. Ten always seemed too young and unrealistic, no matter how utopian the Pokémon world might be. Besides, the audience seems to have grown. Does anyone here actually like playing a twerpy 10-year-old?

No protagonist is known to be 10. The only one with a confirmed age is Red, who was eleven in RGBYFRLG.

I'd say mid-to-late teens, like the Unova ones and Wes. Around 16 - 17. Still children but not too young. A lot of young kids like playing characters older than them so marketing is not an issue.

 

[Robo-Floatzel]

I personally think 10 is a bit too young for a kid to leave home and handle super-powered animals on his own, in some cultures, 13-14 is considered to be the coming of age for people, so I think the protagonist should be between 13 and 17 years old, because at those ages, the person has matured more and is more responsible in making his/her own choices.

 

[Magnagarde]

I feel like late teen would be best, seeing as how it's the most plausible. Going all throughout the country isn't typically something anyone who is under 18 does by themselves. But still, it would be really neat. I'm still going with late teens regardless.

 

[YamiiDenryuu]

I think younger teens are best, actually. Part of the whole Pokemon story is that the characters grow and mature due to the experiences they have on their journey, right? Having them be already fully matured when they set out kind of takes away from that.

 

[nothinglord]

I think that the minimum age for the player characters as being at least 14, because that is around the age when you've matured enough to go on your own. Plus, the characters look to be around that age physically.

 

[Aldo512]

I'd say about 13 or 14. It's old enough for them to be trusted to go off on their own, but young enough where they would plausibly not have any other commitments to prevent them from leaving.

 

[Almonds]

I'd still say 15 though ;_; it can relate to both age groups growing up from child to adult mently throughout the game

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

I agree that there should be an option, just like there is for gender. Though I don't mind if they want to keep it at 10-ish, I think it would be a neat option.

That would be cool. Then maybe the game-play could be slightly different depending on the age. Like, there are places the PC can go only if they are 10, and there are places where an NPC would be blocking unless the PC is 17.

So, you want to go to Gengar's night club, watch Lopunny channel and visit Gardevoir's "massage" house?



I voted late teen, although mid-teen would be OK

 

[IcyNinjaX]

15 should at least be the minimum. I never understood why a 10 year old would go and travel an entire region on their own. Damn parents

 

[Peachy]

Mid-teen, not too young, but not to old either.