The Open World of Gen 9

[SeanWheeler]

If you can challenge the gyms in any order and the levels scale up according to the number of badges you have, it would be really tough to train weak Pokémon at the end of the game if you lost your strong Pokémon in a Nuzlocke challenge.

 

[Nichole the Otter]

If you can challenge the gyms in any order and the levels scale up according to the number of badges you have, it would be really tough to train weak Pokémon at the end of the game if you lost your strong Pokémon in a Nuzlocke challenge.

I completely forgot about this! Open world mechanics don’t seem to be very Nuzlocke-friendly, aside from the handling of wild Pokémon levels. It does make one wonder if the developers are aware of Nuzlockes or not.

 

[SeanWheeler]

Maybe they should have a set Gym order with the higher level Gyms being closed to people who don't have the correct number of Badges like what was done with the Viridian and Petalburg Gyms.

 

[Scruffyjay]

I will add that it's not entirely out of the realm of possibility that while the story might not ever block you from exploring, it's entirely possible Pokemon levels might, so you can go to places ahead of time but only if your able to deal with stronger Pokemon while under leveled.
Not confirmed and would kind of defeat the point of open world in my opinion but also very much possible.

I assume it will be a combination of this and some slight road blocks you need to unlock stuff for like in legends arceus.

 

[Fairy Type Arceus]

Maybe they should have a set Gym order with the higher level Gyms being closed to people who don't have the correct number of Badges like what was done with the Viridian and Petalburg Gyms.

No, if it's open world and can be done in any order then it can be done in any order. They can level scale to the highest leveled pokemon on you, they did it in gen 3 with emeralds battle frontier.

there are definitely some safeties that can be implemented that have already been experimented with some though. for instance, in SwSh, you cannot capture Pokemon above a certain level without a number of badges. PLA makes it so that the usual badge obedience restriction applies to every Pokemon, and not just traded.

as for the exp. share: at this point, i think at this point it's just going to become "party exp" in general. to keep wishing for a toggle-able version is just asking to be disappointed tbh.

Really? I caught alpha torterra before even getting basculegion. I cheesed my way over the river with wydeer and caught it, long before I could get level 65 pokemon.

 

[PinkIceFox]

There is no greater feeling than getting around a barrier a game set up for you. Like, yeah. I could wait until I can surf over this river to get over there but I'm pretty sure I can jump it!

"You can't-"

I'm sorry I can't here you I'm already over here with Wyrdeer check out my sweet pokemon I just caught.

My usual method of getting where I shouldn't be yet is to run up against slanted cliffs and spam whatever jump button is available to me. I am a child of Skyrim, fools. NO NON-SHEER CLIFF CAN CONTAIN ME!

 

[Sakuraa]

I'm very interested in how the story will play out what with the whole open world situation. Especially with the website stating that you can play and aren't dictated by the story. I'm curious how typical story beats like rival fights and evil team (if there is one) encounters will work if we can run all across the region as we please rather than there being a set path we are 'supposed' to go in. At the very least, I'll be excited to watch Lets Plays and see everyone playing the game differently

I also wonder how this will work with catching Pokemon. Usually all Pokemon have set locations and levels, but if we can go anywhere, will we be at risk of running into extremely strong Pokemon anywhere we go? Or will Pokemon spawn differently based on your levels? But most importantly, can I just run around and fill my team completely from the start

 

[Kallyle]

as for the exp. share: at this point, i think at this point it's just going to become "party exp" in general. to keep wishing for a toggle-able version is just asking to be disappointed tbh.

They still should nerf it a little. Maybe have the amount of experience gained per battle range from how many badges you have, showing your own progress as a trainer. That’d be more immersive than the OP EXP system we currently have.

If you can challenge the gyms in any order and the levels scale up according to the number of badges you have, it would be really tough to train weak Pokémon at the end of the game if you lost your strong Pokémon in a Nuzlocke challenge.

I completely forgot about this! Open world mechanics don’t seem to be very Nuzlocke-friendly, aside from the handling of wild Pokémon levels. It does make one wonder if the developers are aware of Nuzlockes or not.

I can’t remember where, but I heard Masuda or someone else at Game Freak personally disliked the concept of Nuzlockes as they felt it went against the spirit of the games.

 

[Greninjaman]

I have said this before about the EXP Share thing, but What they could do is this: as your team levels up, each Pokémon gains less and less EXP from wild battles until they get nothing at all. This will force players to move on to stronger Pokémon. Dragon Quest 11 for Switch has this as an optional feature that players can toggle before starting the game.

 

[Articfoxgamez]

Something I was thinking, how will buildings work? Will they be separate areas you have to go through loading screens for or part of the open world? You can see outside of the window of your house so I am thinking part of the world but that seems complicated for huge buildings like the school.

 

[Bolt Strike]

Something I was thinking, how will buildings work? Will they be separate areas you have to go through loading screens for or part of the open world? You can see outside of the window of your house so I am thinking part of the world but that seems complicated for huge buildings like the school.

Most likely part of the open world, that's how they typically work. You would just walk through the door with no loading screen and still be in the open world, just enclosed within a building. And it'd be no more complicated than any other such enclosed area, we saw areas such as the Galaxy Team Headquarters and Snowpoint Temple in LA that were large and complex, they can probably handle putting something like that in an open world.

 

[Greninjaman]

Most likely part of the open world, that's how they typically work. You would just walk through the door with no loading screen and still be in the open world, just enclosed within a building. And it'd be no more complicated than any other such enclosed area, we saw areas such as the Galaxy Team Headquarters and Snowpoint Temple in LA that were large and complex, they can probably handle putting something like that in an open world.

To be fair, those to areas (the Galaxy Team HQ and Snowpoint Temple) had a loading zone when you are entering them.