Trainer Customization

[Almonds]

What is so special about customizing characters anyway. Plenty of other JRPGs don't let the PC be customized. Just seems like a pointless side quest to be added

Most characters in JRPGs also have an ounce of personality too, unlike every cheerful go-getter we get as a new player character in this series. Really, I can hardly contain my excitement wondering what kind of peppy, unthreatening pose the new avatars will be in and what kind of Poke balls they'll be holding in their respective pieces of artwork; think the boy'll have his hands on his hips with a regular Poke ball? Oh, or maybe he'll have his left arm thrust out holding an Ultra ball. Also, do you think he'll have a closed or open-mouth smile?

Seriously though, the kind of customization already available in the core mechanic of the game, i.e. deciding what creatures to catch and use on your team, is already unprecedented and is about to expand, this time onto a 3D plane, again. I'm as much for character customizationas the next guy, if only for the sake of self-expression, but it's probably good to keep things in perspective at this point. That said, I'm really hoping those sunglasses can be swapped out.

I'm just saying if Millions of people can play through every Zelda game without an ounce of customization, you can make it through another Pokemon game without. If you want customization so badly play the contests or musicals

The difference is Pokemon is meant to be played with friends and strangers all over. Zelda has always been a single player experience. Though it started more in the sense that you the player are suppose to pretend you're a hero, that's just not the case these days. Even my mom knows when you play Zelda you're playing Link's story.

Pokemon is different, from its first game release multiplayer was a major part of the game. Since then its only evolved, now we can play against and trade with players half a world away. On top of multiplayer, customization as well has been a critical part of the game. The ability to customize a party of six from 680+ critters, customize their moves, their stats, even their breed. Pokemon has been hinting at trainer custimization since the moment you could change your characters name(granted this is true of almost all jrpgs but just go with me for a moment). And it's been begging for it since diamond and pearl when we could battle online with anyone. Pokemon has always been your story, its a very personal story. There's a reason why the cartridges only have one save file. It's yours. So why not allow players to make their avatar more personal as well?

This.

Also, the Zelda Universe has a stablished and deep continuity, and Link's appearance is most of the time relevant to the story (it is the tunic wore by the race he was raised in, it is given to him as a sign of his destiny, etc.), that's why you can't customize Link- because he is Link, a set character whose actions influence not only the particular game you're playing, but also the games that follow, whereas in Pokémon, not only the protagonists aren't ever mentioned in further games, we actually don't know who the canon protagonist is, so in terms of series' overall continuity, it doesn't matter what the hero looks like.

Pokèmon Trainer Red says hi.


As long as they don't overdo it so it's like the Sims, there shouldn't be much of a problem. Just a minimum amount of customizing should be fine.

 

[Kojo]

The real question is, why shouldn't there be trainer customization? Are people actually arguing against it?

We've always been able to choose the gender and name of our protagonists. I don't see why they can't go further and just allow us to change how they look. The protagonist barely needs to have relevance in future canon anyway. Ethan didn't appear in any later games. Brendan didn't appear in any later games. Lucas didn't appear in any later games. And Hilbert/Hilda was a no show in BW2.

 

[Ninja-Mage]

What is so special about customizing characters anyway. Plenty of other JRPGs don't let the PC be customized. Just seems like a pointless side quest to be added

Most characters in JRPGs also have an ounce of personality too, unlike every cheerful go-getter we get as a new player character in this series. Really, I can hardly contain my excitement wondering what kind of peppy, unthreatening pose the new avatars will be in and what kind of Poke balls they'll be holding in their respective pieces of artwork; think the boy'll have his hands on his hips with a regular Poke ball? Oh, or maybe he'll have his left arm thrust out holding an Ultra ball. Also, do you think he'll have a closed or open-mouth smile?

Seriously though, the kind of customization already available in the core mechanic of the game, i.e. deciding what creatures to catch and use on your team, is already unprecedented and is about to expand, this time onto a 3D plane, again. I'm as much for character customizationas the next guy, if only for the sake of self-expression, but it's probably good to keep things in perspective at this point. That said, I'm really hoping those sunglasses can be swapped out.

I'm just saying if Millions of people can play through every Zelda game without an ounce of customization, you can make it through another Pokemon game without. If you want customization so badly play the contests or musicals

The difference is Pokemon is meant to be played with friends and strangers all over. Zelda has always been a single player experience. Though it started more in the sense that you the player are suppose to pretend you're a hero, that's just not the case these days. Even my mom knows when you play Zelda you're playing Link's story.

Pokemon is different, from its first game release multiplayer was a major part of the game. Since then its only evolved, now we can play against and trade with players half a world away. On top of multiplayer, customization as well has been a critical part of the game. The ability to customize a party of six from 680+ critters, customize their moves, their stats, even their breed. Pokemon has been hinting at trainer custimization since the moment you could change your characters name(granted this is true of almost all jrpgs but just go with me for a moment). And it's been begging for it since diamond and pearl when we could battle online with anyone. Pokemon has always been your story, its a very personal story. There's a reason why the cartridges only have one save file. It's yours. So why not allow players to make their avatar more personal as well?

This.

Also, the Zelda Universe has a stablished and deep continuity, and Link's appearance is most of the time relevant to the story (it is the tunic wore by the race he was raised in, it is given to him as a sign of his destiny, etc.), that's why you can't customize Link- because he is Link, a set character whose actions influence not only the particular game you're playing, but also the games that follow, whereas in Pokémon, not only the protagonists aren't ever mentioned in further games, we actually don't know who the canon protagonist is, so in terms of series' overall continuity, it doesn't matter what the hero looks like.

Pokèmon Trainer Red says hi.


As long as they don't overdo it so it's like the Sims, there shouldn't be much of a problem. Just a minimum amount of customizing should be fine.

Red was the exception, not the rule. Since then none of the trainers have ever appeared or even been mentioned. Hilbert/Hilda were regarded as nameless heroes unless you transferred your save data then the name you choose was mentioned.

 

[Almonds]

The real question is, why shouldn't there be trainer customization? Are people actually arguing against it?

We've always been able to choose the gender and name of our protagonists. I don't see why they can't go further and just allow us to change how they look. The protagonist barely needs to have relevance in future canon anyway. Ethan didn't appear in any later games. Brendan didn't appear in any later games. Lucas didn't appear in any later games. And Hilbert/Hilda was a no show in BW2.

Uh, Pokemon Trainer Red?

Also, it's Pokemon. We're playing the games with POKEMONS, and the story is focused on POKEMONS, not ourselves. In that sense, we're all nameless heroes that won't get another appearance in the future, so too much customization would be overdoing it since it's for only one game.

And I never said I was against it. Just keeping it to a minimum would be fine. Because this is Pokemon, not the Sims.

 

[Kojo]

The real question is, why shouldn't there be trainer customization? Are people actually arguing against it?

We've always been able to choose the gender and name of our protagonists. I don't see why they can't go further and just allow us to change how they look. The protagonist barely needs to have relevance in future canon anyway. Ethan didn't appear in any later games. Brendan didn't appear in any later games. Lucas didn't appear in any later games. And Hilbert/Hilda was a no show in BW2.

Uh, Pokemon Trainer Red?

Also, it's Pokemon. We're playing the games with POKEMONS, and the story is focused on POKEMONS, not ourselves. In that sense, we're all nameless heroes that won't get another appearance in the future, so too much customization would be overdoing it since it's for only one game.

And I never said I was against it. Just keeping it to a minimum would be fine. Because this is Pokemon, not the Sims.

Yeah, Red. One exception out of all the protagonists, which still made little sense if you named your character anything other than "Red" or chose the girl in FR/LG.

Yes the game is focused on Pokemon, but it doesn't stop character customization from being a good feature. Especially if they're focusing on multiplayer as much as they're implying. Why would I want my character to look the same as everyone else? There was plenty of customization in PBR and the focus was still plenty on Pokemon, so I don't see how it could be a problem here. It's not really straying from Pokemon any more than stuff like secret bases and Sinnoh underground did.

 

[Ninja-Mage]

The real question is, why shouldn't there be trainer customization? Are people actually arguing against it?

We've always been able to choose the gender and name of our protagonists. I don't see why they can't go further and just allow us to change how they look. The protagonist barely needs to have relevance in future canon anyway. Ethan didn't appear in any later games. Brendan didn't appear in any later games. Lucas didn't appear in any later games. And Hilbert/Hilda was a no show in BW2.

Uh, Pokemon Trainer Red?

Also, it's Pokemon. We're playing the games with POKEMONS, and the story is focused on POKEMONS, not ourselves. In that sense, we're all nameless heroes that won't get another appearance in the future, so too much customization would be overdoing it since it's for only one game.

And I never said I was against it. Just keeping it to a minimum would be fine. Because this is Pokemon, not the Sims.

Yeah, Red. One exception out of all the protagonists, which still made little sense if you named your character anything other than "Red" or chose the girl in FR/LG.

Yes the game is focused on Pokemon, but it doesn't stop character customization from being a good feature. Especially if they're focusing on multiplayer as much as they're implying. Why would I want my character to look the same as everyone else? There was plenty of customization in PBR and the focus was still plenty on Pokemon, so I don't see how it could be a problem here.

Yah I don't see why adding a robust character creation and customization system would hurt the over all game. Despite what we all believe game freak does not, ill repeat, DOES NOT, break the mold every game. They copy and paste a already perfected system from 3 generations past, add in 100+ new creatures, and create a new area. Them adding a character creator even on the level of skyrim will not take away from the actual game. You'll still be playing the same game you love, only now it'd be a truly personalized experience.

People love character creators, the fact this thread is still going is proof to that. So what if the characters for only for one game, that just means we get to create again the next game.

 

[Almonds]

The real question is, why shouldn't there be trainer customization? Are people actually arguing against it?

We've always been able to choose the gender and name of our protagonists. I don't see why they can't go further and just allow us to change how they look. The protagonist barely needs to have relevance in future canon anyway. Ethan didn't appear in any later games. Brendan didn't appear in any later games. Lucas didn't appear in any later games. And Hilbert/Hilda was a no show in BW2.

Uh, Pokemon Trainer Red?

Also, it's Pokemon. We're playing the games with POKEMONS, and the story is focused on POKEMONS, not ourselves. In that sense, we're all nameless heroes that won't get another appearance in the future, so too much customization would be overdoing it since it's for only one game.

And I never said I was against it. Just keeping it to a minimum would be fine. Because this is Pokemon, not the Sims.

Yeah, Red. One exception out of all the protagonists, which still made little sense if you named your character anything other than "Red" or chose the girl in FR/LG.

Yes the game is focused on Pokemon, but it doesn't stop character customization from being a good feature. Especially if they're focusing on multiplayer as much as they're implying. Why would I want my character to look the same as everyone else? There was plenty of customization in PBR and the focus was still plenty on Pokemon, so I don't see how it could be a problem here.

Yah I don't see why adding a robust character creation and customization system would hurt the over all game. Despite what we all believe game freak does not, ill repeat, DOES NOT, break the mold every game. They copy and paste a already perfected system from 3 generations past, add in 100+ new creatures, and create a new area. Them adding a character creator even on the level of skyrim will not take away from the actual game. You'll still be playing the same game you love, only now it'd be a truly personalized experience.

People love character creators, the fact this thread is still going is proof to that. So what if the characters for only for one game, that just means we get to create again the next game.

... I said I was never against it. I only said it would be good if it were kept to a minimum. I admit, if they have a whole set of Steven Stone cosplay items or N's clothing, I am so going to dress up my character XDD

I repeat - this is pokemon, not the sims. We don't need too much customization.

 

[Beck]

I repeat - this is Pokemon, not the Sims. We don't need too much customization.

But what is too much character customization?

 

[Almonds]

I repeat - this is Pokemon, not the Sims. We don't need too much customization.

But what is too much character customization?

The games focusing on customization too much that the quality of the actual game-play being downgraded. New things are good and I'd like it as well, but if it affects the actual game-play negatively in anyway, then that's overdoing it.

But meh, someone already said that GF probably knows what they're doing. Of course they'd put the main system above everything else - maybe I'm just worrying too much.

 

[Owain]

I repeat - this is Pokemon, not the Sims. We don't need too much customization.

But what is too much character customization?

The games focusing on customization too much that the quality of the actual game-play being downgraded. New things are good and I'd like it as well, but if it affects the actual game-play negatively in anyway, then that's overdoing it.

But meh, someone already said that GF probably knows what they're doing. Of course they'd put the main system above everything else - maybe I'm just worrying too much.

Yes, you are, I frankly can't see any good arguments against the feature, ''just for one game'', how do we even know it's just for one game? and even if it is, it's an added bonus, not something against the game.

 

[Codface]

Good arguement against this feature

Trainer customisation pack - estore - 2.99$

You want nintendo to rip kids off with exclusive pay content pikachu hats?

But seriously if this was an EA game it would be a valid arguement.

 

[Ninja-Mage]

Good arguement against this feature

Trainer customisation pack - estore - 2.99$

You want nintendo to rip kids off with exclusive pay content pikachu hats?

But seriously if this was an EA game it would be a valid arguement.

Counter argument, animal crossing has character custimization and this has yet to happen. Dlc will likely be in the form of a combination of things such as a new event Pokemon as well as some clothing.

 

[Almonds]

Good arguement against this feature

Trainer customisation pack - estore - 2.99$

You want nintendo to rip kids off with exclusive pay content pikachu hats?

But seriously if this was an EA game it would be a valid arguement.

Counter argument, animal crossing has character custimization and this has yet to happen. Dlc will likely be in the form of a combination of things such as a new event Pokemon as well as some clothing.

Counter-counter argument. Pokemon=/=Animal Crossing

Both are completely different games that aren't comparable. One is about conquering eight badges, defeating the villains, seeking out legendaries, and becoming champion. The other is just life simulation.

 

[Vyrron]

This whole "character customization will turn Pokemon into the Sims" argument is invalid. Customization is a huge part of the Sims games. Do you honestly think customization will ever play a big role in the Pokemon games (if we ever actually get it that is)? Besides, there's a ton of other games featuring character customization out there -- why not Pokemon?

But seriously if this was an EA game it would be a valid arguement.

If Pokemon was an EA game, we would start out with only 10 Pokemon and we would have to pay another 40$ to download the rest (excluding Legendaries of course).

 

[LadySasaki]

I'd like to customise based on the very simple and subjective reason that I took one look at the male playable character and thought DO NOT WANT.

The female has grown on me though, so even if we can't customise I'll just stick with her on my multiple playthroughs.

Also, it's Pokemon. We're playing the games with POKEMONS, and the story is focused on POKEMONS, not ourselves. In that sense, we're all nameless heroes that won't get another appearance in the future, so too much customization would be overdoing it since it's for only one game.

And I never said I was against it. Just keeping it to a minimum would be fine. Because this is Pokemon, not the Sims.

This. A little customisation (accessories, colour of clothes, maaaybe hair style) would be fun. But total customisation would imo be overdoing it and taking the focus away from the pocket monsters. They're the real focus of the game, not the player's avatar, and they should stay that way.

 

[Ninja-Mage]

I'd like to customise based on the very simple and subjective reason that I took one look at the male playable character and thought DO NOT WANT.

The female has grown on me though, so even if we can't customise I'll just stick with her on my multiple playthroughs.

Also, it's Pokemon. We're playing the games with POKEMONS, and the story is focused on POKEMONS, not ourselves. In that sense, we're all nameless heroes that won't get another appearance in the future, so too much customization would be overdoing it since it's for only one game.

And I never said I was against it. Just keeping it to a minimum would be fine. Because this is Pokemon, not the Sims.

This. A little customisation (accessories, colour of clothes, maaaybe hair style) would be fun. But total customisation would imo be overdoing it and taking the focus away from the pocket monsters. They're the real focus of the game, not the player's avatar, and they should stay that way.

I don't see why we can't have both. Plenty of games have added very robust custimization features and still stayed true to their core gameplay. And as I said before Pokemon has always been a deeply customizable game series. Clothing and avatar customization just adds a cherry on top.

@Dark Blueberry - he was saying though that if there was customization wed prob have to pay $3 for a stupid hat, I was just pointing out animal crossing an existing nintendo franchise with customization hasn't done that yet so I doubt it'd be a problem here.

Here's my final point, when they added contests, did they ever force you to do them? No
Battle subway? No.
Musicals? No.

The point is they've added tons of features that have added to the overall fun factor of the games. And none have taken away from the focal point of Pokemon training. They were just fun additions, just as customization would be. Ill finish by asking all the nay Sayers to give me one way that adding in a robust customization feature could ruin the core gameplay or detract from it. Keep in mind the mechanics of Pokemon battling and raising is pretty much a concrete mechanic that game freak would have to purposefully seek out and destroy in order to ruin.

 

[LadySasaki]

^ I hadn't thought of it in terms of Animal Crossing.

But since you brought it up, let me use it as an example for a second. A little customisation would be exactly what you said - a fun addition, the cherry on the top. But what I think myself and some others are saying is that too much would turn Pokemon into Animal Crossing. Players may end up more concerned about how cool their avatar looks than actually playing the game. If Gamefreak were to implement an Animal Crossing level of customisation for the PC and the secret base (not saying this will happen or even if secret bases will come back, just hypothesising here!) you'd get players obsessing over collecting all the available hats/sunglasses/furniture rather than collecting and filling up the pokedex. If you want to do that, why not just play Animal Crossing instead of Pokemon in the first place?

I'm in no way a naysayer of customisation, I just don't want the mixing and matching of fashion ensembles and decor to eclipse the heart and soul of the game. Pokemon has always kept the PC silent, personality-free and fairly bland, and to be honest I've never had the burning desire for them to change that just so long as the plots, pokemon, graphics, regions and characters keep developing. Customisation is a feature I'd enjoy in small measure but can ultimately leave or take. But if they can add it without detracting from the focal point of the games, then I say bring it on :3

 

[Purellian]

^ I hadn't thought of it in terms of Animal Crossing.

But since you brought it up, let me use it as an example for a second. A little customisation would be exactly what you said - a fun addition, the cherry on the top. But what I think myself and some others are saying is that too much would turn Pokemon into Animal Crossing. Players may end up more concerned about how cool their avatar looks than actually playing the game. If Gamefreak were to implement an Animal Crossing level of customisation for the PC and the secret base (not saying this will happen or even if secret bases will come back, just hypothesising here!) you'd get players obsessing over collecting all the available hats/sunglasses/furniture rather than collecting and filling up the pokedex. If you want to do that, why not just play Animal Crossing instead of Pokemon in the first place?

I'm in no way a naysayer of customisation, I just don't want the mixing and matching of fashion ensembles and decor to eclipse the heart and soul of the game. Pokemon has always kept the PC silent, personality-free and fairly bland, and to be honest I've never had the burning desire for them to change that just so long as the plots, pokemon, graphics, regions and characters keep developing. Customisation is a feature I'd enjoy in small measure but can ultimately leave or take. But if they can add it without detracting from the focal point of the games, then I say bring it on :3

There are people who enjoy the contests so much that they spend as little time battling their pokemon as they can and instead focus on only doing contests. Or making movies at Pokewood, or playing the Pokeathlon, etc. etc. For shame! How dare they spend more time on the part of the game that they like the most? That doesn't make any sense at all! On top of that, why should it matter to me how anyone else chooses to play their own copy of the game?

(the rest of this post is not directed at you, LadySasaki)

However, I really don't think you need to worry about that. If people are buying Pokemon games, they are buying so they can play as a Pokemon trainer and live out all the fantasies that that entails. The entire point of having a silent, personality-free protagonist is so that the player, and ANY player, can more easily picture themselves as the one who is actually doing all the things in the game. The only thing more effective at maintaining that illusion for the player is for them to be able to customize their avatar the way they like it. Why on earth WOULDN'T they include customization?

I fail to understand this worry of them including "too much" customization and how it will detract from the gameplay. Players already get a tiny bit of customization ability in the choice of the male or female protagonist, and either people choose the gender they most identify with, or they choose the one with the better design in their opinion. This is exactly what people will do with more customization options. They will either try to create an avatar that looks as much like themselves as possible, or they'll try to use the various options to create an avatar that they think looks cool.

I can honestly think of no way whatsoever in which the ability to customize your avatar would get in the way of playing Pokemon. Or how it will somehow, through its terrible voodoo magic, change the basic qualities of the game SO MUCH that it will cease to be Pokemon and will suddenly become The Sims: Battling Pets or Animal Crossing: Now With Extra Creepy.

 

[Garren]

Something like Fire Emblem Awakening would be good...there's basic male and female templates (like we have now), but you can customize them to a decent extent at the beginning of the game. That's what I want at the very minimum, it doesn't intrude on anything, it just allows players to feel closer to their avatars.

 

[Finicky Fennekin]

I love the male character's design from the trailer - he's so cute!（´ω｀♡%）Whether or not we get customization, I'll definitely be using him as-is.

If we do get customization, the designs from the trailer will probably be the "default" options anyway, like there are "default" names, so they can use those designs in the manga and such.


I'd kind of like a sort of passive "customization" either way, though - like your character changing into a coat and scarf for colder areas, or short sleeves and shorts for a beach.
I think it'd be cute to walk onto a rainy route and have my pc take out an umbrella to carry around (´ ▽｀).。ｏ♡