What is becoming of the third generation?

[Silktree]

The following is a list of facts and rhetorical questions dealing with the present status of the third generation games. The contents should not be surprising to any of you who happened to have read my one-month old editorial, but there is certainly need to present them now in some other form.

I have taken the time to organize the list as succinctly as possible, at the expense of elaboration. I wish for the presentation to be clear and logical so that the conclusions speak for themselves. Simply put, the information found below is of the sort to which most fans have no access, or would rather ignore. It is my request that you read the list from beginning to end, and only then form an opinion.

• Diamond and Pearl were announced in October 2004, one month after Emerald had been released in Japan. It was naturally assumed that their release date would be consistent with that of Gold and Silver as well as Ruby and Sapphire - November 21 of the following year.

• An interview with Tsunekazu Ishihara and Junichi Masuda was held in late December 2004, where the two stated that 2005 would see the release of Pokémon games for the GameCube, Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS. Moreover, Junichi Masuda remarked that the year would see him place all his power into the development of the first Nintendo DS entries in the main line of Pokémon games - Diamond and Pearl.

• The Wireless Communication (Joyspot) stations that had been customary at Pokémon Centers and retail stores across Japan, were put to a halt at some point in 2005. These stations had given players larger access to downloads, both location-wise and time-wise. In addition, the stations had far exceeded the normal event-specific downloads in terms of variety.

• Mew, the final Pokémon to be distributed in Japan, was at first the subject of the movie promotion. Since the Wireless Communication stations were no longer implemented, the downloads were performed through Link Cables. The Old Sea Map was later distributed to Emerald players by means of Wireless Communication at the Pokémon Festa event. Although no longer an organized service, the Wireless Communication culminated in September, when the Old Sea Map was distributed again at PokéPark - through the Nintendo DS. This proved that the Nintendo DS is capable of handling transmission meant for the Wireless Adapter, essentially opening a window of opportunity for utilizing Pokémon FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald in a new way. As an interesting fact, the service had been dispensed with altogether before the Nintendo DS' Wi-Fi debuted.

• Junichi Masuda and Tsunekazu Ishihara engaged in a second interview, but to a different effect to the first. Other than pointing out Diamond and Pearl would in fact be released in 2006, the contents of the interview included an allusion to a project by the name of The Path to Diamond and Pearl. The reference was made in the context of Ranger, said to be one part of the project that would concern the anime in 2006. The following month, Trozei! and Mystery Dungeon were revealed as the additional ingredients of the project.
  
  While those games could in fact be considered the purported Nintendo DS and Game Boy Advance titles, the interview did not meet the expectations arising from "placing all power into developing Diamond and Pearl throughout 2005".

• In last September, Game Freak released a non-Pokémon game called Drill Dozer. Around the same time, the company's web site was updated to have Diamond and Pearl put under "earnest development". One would think Drill Dozer could be the explanation for the delay, but a glance through Drill Dozer's credits should be enough to show that not only Junichi Masuda, but other individuals regarded as highly influential in producing the Pokémon games, took no part in the development of that game. The question of what could have preoccupied the main Game Freak team in the one-year period stretching from September 2004 (Emerald's release) to September 2005, remains unsolved.

• The Japanese versions of the Wireless Adapter-compatible games, FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald, were reshipped without the accessory and have been sold for a lower price since November. If to compare, the non-Japanese version of Emerald has always been packaged without the Wireless Adapter, not affecting its price. This seemed to support the theory that a final push was in order for the third generation, possibly in the form of transforming the Wireless Communication service into one based on the Nintendo DS' WiFi.

• A campaign involving the Game Boy Advance Pokémon RPG games was started in Pokémon Center stores last November. The purpose behind the campaign was to assist players who do not have access to all five versions of the GBA Pokémon RPG series. As such, the Pokémon to be distributed are those only available in the games out of multiple choice or through version-exclusive means. The downloads were a step back from wireless communication, a bizarre fact in light of the clear attempt to encourage players to purchase FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald, but not Ruby and Sapphire. The campaign ends in a few days.

• Last February, the USA Pokémon Company announced its own campaign by the name of "Pokémon 10th Anniversary Journey Across America". It was soon made clear that the tours would be primarily targeted at the National Championships Qualifying Tournaments, as well as special game downloads. These tours can in fact be compared to the National Pokémon League in Japan, which was scattered across the country, combined with the occasional campaigns of downloading special Pokémon in the various Pokémon Center stores and retail stores. However, with only one Pokémon Center and the yearly "Pokémon Rocks America" event that cover a marginal part of the United States, this concept is greatly befitting of the anniversary in the eyes of American players.

• On the subject of the National Championships, there have been said to be five future games scheduled for release in the United States, all of which will be given as prizes to the third, second and first place winners of the championships determined in August. To most, the games that come to mind are the two Mystery Dungeon games, Ranger and Diamond and Pearl. This way of thinking ignores the simple fact that all five games must be prepared for an American release (not necessarily on shelves) by the end of the championships, a requirement not met by Diamond and Pearl in the least. Trozei!, on the other hand, was released after the announcement and is associated with Mystery Dungeon and Ranger in Japan. If Trozei! is indeed included in the list, another game has to be in store.

• Diamond and Pearl were unveiled in Japan in parallel to the E3 event, but not at the event itself. If the plan had been to release the games in the United States by the end of the year, the same information showcased in CoroCoro would have undoubtedly been displayed at E3. Contrary to popular belief, there have been previous cases when an announcement regarding the Pokémon games was carried simultaneously by CoroCoro and E3 (in 2003, with Pinball Ruby/Sapphire, Channel, Box and Colosseum; in 2005, with XD). Not only that, but Nintendo of America continues to deny the development of Diamond and Pearl.
  
  E3 did contribute to the Pokémon field by shedding light on Mystery Dungeon and Ranger, making it seem feasible for copies of these games to be distributed in August. Oddly enough, Mystery Dungeon Red was only mentioned in the press release, leaving the uninformed audience to think the game would not be released. This may be explained by Satoru Iwata's assertion that the Nintendo DS and Wii took the highest priority in the event. It is possible that other Game Boy Advance games were intentionally left out of the glamour light.

• It now appears that the Japanese Pokémon Festa will not be held this year. By this time last year and the year prior, details on the event were already available, as well as details pertaining to the two sub-events - Battle Road Summer for the TCG and the National Pokémon League for the games. In contrast, only the Battle Road Summer event has been scheduled for this year.
  
  Pokémon Festa was a tradition begun in honor of Ruby and Sapphire's then-upcoming release, with the premise of giving attendees the opportunity to play trial versions of the games. In 2004, the event was expanded to include Battle Road Summer and the National Pokémon League. As a standalone event, Pokémon Festa may have lost its success factor in favor of the increasing number of Pokémon Center stores spread across Japan. It therefore makes sense to dispense with the event, moving Diamond and Pearl's footage onto the World Whobby Fair event, and running Battle Road Summer separately. This, however, does not account for the National Pokémon League.

In conclusion, this excessively long list of oddities amounts to one mouth-gapping mystery for which the explanation is all but simple. I would like to add that these are all the events leading to or following after the 10th anniversary of Red and Green's Japanese release. Does it make sense for the anniversary to be the center of attention in the United States, yet a passing day in Japan? Does the fact that Diamond and Pearl are in the year's agenda cancel their long delay or the disregard of the third generation games? Why should the Japanese players be deprived of the ability to complete the PokéDex or engage in competition, two focal points of the games, as they await the fourth generation?

I have become a fervent advocate of the concept of a third game to FireRed and LeafGreen, both for being aware of the plethora of unused data in the games, and for my restlessness in seeking a solution to the above. When Diamond and Pearl were unveiled last week, I was overjoyed and disappointed at the same time. As much as I am looking forward to these games, their release will simply not serve to settle my dissatisfaction, and I fail to see why I or anyone else should suffer for being curious.

But it is all too soon to lose hope - not as long as Diamond and Pearl have no set release date that would lure them closer, and the third generation farther. It is entirely possible that it was Diamond and Pearl which were announced this month, rather than the third game, because ensuring the place of these games on 2006's schedule takes a greater priority. If the third game had been announced instead, fans would have received the wrong impression that it serves as an alternative, when it does not. The same ironic situation occurred in Emerald's case, when fans were initially repelled by the idea of a third game taking the place of a new generation, but in the end were more than content as reflected in the game's sales. This time, it is necessary to assure fans that Diamond and Pearl will be rightfully released as planned, and only then overwhelm them with another installment to the third generation.

The one-year period between Emerald's release and the beginning of Diamond and Pearl's "earnest development" could have very well been used for fully developing and perfecting the third game. In fact, the game might even be prepared for a stateside release by now. The game would fill the place of the fifth game scheduled for a U.S. release; it was not showcased at E3 for the same reason as Mystery Dungeon Red. Once released, the game would bring the Wireless Communication service back in play, which would also be relevant to FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald that must have been reduced in price for some reason. It would have the potential to be incorporated into the Nintendo DS' WiFi, and thus resemble Crystal's Mobile Adapter service. Specifically, tournaments would not necessitate real-life events, but online communication as was done with Crystal in 2001.

My arguments may seem to be targeted at Japan, but not being a resident of Japan, I obviously have the interests of players across the globe at heart. That is precisely the point; worldwide communication would be the key to the success of this third game, a concept which would later be pushed into the fourth generation. But from the perspective of the third generation, only a third game could bring about this change, and so the remaining half a year of the generation's lifetime strongly relies on the release of such a game.

 

[TK n Happy Ness]

In last September, Game Freak released a non-Pokémon game called Drill Dozer. Around the same time, the company's web site was updated to have Diamond and Pearl put under "earnest development". One would think Drill Dozer could be the explanation for the delay, but a glance through Drill Dozer's credits should be enough to show that not only Junichi Masuda, but other individuals regarded as highly influential in producing the Pokémon games, took no part in the development of that game.

By that logic, the guys at Dreamworks (the animation guys at least) shouldn't have made Madagascar and Hoodwinked, and concentrated more on Shrek 3. As an example, look at Neversoft. Most of their key Tony Hawk guys were working on GUN, and American Wasteland was done by an entirely different team.

 

[Silktree]

By that logic, the guys at Dreamworks (the animation guys at least) shouldn't have made Madagascar and Hoodwinked, and concentrated more on Shrek 3. As an example, look at Neversoft. Most of their key Tony Hawk guys were working on GUN, and American Wasteland was done by an entirely different team.

How exactly does this conflict with my point? I was trying to establish that the main Game Freak team was working neither on Drill Dozer, nor on Diamond and Pearl.

 

[Misty]

How do we know they weren't working on Diamond and Pearl?

 

[Silktree]

How do we know they weren't working on Diamond and Pearl?

Perhaps an unfair advantage the inconnu third game has on the well-affirmed Diamond and Pearl, is that its concealing can be passed off as justifiable. If Junichi Masuda promised 2005 would see him place all his powers into developing Diamond and Pearl, but that was not the case at all, it follows that his powers were eventually put into something else - not that he had no power.

By referring to Diamond and Pearl as being "under earnest development" they did more than just play on words - they virtually ceased updating the web site. Junichi Masuda's diary has only been updated twice since - once in honor of the new year, another in honor of the anniversary. On both occasions he mentioned Diamond and Pearl, not as a project which has filled the company's hands, but as something to keep in mind for the future. It was only then that it was apparent that he could not divulge any significant information, and from then on he would be concentrating on Diamond and Pearl. But it was one year too late; any development done on Diamond and Pearl in 2005 was conceptual work, which, while a good precedent for finishing the games in time for 2006's end as well as satisfying the anticipating fans, was not what he had promised to deliver.

 

[Jukain]

Well, I cannot make heads or tails of what Gamefreak's intentions or reasons are, but what I do get is that August is now the key point of fate for Pokemon. I don't see why they would make a game like this more important than D/P, though. The Wi-fi capabilities were the main selling point, and to rob it of having that as its main innovation could be devastating.

 

[FullMasta]

It is really unknown what anyone's plans are. The anime is supposed to kick off in the Fall or something but no game to back it up? That would be kind of stupid. But oh well...

 

[Jukain]

I just noticed something. Maybe we've been barking up the wrong tree with Gamefreak. Creatures also works on pokemon, and they were involved with Ranger. It was recently revealed that Manaphy would only be available by the special mission in that game, by sending the egg to D/P. Coincidence?

This possibly cannot explain everything, as Gamefreak has the more prominent role. I just thought it was interesting.

 

[Eszett]

As I stated in the thread on SPPf, profit reigns supreme. Neither Nintendo nor Gamefreak can afford to squander resources on a game that will meet questionable success when they can relegate their energies to something that will be a surefire hit. Granted, a new installment of the third generation would have been suited for some point in the past, before The Path to Diamond and Pearl was for the most part unveiled, but that time has long since passed to make this game either effective or well-composed.

To add to the marketing perspective, many fans stand in eager anticipation of the next generation rather than harking on the current one, which has only been strengthened by the relative silence from either company concerning D/P as compared to that of Path. This sudden deluge of information now serves not only to satiate our whetting appetites, but also to remind us of Gamefreak's true goals for the near future - namely, developing an awesome fourth-gen pair of games and swimming in the lucrative profits that are bound to ensue. Anything that gets in the way of this plan must not be allowed to impede their design lest D/P end up being a flop. Adding a third game to the FR/LG saga is exactly the kind of encumberance they want to avoid.