So it was sparked here by the mention of having battles in a city, but it was an idea I wanted to pursue in a more appropriate forum: What would a Pokemon game look like if it were set in one massive city?
First and foremost, however, I want to insist:
If you think this is a stupid idea, don't bother posting. I half agree with you anyway, and it doesn't contribute to the exercise.
Okay then. Let me start.
The "Hometown"
I could see the PC starting out in a small village or suburb on the outskirts of the city, perhaps with the Professor's house being located here, if not his/her lab (which would make sense to be located somewhere in the city. The initial "errand", as these games so often have, could be as simple as picking something up at the lab for the Professor.
The "Towns"
Would have their purpose served by districts. As they are, towns aren't really all that big, so these could simply be the atolls in the city where you are allowed/capable of entering the buildings, and of course they'd be centered around a Gym. Anyone who'se lived in any major city can tell you that, considering that most city districts actually used to be towns a long time ago, and most of them retain a sense of that. I used to live on Queen Anne Hill in Seattle, which is next to Capital Hill (very gay), Fremont (very hippy), and Ballard (very nordic). I see districts working as easy replacements for towns.
The Routes
Here's where it starts to break down for me. How do you get grass to appear regularly in cities? Well, London might have an answer. Aside from the BIG parks (Hyde, Regent's, Green, Battersea), it has a lot of little one- or two- block greens spattered throughout the city. What if, because you can't walk on the roads (maybe until you get a scooter?) you have to walk through these? They'd be full of trainers out with their pokemon, eager for some training and exercise, much like any regular dog walkers. Hell, there's a new trainer type right there: Dogwalker, someone who's been hired to take out someone's canine-based pokemon for the day.
Caves
Easy. Big warehouses. Dingy buildings. Really anything with an entrance on one side and an exit on the other.
Water Routes
All parks have lakes, and all cities have rivers. Add a port district and you're golden, I'd say.
An Issue Of Scale
The more I think about it, the less the scale of such a game bothers me. As it stands, the games we've had so far do not take place in especially spacious regions. Assuming each tile is a meter square, how big are the regions in total? Seriously, if anyone has that count, or can link to someone who's done it, I'd love to see it. It's probably not as big as, say, Liberty City in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (which, I will concede, operates on a smaller scale).
The Legendaries
This one... this one I want to hear what other people suggest, first.
So come on. Imagine with me.
First and foremost, however, I want to insist:
If you think this is a stupid idea, don't bother posting. I half agree with you anyway, and it doesn't contribute to the exercise.
Okay then. Let me start.
The "Hometown"
I could see the PC starting out in a small village or suburb on the outskirts of the city, perhaps with the Professor's house being located here, if not his/her lab (which would make sense to be located somewhere in the city. The initial "errand", as these games so often have, could be as simple as picking something up at the lab for the Professor.
The "Towns"
Would have their purpose served by districts. As they are, towns aren't really all that big, so these could simply be the atolls in the city where you are allowed/capable of entering the buildings, and of course they'd be centered around a Gym. Anyone who'se lived in any major city can tell you that, considering that most city districts actually used to be towns a long time ago, and most of them retain a sense of that. I used to live on Queen Anne Hill in Seattle, which is next to Capital Hill (very gay), Fremont (very hippy), and Ballard (very nordic). I see districts working as easy replacements for towns.
The Routes
Here's where it starts to break down for me. How do you get grass to appear regularly in cities? Well, London might have an answer. Aside from the BIG parks (Hyde, Regent's, Green, Battersea), it has a lot of little one- or two- block greens spattered throughout the city. What if, because you can't walk on the roads (maybe until you get a scooter?) you have to walk through these? They'd be full of trainers out with their pokemon, eager for some training and exercise, much like any regular dog walkers. Hell, there's a new trainer type right there: Dogwalker, someone who's been hired to take out someone's canine-based pokemon for the day.
Caves
Easy. Big warehouses. Dingy buildings. Really anything with an entrance on one side and an exit on the other.
Water Routes
All parks have lakes, and all cities have rivers. Add a port district and you're golden, I'd say.
An Issue Of Scale
The more I think about it, the less the scale of such a game bothers me. As it stands, the games we've had so far do not take place in especially spacious regions. Assuming each tile is a meter square, how big are the regions in total? Seriously, if anyone has that count, or can link to someone who's done it, I'd love to see it. It's probably not as big as, say, Liberty City in Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (which, I will concede, operates on a smaller scale).
The Legendaries
This one... this one I want to hear what other people suggest, first.
So come on. Imagine with me.