Ishihara wants the Pokemon games to be enhanced with latest tech, communication is key

This week’s issue of Famitsu contains an interview with Pokemon president Tsunekazu Ishihara. Ishihara discussed Pokemon Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire and a few other topics, but the most interesting comments came about when he talked about the future of Game Freak’s titles.

Famitsu first inquires about Pokemon as a whole. When asked about the current situation and views of the future from his perspective, Ishihara teased:

Let me see… I wonder which topics I can discuss, but there is something I can tell you. I’d want to enhance the fun of Game Freak’s Pokemon series by using the latest possible technology and doing more advanced things. If players used the link cable to trade Pokemon in Red and Blue, Pokemon could level up faster or evolve. No game had offered this kind of experience before. Communicating like that has progressed and now features such as playing via the Internet and StreetPass are used. What will it look like if communication keeps progressing more and more? Although I can’t say anything concrete yet, I’d like to see that kind of thing implemented. It would be great if the newest technology made possible Pokemon gameplay which would surprise players as much as Pokemon Red and Blue.

Famitsu next points out that Pokemon has a history of showing “a bit of the future” for the common user. The magazine asks, “So there is a will to keep up the progress on that field, right?”

Ishihara says in response:

That’s true. For example, in Pokemon Bank, Pokemon can be stored in the cloud. You can take them out when you want and then again return them back when you’re finished. I think that play using the Internet will keep steadily evolving in the future, too. In an environment like that, what kind of Pokemon gameplay should be offered to make it the most fun? This is always discussed within the company and extremely varied ideas come out.

The latest Pokemon titles from Game Freak, Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, launch worldwide on November 21.