Game Freak

Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, News | 31 Comments

Update (4/2): Bumped to the top. Nothing new was shown, sadly. Masuda was in attendance, but they only went over the trailer that was shown during the Pokemon Direct in February. This was technically the first TV airing of the video, but it’s disappointing nonetheless!

Original (3/26): It was already made clear that we’d be getting a proper look at Pokemon Sun/Moon in the near future thanks to CoroCoro’s upcoming issue. However, we now have confirmation that gameplay will be shared very soon.

Next week’s episode of the Japanese variety show Pokenchi (Gathering at the Pokemon House) is confirmed to show the first TV aired footage of the new games. Game Freak director Junichi Masuda should also be in attendance to talk about Sun/Moon.

Pokenchi’s upcoming episode airs on April 3 in Japan.

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Mobile, News | 6 Comments

A few weeks ago, Japanese outlet Inside Games published a lengthy interview with Pokemon CEO/president Tsunekazu Ishihara. There was a tiny bit about the current status/future of the series (Pokemon GO), but it was more reflective about the franchise in general and its past. Ishihara went in-depth about how the game series started and the importance of the Link Cable which helped boost popularity, bringing the franchise overseas and naming Pokemon, and more.

It took some time, but we now have a complete translation of the interview. Head past the break to read it in full.

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 33 Comments

Pokemon has been around for 20 years, which is a very long time. The series has plenty of longtime fans, but new players come into contact with the series each day as well.

So how does Game Freak – the maker of the Pokemon RPGs – appeal to both types of players? That’s something GamesMaster asked the studio’s Junichi Masuda in an interview this month.

He told the magazine in response:

“Today you will see ’90s kids who played the first Pokémon games, who are now parents playing with their children. But some of the core gameplay elements simply appeal as much now as they did in 1996. The collectable elements of the game still appeal to people’s sense of achievement, and it’s great for strategic thinking.

“You have to make accurate judgements about what to change and what not to change. It is also about not making things too difficult. After two or three generations, games have a tendency to become more difficult. In recent titles, catching Pokémon by throwing PokéBalls is explained in-game, but we also make a point of trying to get into the heads of children who have picked up a Pokémon game for the very first time in order to better understand how the games feel to a first-time audience.”

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 5 Comments

Game Freak’s Junichi Masuda spoke about a number of general Pokemon topics in this month’s issue of GamesMaster. He also commented specifically on Pokemon GO a bit as well, in which he stated that the game “will bring about a new kind of experience, different from that of existing Pokemon titles”.

Masuda’s full comments:

“Amongst other things, this year will see the launch of Pokémon Go – a groundbreaking mobile game that will encourage fans to search far and wide in the real world to discover Pokémon. Players will be able to catch, trade, and battle in the real world by utilizing location information.

“I have been involved personally in the project. It is a game where players can search, trade and battle Pokémon in the real world. I think Pokémon Go will bring about a new kind of experience, different from that of existing Pokémon titles, allowing players to explore their own neighborhoods, searching for Pokémon together with their friends. It is in this way that we hope that Pokémon Go, which will be released in 2016, will provide new enjoyment to our fans.”

Niantic was originally planning on hosting a Pokemon GO session at GDC. However, those plans were cancelled so that the team could focus on the game itself. A field test for Pokemon GO will be held in Japan later this month.

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS eShop, Screenshots | 1 Comment

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, Videos | 4 Comments

A pair of videos have been published on the Pokemon YouTube account featuring key members of the franchise. The Pokemon Company president Tsunekazu Ishihara and Game Freak’s Junichi Masuda discussed the series’ history. View them both below.

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Posted on 9 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 8 Comments

In the latest issue of Famitsu, Game Freak said that the company wants to make 2016 “into a great year of celebrations” for Pokemon. Junichi Masuda offered up a little something more in this month’s Nintendo Dream.

Here’s our translation of what was said:

“Happy New Year! On February 27, 2016, Pokemon will celebrate its 20th anniversary. On this day, Virtual Console versions of Pokemon Red, Green, Blue & Yellow will be released, so if we can hype it up with everyone while feeling nostalgic with the past, I’ll be glad! And this year I think we’ll give a feel of the future with Pokemon Go! We’re challenging [ourselves] so that the 20th anniversary will be fun for everyone in the world, so please keep up your continuing support. The ring of Pokemon is still getting bigger! I look forward to working with you all this year!

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Posted on 9 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 9 Comments

In a new interview with 4Gamer, Tsunekazu Ishihara talked about how late Nintendo president Satoru Iwata’s vital work helped bring the original Pokemon games to the west. You can read up on the full excerpt below, courtesy of Siliconera’s translation.

4Gamer: I believe there may be more people now that don’t know that Iwata-san was involved in Pokémon.

Ishihara: I think there are even people within Nintendo that don’t even know. 1998 was around the time Iwata-san was working as President of HAL Laboratory.

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Posted on 9 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 6 Comments

This week’s issue of Famitsu features comments from various developers about what’s in store for 2016. For Pokemon developer Game Freak, the studio shared the following:

“2016 is Pokémon’s 20th anniversary. We’d like to make it into a great year of celebrations.”

There are a couple of other Nintendo-related comments from other developers as well. Here’s what Arc System Works and Koei Tecmo said:

Arc System Works: We have various things planned out for the excitement of Kunio-kun series’ 30th anniversary.

Koei Tecmo: Attack on Titan, Yo-kai Watch: Three Kingdoms, Ni-Oh,and more. There are many big titles that we wouldn’t able to fit in here, along with some amazing titles that we’ve yet to announce.

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Posted on 9 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 5 Comments

Game Freak, developer of the Pokemon RPGs, has acquired Koa Games. The mobile studio created titles such as Labyrinth RPG, Erunea Kingdom, Legendary Legion and Road Roller.

Koa Games had been suffering from financial losses, which prompted the takeover from Game Freak. As for the actual studio, Koa will be disbanded and absorbed into Game Freak. The acquisition itself took place in August.

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