Insight from Pokémon World Champions and Temtem’s Director.
In 1998 my Canadian elementary school banned everything to do with Pokémon. The games, the trading cards, and discussions about the anime – all of it was off-limits as Pocket Monster fever swept through North America like a swarm of Rattata, distracting us from our in-class reading of Anne of Green Gables. That did not stop me and my classmates from passing notes about whether or not there really was a Mew beneath the truck parked near the S.S. Anne when Mrs. Hubbard turned her back. Nor did it stop us from pitying those poor souls whose parents would not buy them a Game Boy, let alone a copy of Pokémon Red or Blue. To us, that was a step removed from child abuse.
Many people can relate similar anecdotes about playing the quintessentially classic Red and Blue. By ‘quintessential’ I mean Pokémon games stand out as some of the most memorable and influential gaming experiences ever made. Yet the special thing about Pokémon is this phenomenon which isn’t exclusive to those of us in Canada or born around 1990. Up until this year’s Pokémon Legends: Arceus, every mainline Pokémon game is a classic for another generation of kids the world over. Somehow, Pokémon developer Game Freak continues to capture cultural touchstone after cultural touchstone as if it were as easy as catching a Caterpie.
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