Call this ironic, but one thing that fascinates me about Pokémon fan games is seeing canon characters from the official games appear as NPCs in games with mostly original casts, or take the spotlight if they're not already the protagonists in the official games. Here's some questions:
-Do you think fan games with mainly original casts benefit from including a canon character to establish a connection with the official games, or does that work against the fan game? Why/why not?
-Do you like fan games that attempt to expand on canon characters' backstories (e.g. Pokémon Parallax, P.S. The First Journey), give them something new to do (e.g. Pokémon Glazed), or present an alternate universe with new possibilities for them (e.g. Pokémon Altair and Sirius, Pokémon Omegatastrophe)? How well did they work and why/why not?
-Combining the above two questions, how involved should the canon characters be in a mostly original story? Do you prefer short cameos, or would you rather involve them in the main story somehow?
-In your opinion, what was the most noteworthy/memorable appearance or mention of a canon character in a fan game you have played? You can talk about both positive and negative ones (but do try to be respectful about the latter!).
-----------
For one, I am always taken aback when characters who aren't canonically jerks or villains turn into such in fan games. I'm not saying it's wrong (and I've got an idea for it myself floating around for a while), but given that the main series has not done it yet (and only adaptations like PokéSpe had some non-villainous characters become jerks/evil), it's still surprising. For example:
-Two separate fan games have painted Johto Gym Leader Bugsy in a negative light. Reborn had him be neglectful towards his OC younger sister Shelly (who became insecure as a result of his treatment), and Insurgence mentions that he lost his position due to being involved in a match fixing scandal. I barely see Bugsy around in fandom stuff as it is, so it comes across as odd.
-Altair and Sirius had Steven and Wallace be the resident villainous team leaders for... not very clear reasons. Again, amongst all the stuff that was out of place in those games, that was the most striking.
-Xenoverse has not one, but two spoileriffic examples. One can be summed up in a single quote said in-game: "I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." The other is Youngster Joey, who turned into an internet troll sort of character. Somehow, the latter shocked me more, because I actually find Joey an endearing character and never thought he'd become... that. I'm just spoiling this so you'll be able to decide whether you will see him for yourself or not.
Any other thoughts? Share 'em!
-Do you think fan games with mainly original casts benefit from including a canon character to establish a connection with the official games, or does that work against the fan game? Why/why not?
-Do you like fan games that attempt to expand on canon characters' backstories (e.g. Pokémon Parallax, P.S. The First Journey), give them something new to do (e.g. Pokémon Glazed), or present an alternate universe with new possibilities for them (e.g. Pokémon Altair and Sirius, Pokémon Omegatastrophe)? How well did they work and why/why not?
-Combining the above two questions, how involved should the canon characters be in a mostly original story? Do you prefer short cameos, or would you rather involve them in the main story somehow?
-In your opinion, what was the most noteworthy/memorable appearance or mention of a canon character in a fan game you have played? You can talk about both positive and negative ones (but do try to be respectful about the latter!).
-----------
For one, I am always taken aback when characters who aren't canonically jerks or villains turn into such in fan games. I'm not saying it's wrong (and I've got an idea for it myself floating around for a while), but given that the main series has not done it yet (and only adaptations like PokéSpe had some non-villainous characters become jerks/evil), it's still surprising. For example:
-Two separate fan games have painted Johto Gym Leader Bugsy in a negative light. Reborn had him be neglectful towards his OC younger sister Shelly (who became insecure as a result of his treatment), and Insurgence mentions that he lost his position due to being involved in a match fixing scandal. I barely see Bugsy around in fandom stuff as it is, so it comes across as odd.
-Altair and Sirius had Steven and Wallace be the resident villainous team leaders for... not very clear reasons. Again, amongst all the stuff that was out of place in those games, that was the most striking.
-Xenoverse has not one, but two spoileriffic examples. One can be summed up in a single quote said in-game: "I guess the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." The other is Youngster Joey, who turned into an internet troll sort of character. Somehow, the latter shocked me more, because I actually find Joey an endearing character and never thought he'd become... that. I'm just spoiling this so you'll be able to decide whether you will see him for yourself or not.
Any other thoughts? Share 'em!
Last edited: