How long will the franchise last?

[moon]

Do you think the pokémon franchise is growing or declining now? We have seen 6 generations, and there sure seems to be a steady fanbase still, even though it's possibly not the same kind of people who are attracted to pokémon X & Y that was interested in Red and Blue once upon a time.

How long do you think pokémon will keep being a popular franchise? Measured in years, perhaps. Do you think the games will outlast the anime or the TCG or toys or the other way around? And yeah, do you think pokémon is still growing or has stepped onto the downslope finally?​

 

[Wobbu]

I don't have any stats, but I'd say the franchise is growing. From what I've seen around the web, most people have been saying positive things about new additions to the Pokémon franchise. I know that they are still making a hefty profit, so there's some motivation to continue.

I'm sure the anime, TCG, merchandise, etc. will last as long as the games do, possibly longer. I've always thought they'd stop at 1000 Pokémon. It seems like a good, non-random number to stop at. I'm thinking ~2020 will mark the end of the games, with the others eventually fading out by ~2030 :(

Do I think the franchise is going downhill? No. Gen. 5 has managed to defeat Gen. 3 as my favorite Generation. IMO The games are much better, the anime has more character depth and interaction , and the TCG is becoming even more competitive.

 

[Rivuhh]

It's hard to say. I think the sales are pretty even from how they were back then. More people bought the games but there were less games to buy. However, I think in a couple years the Franchise could definitely die if they run out of Pokemon to create. But, for now, the franchise is holding strong and there is a lot of anticipation for X&Y so we'll see where it goes from there.

 

[Altair1]

I think it's still growing in my view. It still rakes in the money with the sales. Along with Mario, it'll last a very long time, I don't see it dieing out anytime soon.
But it makes me think how much regions are they planning to make? How much Pokemon will they make before they stop and start basing their games over remakes and sequels? ...

 

[KorpiklaaniVodka]

I hope Gen 6 is the last generation with new Pokemon, as there are already enough Pokemon (about 680) and they're running out of ideas.
As for the franchise itself, though, probably it'll not die until the Pokemon anime ends or something.

 

[Mali-billz]

I believe the franchise will last. But I say they should just stop putting new regions, new pokemon etc. Like do a time skip where Ash is a master and the show is based around a new character

 

[Patrick]

As long as it remains profitable. Same answer for any franchise.

 

[Tsutarja]

I don't see Pokémon dying at all in the near future, especially the games. I'd say that X and Y are far from the climax and or the downfall of Pokémon, in my opinion, but others' opinions will vary and I do respect that.

However, I do think the anime has probably degraded in quality compared to when it first came out. This has by far been noticeable to me in the BW anime, but it appears as time goes along, Ash just acts more and more childish, even more childish than when Gary was his arrogant rival.

 

[Sirfetch’d]

I don't see Pokemon going away anytime soon. Yes, you see people saying that they have left the franchise because they don't like the way things are now with Pokemon, but you have a new generation of people that will be interested in X&Y and I see the franchise being bigger than ever. Pokemon has and will always be successful imo. I don't see it dying out until GF wants it to really.

 

[ImBlue]

A long, long time. They still have dedicated fans from the first generation playing ~15 years later. Why shouldn't they be able to keep new fans starting with this generation for at least that amount of time as well?

Pokemon isn't like many other games; there's not much story continuity (besides enough to establish they happen in the same universe) so there's no end to the story. There's billions of different species of animals in our world, so plenty of room to create new Pokemon. Add the fact that they can do anything from making a country into a new region (nearly 200 countries irl), a country into multiple regions (Japan), or make a single city into an entire region (New York), and they have plenty of land designs as well. Not to mention remake possibilities and spinoffs; there's no limit to the number of games they can create.

It will all depend on finding a balance between new features and keeping it still 'Pokemon', but I'm confident that Game Freak will be able to do that for as long as they intend to continue the franchise.

 

[Amore]

I've literally just said this in another post - I think pokémon's the video game equivalent of The Simpsons, it'll keep on going forever and ever. If anything, its growing - there're always first-time purchasers, and you have people here into their twenties at least who're still buying the games.

 

[Aeroblast]

According to the above random number generator between this year and 100 years from now (I think that was a good barometer), Pokemon will die off in the Year 2112.

 

[\/]

If Mario can be around for three decades, so can Pokemon. It doesn't require fast reflexes, so its good for players of any age/skill, and has collecting.

 

[PhoenixWright77]

Pokemon is the 2nd best selling video game franchise in the world and therefore Nintendo's 2nd best selling series. As far as I can tell, Pokemon won't die in a few years. Heck, I don't think it will die in 50 years! If sales keep up as they have been for years, the only series that would die after Pokemon is Nintendo's famous plumber himself.

 

[Kyrul]

Until it stops generating profits and becomes a liability.

 

[Cerberus87]

I expect my kids to play Pokémon, and I don't plan on having kids any time soon.

 

[moon]

I believe the franchise will last. But I say they should just stop putting new regions, new pokemon etc. Like do a time skip where Ash is a master and the show is based around a new character

I don't think they will do that, haha. Maybe just if this new anime thing becomes so very popular that the company finally realizes that we don't want Ash to keep nerfing for every new region anymore (no offense to any Ash lovers out there!).

As long as it remains profitable. Same answer for any franchise.

I guess that is true ^^

A long, long time. They still have dedicated fans from the first generation playing ~15 years later. Why shouldn't they be able to keep new fans starting with this generation for at least that amount of time as well?

Pokemon isn't like many other games; there's not much story continuity (besides enough to establish they happen in the same universe) so there's no end to the story. There's billions of different species of animals in our world, so plenty of room to create new Pokemon. Add the fact that they can do anything from making a country into a new region (nearly 200 countries irl), a country into multiple regions (Japan), or make a single city into an entire region (New York), and they have plenty of land designs as well. Not to mention remake possibilities and spinoffs; there's no limit to the number of games they can create.

It will all depend on finding a balance between new features and keeping it still 'Pokemon', but I'm confident that Game Freak will be able to do that for as long as they intend to continue the franchise.

I agree with most of this, basically. And on top of that, there are an incredible number of ways to make interesting spinoffs, from the PMD series and Colosseum, to pinball and dash and fighting games. I hope they will keep trying new kinds of spinoffs!

According to the above random number generator between this year and 100 years from now (I think that was a good barometer), Pokemon will die off in the Year 2112.

xD

I expect my kids to play Pokémon, and I don't plan on having kids any time soon.

ME TOO. Definitely. I will make sure that Pokémon is their first handheld game. Maybe if my Pokémon Yellow copy still works by then, I'll make them play that ;) Or somehow get a Crystal copy with a fixed battery. Gotta start with the classics.

 

[XeroXeroOne]

Maybe if they brought back Pokemon Centers in major cities. Back in Gen 1, I had always wanted to go to New York, but by Gen 3 it was gone. I would go if they brought it back, and it would be a nice "refresher" for the market. Get all of us trainers in one location to battle and stuff.

 

[~RNC~]

Pokemon is the 2nd best selling video game franchise in the world and therefore Nintendo's 2nd best selling series. As far as I can tell, Pokemon won't die in a few years. Heck, I don't think it will die in 50 years! If sales keep up as they have been for years, the only series that would die after Pokemon is Nintendo's famous plumber himself.

Sorry pokemon is not the 2nd best seller:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_best-selling_video_games

But I do think it will be around for a very long time, there up coming generations of children / people that will get into it and keep buying so nintendo will see the profits and stick with it, but that is is just my opinion.

 

[RoreyG]

It can and will be sustained for the time being. The dedicated international and local Japanese fanbase keeps the franchise somewhat profitable so that Nintendo has no reason (from a business perspective) to end it.

That said, I think some of the hardcore fans are fooling themselves into thinking that the franchise is still thriving as it was when it first came out. As far as mainstream popularity goes, it's nowhere near as booming as it was between the late 90's and early 2000's. Although there has been some reclaimed interest since the release of 5th Gen, the franchise is nowhere near as dominant as it once was (at least outside of the main games).

This situation may change over time and it might become even bigger than it was when it first come out, however, I'm a bit doubtful of that.

My Final Verdict: The loyal and dedicated fanbase will continue to sustain and allow the franchise as a whole to survive for the time being. However, I doubt that it would ever be as massive as it once was. It will only really end when it stops being profitable for Nintendo.