I just thought of a stupidly genius idea! (Pokemon Center)

[Mister Coffee]

Okay, I was just thinking about this while breeding my pokemon. I was noticing how the care taker was charging me money for holding on to my pokemon, which is no problem, since I'm rich, (like most players are by the end of the game) then I started thinking, "Hey... where do pokemon centers make their money from?"

Pokemon Centers never charge for their services ever... this obviously makes it hard to understand how they survive. This felt really confusing to me, I understand that Silph Co. The multi billion dollar pokemon company runs them along with the pokemarts. Maybe we can safely assume that with the help of funds from the pokemarts that there is no need to charge for healing at a center (this also makes sense as to why the marts merged with pokemon centers, come in for a free service... but maybe you might want to look at some of the nice pokemart products... smart business running.. lol)

Well although I'm stating the obvious here, my main point is, what if to explain where pokemon centers make their money from, Silph Co. ran a charity pokemon challenge in the pokemon games!
Sort of like when you run a charity for a hospital or a fund.
It would happen on certain days in a game. You pay (pokedollars) to play, and you can go through various pokemon challenges to win cool items!
Besides the fact that this would be cool in a game, it would also help explain where Silph Co. get's all it's money to keep it's ridiculous amount of pokemon centers to keep running.

Well this is jus me thinking out loud for game design. What do you guys think?
Also as a bonus topic, where do you think Silph. Co makes all it's money to keep running all those pokemon centers? (I tend to fall back on the answer that Poke'marts make most of the money.)

 

[Sydian]

Doesn't Silph Co. sell Pokeballs and stuff? Since they made the Master Ball, which has a 100% catch rate, surely the create and sell Pokeballs, Great Balls, etc. Dunno about Potions and such, but yeah. /me attempting to think before bed

 

[bobandbill]

Pokemon Centers never charge for their services ever... this obviously makes it hard to understand how they survive. This felt really confusing to me, I understand that Silph Co. The multi billion dollar pokemon company runs them along with the pokemarts.

I don't recall this ever being stated in the games. =/ Especially not for the regions in which Silph Co doesn't feature in even by name, let alone building... all I recall is that Silph Co made Pokeballs, including the Master Ball and I guess the assumption is they probably made the regular kind too, and other gadgets (e.g. the Upgrade, Silph Scope...)

I think it's just a thing that isn't really covered in the games because the creators saw no need to do so. Could be say a government plan (as the whole world is based on Pokemon fairly heavily, along with Pokemon battling, it's a free hospital for Pokemon usage), or run by the same private coperation (which could tie in with BW and how the Mart and Centre are in the same building... I suppose. Which still fits in with the government-gave-free-medicare-for-Pokemon thing. =p Or it could just be a Unova thing, given Unova is canonically set far away from the other regions/based on America, unlike the other Japan-based regions).

As for the charity idea... idk about that. Sure, I like additional side things to do in a game, but it sounds a bit forced with the reason it's there (and also sounds a bit like 'give us money for 'charity' or we'll go broke and no healing for you!' And if such charities failed, bye bye Pokemon Centres anyway... so why not charge for it anyway?)

 

[PelipperMail]

I have a feeling that there would be some sort of a fee that trainers would have to pay to legally own a trainer card. In my true opinion, a trainer card in the Pokéworld is not dissimilar to a driver's license in the real world - I had to pay for my license, so maybe in the Pokéworld trainers would have to pay for their license. I suspect there would be an annual fee, which would depend on how many Pokémon you have caught which is why Ash stopped trying to "Catch 'em All", because he kept on losing battles and losing half of his money each time, and his mother is jobless and can barely afford to support him as it is. This fee would obviously go to whatever, or whoever, runs the Pokémon league - or maybe the local council, government - and they would use this money to run the Pokécenters. Of course, if this was the case, money gained from items bought from the Pokemon would also be used to support the Pokécenter.

 

[MontyWinz]

If it was Canada we could just say the healing fees come out of the tax dollars :pink_giggle:

I do like your idea though, it would just add something else for players to do in game.

 

[Mister Coffee]

@Bobandbill I don't think it would be forced at all, I mean it's a charity, and although you are the pivotal character in the game you are definitely not the only trainer in the Pokemon world.

Look at it from a global perspective. Said company (may or may not be Silph Co.) wants to keep it's pokemon centers running. They have a lot of spare items that trainers want, although it would be logical to sell them directly in a store for a fixed price, instead they can make more money by providing a charity event. They make a lot of money from all the trainers (which may include yourself) that are attracted by the contest and prizes. This allows them to gain a large amount of money all at once that can be distributed amongst all the pokemon centers to keep their services running. Asuming the large population of trainers, it's a reasonable way to make trainers happy, make a lot of money, and keep a free service running.

They could have the events run every Friday or something like that, that way there is a constant income every week. See, now you are creating a fun activity that trainers WANT to participate in instead of just forcing a tax down everyone's throat.

This would be awesome because it would be extra fun content for people playing the game, it would wrap up the mystery of how pokemon centers survive, and you would get cool items for winning. Plus by the time you hit the end of the game you are making so much pokedollar it's ridiculous, so what's a couple 90,000 pokedollar? I spend more than that while EV raising my pokemon with stat drugs.

 

[DoctorFred]

Silph Co. gets its money from its inventions.

On the topic of pokemon centers, i would like the idea of making trainers pay at least 50 pokedollars for each visit. If you don't have the money after you faint, you'd be kicked back to your last save. But currently, i have no idea of how pokemon centers get their money. All i know that is if pokemon were real, pokemon centers would definitely cost money. In America, anyway

 

[Perriechu]

Pretty sure it would be ran by fee's of the citizens or something. Plus donations and such. I mean, there's 1 nurse who heals everyone's Pokemon. I'm sure some people have hearts to donate.

Silph Co. makes all of its money by selling its inventions. They make all the Pokeballs along with other key items that could be on sale in the Pokemon World. :>

 

[The 100 Mega Shock]

If you're wondering how he eats and heals, and other economic facts;
Just repeat to yourself "It's just a game, I should really just relax".

 

[Mister Coffee]

If you're wondering how he eats and heals, and other economic facts;
Just repeat to yourself "It's just a game, I should really just relax".

I'm willing to ignore the food and rest factors of it because most games do, but a lot of RPG's do try to explain the various economic factors of how businesses run and how the economy keeps itself moving.

This is just a minor suggestion that could patch up the question as well as add new interesting content.

Also remember, in a videogame, if business, economy, and money were not an important factor in the game, then why bother ever having money or items at all?

 

[bobandbill]

I'm willing to ignore the food and rest factors of it because most games do, but a lot of RPG's do try to explain the various economic factors of how businesses run and how the economy keeps itself moving.

This is just a minor suggestion that could patch up the question as well as add new interesting content.

Thing is... it's not exactly a question most players really think about, to put it that way. Most are kids who care more about which Pokemon is the strongest/coolest, from my experience anyways. Also, since when do a lot of RPGs try to explain various economic factors, and why would that mean Pokemon has to follow suit? I honestly cannot recall any games which explain the financial system used within it. =/ And then there's the fact that Pokemon is primarily aimed at young children who probably don't care about economy or wouldn't understand too much about it if said explanation isn't kept simple, or leastways much more complicated than 'you give $$$, you get items'.

I just feel that it's a sort of pointless reason to throw in a sidegame - plus why go and change 5 generations of canon in which it has always been established as free? It's a bit like suddenly saying 'you can have 8 Pokemon in your party now' - it's something set up since the beginning of the series that I don't see changing or 'explained'. Nor do I personally see much appeal in the concept either, but that's me.

Bobandbill I don't think it would be forced at all, I mean it's a charity, and although you are the pivotal character in the game you are definitely not the only trainer in the Pokemon world.

That'd require them then showing that everyone else does it in the game... which may just highlight the whole 'hey, I beat you, why aren't you on the way to the Pokemon Centre?' aspect in the games too. Idk, but I don't think it's that easy an explanation to just throw together.

My mention of 'forced' btw is that it sounds a bit like a guilt trip in a way in that you can have Pokemon healed for free... while they advertise on the side that they need $$$ to be able to heal your Pokemon, which again begs my question of 'why don't they just charge for it in the first place then?'. Nevermind a lot of the trainers are kids/etc who typically don't have much money (and if you keep losing battles then you keep on losing money... sure, it's an 'explanation' for how Pokemon Centres keep running, only without any canonical support and if thought about as if it was the real world... a rather risky way for it to get funds imo. Probably why such things typically aren't explained in games - it's not the point and would require a fair bit of thought/implementation that could be better used for more important parts of the game. It's no wonder most side-based stuff in the game have to do a lot with Pokemon competitions themselves (Battle Frontier, Musicals, Contests, Pokealthlon...).

Still unsure where it says Silph Co runs all Pokemon Centres too.

 

[shengar]

What makes those Pokemon Center keep runnin' and kickin' for free while they are many trainer out there all the time?
Its the government that gives fund to the League
They also have annual income from other sponsors.

Well, that in my fiction at least.


IMO, Silph Co. is much more a big company that aim for profit. I doubt it that Silph Co. fully fund the League for everything they have to offer to trainers.
There must be another source of fund for the league to keep up those pokemon center, not just Silph Co.

 

[psyanic]

Free healthcare, AKA the government. I'm not sure if Silph Co actually runs the pokemon centers. For example, the Nurse Joys are all part of a massive family, so pokemon centers could simply be tradition, like Officer Jenny. So it could just be a tradition that they heal pokemon, for free.

 

[LeafeonxxEeveexxEspeon]

Don't Question It

I've always just figured the mart funded the Pokémon centre. Something like that. Or perhaps the money the Elite Four get from fighting you (and winning over and over and over and over) and other trainers might have something to do with it. Otherwise you could just say that it's free healthcare or it really is owned by Silph Co. or some other thing, which provides the products in the shops.
My philisophy, however, has always been "You're getting healed for free. Don't question it."