6th Gen Thoughts on Pokebank being a paid service?

[COOLTRAINER♂]

Inserting and reinserting cartridges will damage a 3DS? Good job once more pokemon games cone out on digital download you can transfer your pokemon and bank then without using that slot thanks to the power of the cloud.

 

[Howmander]

You fail to take into account that not everyone WANTS to use the PokeBank service and ONLY wants to transfer their old mons into the new game. If the PokeTransfer feature was something completely seperate from and not a forced option to go with the PokeBank, no one would be complaining.

Five bucks is indeed cheap, but spending any kind of money on an app you don't give a damn about just so you can enjoy having your old buddies back into the new game is a bogus method of bilking on Game Freak's part.

PS: Have you guys heard of cases where the springs of the 3DS cartridge reader gets damaged due to this new method of transferring Pokemon? Almost further proof that Game Freak screwed up with this gen.

You DO understand that when pokebank came out it had a 30 day FREE trial, meaning everyone who didn't want to pay never had to pay, right? And when the next gen comes out in a few years, even if there is no more free trial then, spending $5 to transfer hundreds of pokemon in one fell swoop rather than 6 per day, or 1 box at a time is STILL infintiely better because, AGAIN, it's $5. Spend $5 at Starbucks for something that's gone in 20 minutes, or spend $5 on something like Pokebank that will last you another 4 or 5 years. It's super obvious that pokebank is STILL a good investment

and what are you talking about? "The springs get damaged due to this new methog of transferring pokemon"? You DO understand that poketransfer is a DIGITAL system, right? You're not actually physically transferring stuff. Swapping game cartridges has NOTHING to do with pokemon, poketransfer or ANYTHING along the lines. Swapping cartridges are what people do with all their consoles every single day. If the springs give out, it has NOTHING to do with these games as there is absolutely no difference between swapping Pokemon Black and Pokemon Y and swapping Super Mario 3D Land and Luigi's Mansion. Saying it's due to this new method of transfer is ridiculous and sounds like you're making stuff up to justify not wanting Pokebank!

 

[Meganium]

It makes sense that all the money goes toward the servers they're running. Without it, we'd have nowhere to store our priceless Pokemon. I say it's a fair deal imo.

 

[Talon Flare]

I already completed the Pokedex so it don't matter anymore until next gen comes

 

[Saki]

I am not exactly upset by the fee, it's not that much money of course, but I do find it a bit confusing to be honest. I guess it's the start of where the Pokemon Games are going though - paid expansions and such. It is, sadly, a way to make money. The majority of people who purchase X and Y will purchase a year's worth, I would imagine. I am not a 100% sure I will do it but it has its uses.

 

[Monophobia]

I don't mind it, but I think the transfer portion of it should be free. I understand that storing the data of Pokémon for millions can be costly, but transferring? I'm pretty sure that would only require temporary data storage, which could be cleared after every trade.

Also, it's frustrating having $4.00 already on my 3DS, just short of what I need. {XD}

 

[Meksal]

I don't mind it, but I think the transfer portion of it should be free. I understand that storing the data of Pokémon for millions can be costly, but transferring? I'm pretty sure that would only require temporary data storage, which could be cleared after every trade.

Also, it's frustrating having $4.00 already on my 3DS, just short of what I need. {XD}

It wouldn't be if they let you buy less than 10 dollars >.<

 

[Necrum]

https://www.pokecommunity.com/showthread.php?t=315439
We do have this if you need help transferring Pokemon but don't want to pay for it.

That said, I think that it being paid is just a necessary evil. Combining the transfer service into Bank was the easiest way to do it with gen 5 being DS games. I'm personally glad it isn't like Gen 2 to 3 where it was cut off entirely. And if Pokemon Bank weren't a paid service I would be constantly worried about it crashing and me losing all my Pokemon just sayin'.

It wouldn't be if they let you buy less than 10 dollars >.<

There's an option when you pay to just buy the funds you need.

 

[Oblivion Wing]

Some people like to take it to some extent hehe, honestly it's realy not that bad. Paying $5 for a server that gives me a year??
Shut up and take mah moneys!!

 

[Puddle]

I'd complain about it if I wasn't already spending 2$ a month just to talk about topics like this on this forum. It's a big convenience, you can get 6$ so easily. Don't complain.

 

[Imperator161]

Although I'm willing to spend the $5/year for bank, I wish it weren't a subscription service. The price isn't a big issue, though I suppose it will add up over time, and I'll need to remember to pay the fee every year to keep my Pokémon. I seem to be breeding more Pokémon than ever before, and I hate releasing them, so I'm a little concerned that I'm going to use up my bank space too quickly. I don't think transferring should require payment, but since I already need to pay for bank to get the extra storage space and save myself the anxiety and tedium of constantly having to release Pokémon, I'm not going to waste too much time complaining about the cost.


The element that bothers me more than the price, though, is that bank relies on external servers. Personally, I would rather pay an extra $30-40 for a (larger) external storage device that I personally have control over. Given Nintendo's financial difficulties, and given Game Freak's poor response to the issues with bank, server load, etc., early on, I'm not convinced that this is a sustainable system. And even though we'll probably be given a heads up if bank needs to shut down for some reason, I'm not sure I'll have anywhere to move my thousands of Pokémon to. I would rather have a device that I can store somewhere that will still work when I pull it out a decade or two from now. I'm not convinced that Nintendo/Game Freak's idea of a "long-term" storage option will extend more than five years or so, and I want storage that I can rely on indefinitely. (I would also like games that would last indefinitely, or at least for a very long time, so I can use them with my lasting storage, but as I have no idea what the lifespan of a 3DS game is, I'll save that topic for another discussion.)

 

[Necrum]

...and I'll need to remember to pay the fee every year to keep my Pokémon...

...and given Game Freak's poor response to the issues with bank, server load, etc., early on, I'm not convinced that this is a sustainable system.

On the first part, it doesn't delete your pokemon outright and it will prompt you when it's time so remembering isn't really an issue imo.

As for the second, that was primarily an issue with how the eShop and Nintendo Network was tied into Pokemon Bank, not an issue with the Pokemon Bank server itself. They needed the time to fix it and they did so as soon as they could. It was frustrating, sure, but I wouldn't say they did a poor job.

 

[Mithel_Celestia]

The only thing I'm annoyed by is the tax <(first time experiencing taxed purchase people)

Other than that, the need ot pay is not a big deal to me. I have some very valuable Pokemon and a (partly) whole Pokedex so the storage is convenient. I hope they allow transferring and withdrawing (not depositing) to be free just to satisfy the masses.

 

[mangamusicfan]

I don't mind to pay for it (And it's cheap)
The server's also cost mony that's why they need to ask a fee for it.
And I'm happy they do, Now I'm sure I will keep my Pokemon, if it whas free the chanche is bigger that something can go wrong.

 

[Ratty524]

You DO understand that when pokebank came out it had a 30 day FREE trial, meaning everyone who didn't want to pay never had to pay, right? And when the next gen comes out in a few years, even if there is no more free trial then, spending $5 to transfer hundreds of pokemon in one fell swoop rather than 6 per day, or 1 box at a time is STILL infintiely better because, AGAIN, it's $5. Spend $5 at Starbucks for something that's gone in 20 minutes, or spend $5 on something like Pokebank that will last you another 4 or 5 years. It's super obvious that pokebank is STILL a good investment

You do have a point in regards to the investment, but what about those who missed the free trial? Not everyone who plays Pokemon is a kid with a chock full of free time on their hands.

and what are you talking about? "The springs get damaged due to this new methog of transferring pokemon"? You DO understand that poketransfer is a DIGITAL system, right? You're not actually physically transferring stuff. Swapping game cartridges has NOTHING to do with pokemon, poketransfer or ANYTHING along the lines. Swapping cartridges are what people do with all their consoles every single day. If the springs give out, it has NOTHING to do with these games as there is absolutely no difference between swapping Pokemon Black and Pokemon Y and swapping Super Mario 3D Land and Luigi's Mansion. Saying it's due to this new method of transfer is ridiculous and sounds like you're making stuff up to justify not wanting Pokebank!

Swapping cartridges does, actually. The springs I'm talking about is specifically with the 3DS game slot. PokeBank does not recognize your Gen5 games, so you actually need to eject the Gen5 cartridge you used during the PokeTransfer app with the Gen6 game for EVERY BOX OF POKEMON from the B/W games. So yes, you ARE switching cartridges constantly during the transfer process, sucks to those who have a lot of Pokemon to transfer. While I haven't found a specific article with the issue, I was reading on TV Tropes that their apparently has been some instances where the cartridge slot springs on the 3DS do get damaged with this constant switching, resulting in cartridges getting stuck or becoming unreadable. I was only asking if anyone else has heard of this, because thank god that didn't happen to my games.

 

[Dustmop]

You DO understand that when pokebank came out it had a 30 day FREE trial, meaning everyone who didn't want to pay never had to pay, right? And when the next gen comes out in a few years, even if there is no more free trial then, spending $5 to transfer hundreds of pokemon in one fell swoop rather than 6 per day, or 1 box at a time is STILL infintiely better because, AGAIN, it's $5. Spend $5 at Starbucks for something that's gone in 20 minutes, or spend $5 on something like Pokebank that will last you another 4 or 5 years. It's super obvious that pokebank is STILL a good investment

Everyone? I didn't realize that everyone who was going to play Pokemon x/y already had it. This is the first and only Pokemon game I've bought near the release date, and the only one I've gotten any event Pokemon from because of that. It took me 3 years after the release of the console itself to finally buy it. Not everyone who will play already has a copy.

And even if it is a small amount, my point still stands that I'd rather save the $5 for something I need instead of dropping it on an app for a video game.

 

[Handsome Samurott]

My take on Pokemon Bank being a paid service: it is an international technology service Game Freak is providing for $5, which is pocket change. To everyone who complains, stop complaining. And to those saying they do not want to spend $5 on this service, consider the frivolous goods, services, and activities you regularly spend $5 on without complaining. That should put the issue in perspective. I apologize if I come across as harsh, but all the people whining about the $5 service fee exasperate me.

 

[Ratty524]

My take on Pokemon Bank being a paid service: it is an international technology service Game Freak is providing for $5, which is pocket change. To everyone who complains, stop complaining. And to those saying they do not want to spend $5 on this service, consider the frivolous goods, services, and activities you regularly spend $5 on without complaining. That should put the issue in perspective. I apologize if I come across as harsh, but all the people whining about the $5 service fee exasperate me.

I spend five bucks on... Food, which is something I kind of need to survive.
Also, it's not the price that bothers me, it's the fact that I don't like being forced to pay for a feature, which I'm never going to fully utilize, just so that I can transfer content from an old game to a new one, especially considering the past transfer methods were completely free of charge, and the only money I had to spend was on the games themselves.

I've seen everyone's take on this, here, and I completely understand why Game Freak needs to charge to keep their server up and how five dollars a year isn't a lot, but that's not the point. The cost could be five cents and I still wouldn't like it.

 

[Oblivion Wing]

I spend five bucks on... Food, which is something I kind of need to survive.
Also, it's not the price that bothers me, it's the fact that I don't like being forced to pay for a feature, which I'm never going to fully utilize, just so that I can transfer content from an old game to a new one, especially considering the past transfer methods were completely free of charge, and the only money I had to spend was on the games themselves.

I've seen everyone's take on this, here, and I completely understand why Game Freak needs to charge to keep their server up and how five dollars a year isn't a lot, but that's not the point. The cost could be five cents and I still wouldn't like it.

I didn't know it was a service required for the game? xD

You don't have to get it if you don't want to. Doesn't change gameplay at all. It's an addition to the game.

 

[Ratty524]

I didn't know it was a service required for the game? xD

You don't have to get it if you don't want to. Doesn't change gameplay at all. It's an addition to the game.

I like how you chose to respond to a quarter of my sentence. Try again. :)