Large format. Creature designs, names, values… Pokémon is a really cool universe: we explain why

Pokémon, even 25 years later, is a colossal success as soon as the license releases something. Whether it's a new video game on console, an application on phone, or a new series, each time the result is there: a plebiscite.

And if the commercial strategy is particularly elaborate, including a mass sales method, in order to flood different audiences with their content, games, films, cards and other derivative products… well that's not everything.

What sells Pokémon is also the fact that they are really good games, that the theme songs of the cartoons – sung by Jean-Marc Anthony Kabeya – are great (many of us know them by heart), and that the universe… is really, really cool.

Pokémon, designs that hit the mark

Primordial in the game, the creatures now number 1025compared to 151 at the start. They are not all beautiful, not all to everyone's taste, but what is certain is that we cannot remain indifferent to all Pokémon.

Some are big and menacing, others thin and cute. And the reverse too. We find them in all colors, in all shapes, with more or less charisma, and more or less interest in strategy.

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The creators have been able to renew themselves and adapt to changes in society, gradually moving away from the “kaiju” style, to get a little closer to what is done today.

However, the “big monster” delusion is far from being abandoned. It's just that there aren't just Pokémon that look powerful and menacing anymore.

Pokémon has been able to renew itself and attract a new audience, less fond of “monsters”, fans of cuter creatures. However, the franchise has managed to retain the core audience, by continuing to create menacing-looking characters.

The famous Pokémon nostalgia… But with tips

Overall, the designs aren't too complex. They have become rounder as time has passed, to reflect the times. But overall, we remain in the same spirit. And this nostalgia aspect, dear to Pokémon, is still present. Pokémon from the first generation continue to appear in newer games.

To avoid repeating too much, the creators had a genius idea: make a different breed of Pokémon depending on the region where it lives. For example, in the first generation, which takes place in Kanto, we can come across Ninetales. In the seventh generation, we added Alolan Ninetales, his counterpart from the Alola region.

Concretely, out of 1025 Pokémon, it is very difficult not to find what you are looking for. If you love dogs, there's a host of dog Pokémon… If you love fish, it's the same. Dragons are the same…

The nostalgia aspect is also found thanks to cartoons. Anyone who has watched a few episodes of the main series will immediately react to certain sound effects, such as the opening of a Pokéball, or the voice of the Pokédex, which describes Pokémon that we have never met before.

Along the same lines, remember Jessie, James and Meowth, from team rocket with their famous speeches (yes, there were several). They have almost become cult: “We are back… to play a trick”…

Catchy names, translated into French. But it wasn't easy

And let's talk about their names: with a few exceptions, like Pikachu for example, each name is translated from Japanese to stick to the details of said creature.

For example, Squirtle is called Zenigame in Japanese. “Game” coming from “kame”, the turtle, and “zeni”, for “sou”, a small coin. So a little turtle. In French, this gave “cara” for the idea of ​​the turtle, and “chip”, to transcribe the smallness: Carapuce.

Julien Bardakoff, who took care of the translations for the French version, explained to Liberation that he had to bluff to convince the company.

At first, Nintendo did not intend to translate the names of the Pokémon: it seemed too complicated to register all these words as trademarks in several languages. We, the French, had to convince them that it was essential… Sometimes by chirping a little. For example, I tried to make them believe that the Pokémon Zenigame evoked the word “camé” in French, and that that was not suitable for children.

A decision which will certainly have been beneficial for the company: today, certain names have become almost iconic. Charizard, Mewtwo, Meowth…

Hyper charismatic characters in video games

Beyond the creatures themselves, the teams that developed Pokémon have been able, over the years, to create recurring characters, such as nurse Joëlle, who can be found in all the games. And also others, particularly interesting, with a whole legend around them.

Take for example Red, the character played in the first two games, Pokémon Red and Blue. In the second generation, while we now play Gold, it is possible to fight Red. This is also the ultimate quest in the Pokémon Gold, Silver and Crystal games.

Another strength of Pokémon creators is adaptation. Let's stay with Red's example. In the first games, he never spoke. And this, for the simple reason that the memory of the cartridges was not large enough, and that we had to save space where we could. Well, Pokémon has, in the following games, transformed this silence into complacency: Red is too strong, and doesn't give his word to anyone. Which helped to forge his “legend” as the best trainer in the games.

Not all characters are equally important. Some actively participate in the storyline of the games in which they are integrated. Others, no.

For example, we can mention Cynthia, who we meet at the start of Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, Platinum. It has its importance in history, first of all. Then, we find her, as mistress of the League of Sinnoh. And it gave the players cold sweats. In the fourth generation, but also the fifth, Pokémon Black, Black 2, White and White 2, in which it appears at the end of the game.

All fans remember that blonde hair, that super-powered Garchomp, that exceptional music, and that feeling of accomplishment once she was beaten.

The fact that most of the characters that appear in the games also have importance in the cartoon, the films, and have their own cards, contributes a lot to this lore (everything surrounding the universe) around them.

And a morality sometimes deeper than it seems

The characters also transmit interesting values, especially when you are younger. Cynthia is passionate about archeology. It promotes the value of the old, and everything that we can learn from older people.

In the same sense, antagonists are not always just villains. Okay, Team Rocket, Team Aqua and Team Magma, they're just evil.

But N, in Pokémon Black and White, is particularly interesting. He questions the system, and takes a little height: “all the same, Pokémon, we lock them in very small cages, Pokéballs, and we force them to fight”. Throughout the scenario, he exposes his values ​​and almost falls into anti-speciesism: Pokémon must not be exploited.

Even in the latest game, Scarlet and Purple, the recurring “bad guys” are simply people who are bullied at school, looking to fight back. Once all beaten, they cheerfully repent, and do their best to return to study, ignoring their tormentors.

In the same sense, the cartoon spends its time transmitting “good” values ​​such as friendship, altruism, and respect for others. Sacha would give his life to save others. Including a Pokémon, as we have seen in many films.

“It sounds stupid, but I like Pokémon as such. It’s a passion that I’ve had for so long that I wouldn’t necessarily be able to explain why,” Pokémon streamer Vohlt explained to us a few days ago.

Well there you go. It's probably for all these reasons.

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