Why Black and White 2 Will Be the Death of Pokemon

If your an avid Pokemon fan like me, then you know that there are currently 649 Pokemon in existence as of Generation V. We have reached the games cleverly named Black and White and that we are due for the sister game. News of new Generation V games hit the new recently, with a scheduled release in Japan of June 2012, however, this news was not what most fans expected: Two games called Pokemon Black and White 2. That's right, a direct sequel to long-loved series that many grew up on. While this maybe ground-breaking for the Pokemon world, I think, however, that this will be the death of Pokemon.

My first complaint is that we are not getting a sister game to the long loved series. In every generation, we have had the two main games, starting with Pokemon Red and Blue versions, and the sister game was Yellow, then we progress to Gold and Silver, accompanied by Crystal, and so forth and so forth. In generation V, we were hoping for the sister game that put a different spin on the story line, and by the titles Black and White 2, we are implying that these will sequels, not sisters games, like the Pokemon Grey we were hoping for. For most people, the sequels to Pokemon Black and White would destroy a long standing tradition in the Pokemon games.

According to pre-release info that this would be a totally new and different story line, which does not make sense for the game to be called Black and White 2. There will be new protagonist designs, and, unlike Black and White, it looks like you'll be able to find Pokemon from previous generations. Now, when I think sequels, I would think that it would have at least some common themes from the game before it, effectively making it a sequel, not an add-on. From what it looks like from the trailer, there isn't even the same gym leaders from the original Black and White; it's totally new. I think that if they were going to pull this stunt, I think I'd rather take the sister game to Black and White, and perhaps cross my fingers for the sixth generation.

On the subject for the sixth generation, I do not see it happening at this point. There are 649 Pokemon in the Pokemon universe, spanning five generations, and to be quite honest, the design concepts for the fifth generation were not that good. If they are making a Pokemon based off an ice-cream cone, then they have clearly run out of ideas for Pokemon. I think that the Pokemon industry is slowing down, and the reason that they are pushing the Black and White 2 to be in the fifth generation is because I honestly cannot see the sixth generation coming. I think Nintendo would have to develop a new hand held system that can actually sell well, and not just a spin-off from previous existing systems. (I'm looking at you 3-DS) The previous two generations have been released on the DS, but I think that trend might end soon, and they need a new platform to launch games on. Another reason why I can't see a Sixth Generation game is because let's face it: they have pretty much run out of colors and minerals to name their games after.

The premise for the games is decent, but if the enemies are the same as they were in Pokemon Black and White, I honestly do not want to play it. I do not feel like battling the PETA of the Pokemon world again, Team Plasma. Pokemon is not supposed to be heavily story based, as they tried to make it in generation V. True, the previous generations had the evil team that tried to steal everyone's Pokemon, and a somewhat decent story that you sort of had to pay attention to, but not to the point of Generation V. The political themes that made its way into the game were almost unbearable, from animal cruelty to even some anti-war ideas.

As for Black and White 2, I can hope and pray that it will better than its predecessors, but at this point, I have partially given up on Pokemon just for the fact that they have clearly run out of ideas. I was thinking that since they have a Black and White 2, it would be in a different generation, but as it is in the fifth generation, I expect this to flop, but if it sells, I would not be surprised due to the fact the fans want something better than the original Black and White. I can hope that this will better, but only the release of it will tell.