young kids. I believe that the “90s kids” stereotype is thought to be true because that is when Pokémon was first released. Pokémon was their childhood, and that has stuck with them into adulthood. I also noticed that even though the majority of people there were male, there were also a lot of females. This means that Pokémon appeals to boys and girls alike. It was surprising to see all these people wait in line for hours just to get Pokémon. Free hats were also given out for the midnight release; I was lucky enough to get a hat despite the long line. When I received the game, I went home to play it. I took my biases, put them aside, and opened my mind to the new game I had purchased. On October 12, 2013, I finally began to understand why people loved the game so much. I fell in love with it. It was not like any other game I had ever played, and it was more than I had expected. I know that every game has a storyline to it, but I never knew the storylines in Pokémon could be so deep. I always thought it was just catching your team, battling with them, and beating gym leaders.10 My experience showed me that it was more than that. The story of Pokémon X&Y does start out with the typical 10-year-old kid going on an adventure, but there is also a plot about loving Pokémon because they are friends, not just battling weapons. My experience also showed me that Pikachu is not the best Pokémon. Despite its amazing reputation, the actual Pokémon does not live up to it. I have interviewed a few people who play Pokémon, asking them why Pikachu is thought to be the best and here are some of the responses: “He’s everybody’s favorite because he’s the mascot of the series” (Bobafett) and, “He’s just the mascot for Pokémon” (Adam). Most of my assumptions were changed completely upon playing Pokémon X&Y. My belief that the new generation is mediocre was wrong; a lot of the new Pokémon are just as lovable and unique as the very first generation. They actually offer more surprises than the older generations, such as new moves the Pokémon can use and “Mega Evolutions.”11 The new generation definitely made a good impression, and even though I am a fan of the classics, the new generation had me falling in love with Pokémon all over again. It was not long before I began interviewing people for their input. The first person I interviewed was Adam, a classmate whom I became friends with after the midnight release. I knew that Adam played Pokémon competitively, so I knew he was knowledgeable on the subject. I asked him “what are the competitions like,” to which he responded: “It varies. Competitions at small places like GameStop are small, but Kawaii Kon’s12 competitions are bigger. But, most the competitions are online now.” I then asked, “Is it better in person or online?” He replied, “It’s better in person than online because you can actually see your opponent and how many people are watching you battle.” While interviewing Adam, he made me think twice about what Pokémon really was. Adam grew up in Kansas and first liked Pokémon because of the anime. He had a group of friends who also liked Pokémon, and one of his friends got Pokémon Gold for his birthday. Eventually, the rest of them got Pokémon Silver. They all connected more as friends through Pokémon. I asked Adam 10
A place where you can defeat skilled Pokémon trainers (known as gym leaders) who usually specialize in a certain type of Pokémon (i.e fire, grass, flying, fairy, water etc.), 11 A new concept introduced into Generation Six Pokémon X&Y. A Pokémon can evolve during battle into a stronger form and switches back to its normal form once the battle is over. 12 An event held in Hawaii every year that has directors from Japan, a dance, souvenirs, a dance and a gaming center.
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