Pokemon Class at University of California Santa Cruz

[1ArmMat]

Hello Everyone,
Allow me to introduce myself, in the pokemon world I am 1ArmMat. My experiences with Pokemon are varied and span many years. I began as a trainer in 1998 with my Red Version. As a trainer, I have traveled to all of the regions and collected all badges and frontier symbols. I am also a trained Pokemon Photographer, Coordinator, and Ranger. I was also the Santa Monica TCG League Gym leader for two years until the gym (Toy's R' Us) closed) After completing the Sinnoh league, I began to put training on the back burner and become a Pokemon researcher. After much time researching, I deciding it was time to share my findings as a Pokemon Professor.
In the real world, my name is Matt and I am currently finishing up my final year at The University of California Santa Cruz. I am scheduled to teach a class this upcoming quarter entitled "Video Game franchising: The Perfection of Pokemon." The class will be looking at the Pokemon phenomenon and why it is so successful, ultimately, uncovering Pokemon's "formula for success" in order to give students the ability to design equally successful franchises. I am posting on this forum because I feel that one of the key elements to Pokemon's success is it's fan's and the fan community. I would love to have the members of Bulbagarden's support while I am teaching this class. I am a fond believer in the idea of having a wide variety of input from many different people. Since you are all experts in Pokemon, I would be very grateful if i could post some questions on this thread and get responses from you all as the quarter goes on.

To start things off, I would like to ask you all what you think of the idea of a Pokemon class, and what you would like to have covered in it. Thanks.
-Prof. Matt

 

[ShinyFlareon]

Wow, I had to do an honest-to-god double take when I saw the title of this thread; this was not something I expected any time soon. Congrats on undertaking something this ambitious.

For the criteria of the course itself, I think one of the main points that should be emphasized is the sheer versatility of the Pokemon video games. Though they seem formulaic at first, there is really something for everyone. Story-driven fans have been getting increasingly better game plots, characters, and villains; the ability to battle competitively via WiFi was a huge leap for those who can't get enough of the battling aspect; the creation of contests for people who don't care so much for battling; on top of all of this is also hunting for elusive shineys, breeding, trading, and the feeling of pride that inevitably comes when you have finally "Caught them all." This versatility and sheer number of things to concentrate on directly translates to a much wider consumer market - someone who does not like to battle with pokemon and would otherwise not buy the game might still buy it for the contests, or to breed pokemon and therefore build a base from which to wirelessly trade.

Since this course is specifically talking about video games, I assume from the course name, I don't know how much you'll want to delve into the anime. Certainly one cannot discuss the Pokemon franchise without at least mentioning it. However, I think it would be an interesting lesson to discuss how the anime and games impact each other.

At the moment, I can't really think of anything else off the top of my head. But rest assured, this is making me a little envious that I don't got to UCSC (I am 18 and have just finished my first quarter at UC Riverside). Though I am by no means studying anything having to do with business or franchising (I'm a creative writing major), I think this is an excellent idea to cover those concepts. Pokemon is a great real-life example of everything that a franchise can do right, and focusing on it I believe will allow your students to comprehend the concepts more easily than if this course were simply about franchising in general.

I look forward to seeing how the quarter goes for you, professor!

 

[1ArmMat]

Thanks so much for the kind words!

Since this course is specifically talking about video games, I assume from the course name, I don't know how much you'll want to delve into the anime. Certainly one cannot discuss the Pokemon franchise without at least mentioning it. However, I think it would be an interesting lesson to discuss how the anime and games impact each other.

I will be going into all of the different elements of the franchise. Video Games, Anime, Trading Card Games, Food, Air Lines, etc. However, since the franchise started with a game boy game (and that the class is being offered under my school's video game department) I am calling the class "Video Game Franchising." We will be watching at least two of the Anime movies and a few select episodes/clips. Manly, we will be talking about the structure of the anime and the theoretical question of who is Ash (i.e. who is it that is playing the game that we are all watching)

Thanks again for your interest.

 

[Archaic]

Hi Matt, and welcome to Bulbagarden.

While to everyone here I'm Archaic, the webmaster of Bulbagarden, in real life my name is Liam Pomfret, and I work as a sessional academic at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, teaching International Marketing and Asian Business to undergraduate students. If I can assist you in any way with this class, please do not hesitate to ask. It would be my pleasure.

 

[1ArmMat]

Hi Matt, and welcome to Bulbagarden.

While to everyone here I'm Archaic, the webmaster of Bulbagarden, in real life my name is Liam Pomfret, and I work as a sessional academic at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, teaching International Marketing and Asian Business to undergraduate students. If I can assist you in any way with this class, please do not hesitate to ask. It would be my pleasure.

Great! I am glad to have your support. I am a huge fan of Bulbapedia, and it was that website that lead me to Bulbagarden. I will defiantly be in touch.

 

[Infinity Mk-II]

That's... really impressive.
It's interesting becouse it analizes several aspects of a videogame franchise that are easilly overlooked... If I were studying videogame developement (and hopefully I will) I'd really find interesting such a class, even if it were about a franchise I didn't like at all.

I also like how the one teaching about it is someone with such an experience in the franchise.

Anyways about the aspects to be covered... As the goal of the class is to learn how did pokemon become that successful, I'd probably start by analyzing how it began. As in, the very basic concept (In this case, a game about training creatures) and how was it expanded onto a working game. (though most of this could fit already in the basics of game designing...)
Basically how the Green and Red versions were made.
Then I'd get more into how did these games had all that success, probably by here also getting into what did they do when they made them worldwide (Red and Blue), and of course the anime.

In fact I'd focus on the anime almost as much as on the games, as it definativelly was a key for its success. I mean, when you think Pokémon, you inmmediatelly think of Ash and Pikachu, who were defined by the anime.

I hope this thread helps you with the class... I am really interested in it.

 

[bell02+]

This is a very cool idea! I wish I could take this class, to be honest I didn't know Santa Cruz had a gaming major (or is this a business major or CS class?)

I always felt I understood what kids like in franchises, but I think I really would have liked to take your class. Still, I think you must be right (to try to say that in a non-arrogant way, because I don't mean to even though thinking over in my head it sounds that way) that it takes commitment to the fan community.

Looking at Disney's Spectrobes, it seems to have everything it takes to be a huge hit, but Disney doesn't market it. The series built it self for cartoons, but their are none, and it's hard to feel for their characters because they rarely show their concept art (or the hand-drawn art) like Pokemon does with their Pokedex (and online Pokedex). Something that caters to the fans. I don't know how much I agree that they embrace fans though, they definitely rally the fandom with their hype machines and tournaments/programs, but they don't directly take outside suggestions.

Then Digimon does embrace their fandom directly, and does everything Pokemon does (video game, card game, tv-anime), but now it barely even sits in it's shadow. (I love Digimon, but you have to admit it isn't even close to as popular as Pokemon is now; Digimon's kind-of gone Niche) I'm kind of wondering how that is... but I'm not sure.

Maybe it is because it lacks the consistency as Pokemon (as in we know pikachu evolves into Raichu, but Agumon doesn't always evolve into Greymon. Sometimes it's Greymon, sometimes GeoGreymon, sometimes Centurmon. For me, that is confusing, and I wonder if it scares off fans from digging deeper. Then there are the pallet swapping digimon). Then maybe it has to do with game quality, although both have their sub-par games, the Digimon games can't seem to compete with the good Pokemon ones. (I really don't know)

I think most Franchises that become hits seem to have things in common: They focus on individuality and wide appeal (even things like Ninja Turtles/Power Rangers, there were 4/5 different personality main-characters to pick from), they focus on the Now (like Chaotic and Bakkugan focusing on internet and online gaming, being popular with kids at that time), having a unique, somewhat plausible what-if theme or scenario that they take serious/or commit to (A secret world of Wizards and Witches in Harry Potter, a village filled with Ninjas in Naruto, or an ancient game of forbidden Magic in YuGiOh), and then they focus on a core desire of fun (exploration, competition, communication, etc), with the passion of the creator embedded deeply in ever aspect. All of those elements I see seem to put all of the popular fad franchises, and the staying factor seems to be if there is forethought in design to keep it expandable (The first episode of Pokemon questions the number of pokemon that actually can be, and sends kids on a quest to then discover that, seems like a good idea for staying power to me).

Still, I like to think that I know what kids like, I have my own pet projects I've been working on in (basically) secret, so I hope that it sees some form of success.(popularity wise, not necessarily monetary wise) Which is why I think it'd be valuable for me to take a class like that!

 

[1ArmMat]

Thanks for the great response. The truth is, never has there been a franchises quite like pokemon. Sure there have been many fads that kids went nuts for, such as Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, Beenie Babies, but those were fads. Where the aforementioned fads were popular, they were not a way of life. Pokemon is not something you like, it is something you "do." You watch the TV show to better understand the game boy game, you take the knowledge from the game boy game and apply it to the card game, then you take the character from the card game and recognize them in the TV show. It is this endless cycle that constantly has you searching for more. This can be more toys, more cards, more pokemon to catch, more knowledge. it is this action that is one of the key draws to pokemon. But, that is only the tip of the iceberg!
There is not just one thing that makes pokemon a success, there are many many many pieces to the puzzle. Everything from science to religion can be found in Pokemon, and they are all part of an equation, an equation for success.

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Pokemon has been known to refer to segments of the fanbase in very...odd ways. Consider the in-game Pokemaniacs and PokeFans who dress up, or anime characters like Jirarudan, Molly, and Paul (in order, obsessive collector, fixated on fictional world, fiendish powergamer). To pick a random manga here, Akari and Hitoshi from How I Became A Pokemon Card may qualify as well (Akari is obsessed with how pokemon have to be POWERFUL and MACHO!, while Hitoshi is a little kid who wants desperately to be an evil Rocket, despite that he can't stop inadvertantly doing good deeds).

Be sure to bring up things like how the world is presented in the different continuities, such as the everyone-lives-alongside-pokemon setting in Magical Pokemon Journey (which is more of a slice of life story, focusing on a teenage girl and her misadventures with her friends...only some of her friends are powerful critters), the pokemon-who-live-like-humans in the Mystery Dungeon games, and heck, even the gag comics (I can provide you with scans but they're not translated).

You may want to mention how, within the fandom, there's very little age discrimination. Pokemon is assumed to be for everyone, and no one thinks any differently of a 12 year old fan than a 42 year old fan, at least not to where it concerns involvement.

 

[Rayne]

Astounding. I'm sure whoever you find taking that class will be more than appreciative of the core subject.

From a marketing point of view, Pokemon and Nintendo had always led an aggressive ad campaign. In the days following up to Pokemon's North American release, Nintendo had launched an information video detailing what the franchise was about. On top of that, Nintendo had saturated Pokemon's franchise in virtually every conceivable market straight from the launch date so much so that the visual awareness of the products couldn't escape the consumer's eye. In essence the franchise was building upon itself where such visual awareness invited new people to play the games (which were already described to have mass appeal in a previous post by Bell02) getting them hooked, and then allowing retailers to increase product stock based on this demand which increased the visual awareness.

What would be good to mention is how Nintendo plays an active role in keeping the franchise fresh by maintaining the life of Pokemon (be it through the social, competitive and/or merchandise components of the franchise).

In the early days, I'm sure you're aware, Pokemon was licensed under many different companies, Wizards of the Coast with the TCG, Hasbro with the toys, etc. Rather than allow Pokemon become another fad, Nintendo consolidated everything under one house to better control and influence the direction of the franchise. Doing this allows all product lines to stay current and up to date with the newest iterations of games. With the right scheduling, you will see things like the Mystery Dungeon games co-released with their anime special within the same week, part of the effect of the franchise building upon itself.

The success of the franchise is that the gears that keep the machine going are constantly getting new oil. Nintendo knows just when to breathe in new life with the newest iteration and will always reach for a new crowd with every generation. Nintendo's active involvement in their franchise no doubt is a major part of Pokemon's success.

 

[salamence]

Being a university student studying video game development, I am quite envious of UC Santa Cruz for offering this particular course. It seems like just the kind of course I'm looking for, studying the success of one specific video game franchise that happens to be my favorite of all time. Nearly everyone at my school have at one point been drawn into the Pokemon fandom, too.

If you look at the poll depicting the ages of users here at Bulbagarden, most are within the high school/ college age group now. For us, I believe, Pokemon has become a direct link to our childhood. Since I was first introduced to Pokemon in the fourth grade, It became a great part of my life. I then picked up Pokemon after a long hiatus not just because of the new things that were introduced in the anime, the TCG, and not to mention the increasing number of Pokemon, but because of the nostalgia for those elementary school days trading, watching, playing, and loving Pokemon. Being re-introduced to Pokemon is not as easy as I imagined. My base set / fossil set of cards are way outdated, I can't get back into the Anime, but the games have so many new elements that I find myself excited around every corner, waiting to see what new idea has been introduced and what old elements have been improved/preserved.

My younger brother, on the other hand, was brought into the Pokemon world recently. He never knew that Pokemon began with the Red/Blue video games, or that there were originally 150 Pokemon, or even that the cards were once banned in elementary schools. No matter how much more Nintendo releases, or how much simpler the games become to target children of his age, I don't think they'll be quite as fanatic as us older, experienced fans.

This is all, of course, in my own personal opinion based from personal experiences. Not sure if I'm of any help, but still, I am very grateful you are teaching such a class.

 

[domesticshorthair]

Thanks for the great response. The truth is, never has there been a franchises quite like pokemon. Sure there have been many fads that kids went nuts for, such as Ninja Turtles, Power Rangers, Beenie Babies, but those were fads. Where the aforementioned fads were popular, they were not a way of life. Pokemon is not something you like, it is something you "do." You watch the TV show to better understand the game boy game, you take the knowledge from the game boy game and apply it to the card game, then you take the character from the card game and recognize them in the TV show. It is this endless cycle that constantly has you searching for more. This can be more toys, more cards, more pokemon to catch, more knowledge. it is this action that is one of the key draws to pokemon. But, that is only the tip of the iceberg!
There is not just one thing that makes pokemon a success, there are many many many pieces to the puzzle. Everything from science to religion can be found in Pokemon, and they are all part of an equation, an equation for success.

You are right there. I watched the anime first. That's what got me into the Pokemon world. However, I remember, I did rely on the anime a lot to understand the game, and vice versa.

I think part of it must be that, like, even though you become Champion, you beat the Elite Four and all that, you must capture all the Pokemon to really become a Master. It keeps you...going? And, of course, not every Pokemon is in your game. You must trade to make some evolve, like Kadabra or Machoke. And of course, like Meowth or Ekans, one is only found in one version, the other in another, so forth. You meet other fans. Then, you can breed them in later games, they're gendered.

Is there any possibility you might offer this course on-line? I'd love to take it!

 

[Redder]

This is a great idea. I kinda wish they offered this at my school because, like Salamence, I'm also studying vidjo gaymes in school. IMeanI'mOnlySix!

But anyways, I can tell you that I first got into Pokemon with Red version because I'm a sucker for two things: adventures and customization. I feel like the greatest success of Pokemon is that it lets you play how you want to play.

In all my classes pertaining to the creation of a successful digital artifact, one word has continuously popped up: agency. That is, making the user feel like his/her choices actually affect the world. With Pokemon, the obvious source of agency is the party: you can put whoever you can catch into your party, you can teach them moves with TMs, you can increase their abilities with drugs, etc. It almost resembles Final Fantasy, but it allows for even deeper customization and personalization because of the number of options. And the player quickly sees how their party choices affect their success when they enter a battle.

Of course, Pokemon does have a linear storyline, but that's okay, it makes things simple in an already complicated game.

PS. Beware of kids like me in your class who will loudly proclaim that only 152 pokemon exist.