Pokemon Burnt Out On Pokémon?

Card Slinger J

Aspiring Trainer
Member
After completing the National Pokédex on Pokémon X I haven't had much of an urge to play the video games as much as I used to however I still play the TCG whenever the opportunity arises for it in my area. I want to be excited for ORAS later this month but for some reason I'm just not feeling it where I feel like Game Freak is dividing the fanbase by choosing which Pokémon get Mega Evolutions and which one's don't.

Anyone else feel this way or is it just me?
 

Pikachu6319

Scooby
Member
Aside from downloading event Pokemon (like Shiny Gengar and Diancie) I haven't really played the game either, and I haven't completed any pokedex since like...maybe gen 3 at the latest. Really in all honesty I bought Black 2 and White 2 and yet I've never really played them. I've spent most of my time playing other games (Resident Evil Revelation on PS3, Raid mode specifically). I don't even really play the card game but I spend alot of time on the Pokemon binders I maintain.

I think getting burnt out on anything is inevitable. Despite my above statement I'm about ready to put Revelations on the shelf for a while. The thing is though if you enjoy something you'll eventually get back to it.

As for the topic of mega evolution it is kind of a thing. I mean, what made Salamence eligible for a mega evolution but not Flygon? Why does Scizor mega evolve despite being an evolution when non evolving Pinsir and Heracross also get one? Why are the gen 1 and gen 3 starters eligible for mega evolution but seemingly not the gen 2,4,5, or 6 starters? Why are Kyogre and Groudon the only ones seemingly eligible for primal reversion?

But really that could have been said for anything dating back to even gen 1. Why did Oddish get to have a stage 2 line but Zubat had to wait until gen 2? Why did Scyther get to evolve but not Pinsir or Heracross? Why did Poliwrath get to become dual type but not Alakazam or Machamp? For that matter why did Poliwhirl and Gloom get a dual evolution but not Machoke or the forbidden Kadabra?

I think only Nintendo could answer these questions, and that assumes they have those answers, but it doesn't stop the fanbase from asking these questions.
 

Scattered mind

Competitive VG Forums Mod
Forum Mod
Member
I never get fully burnt out of Pokemon in general but I do have times that I feel like I cannot do anything in my game but even when I take a break from playing the vg and tcg for a while I just never stop reading Pokemon forums articles or watching Pokemon videos. (Or drawing Pokemon during work lol)
 

Athena

The Cooler Danchou
Advanced Member
Member
I can get burned out on certain games series (Pokémon included) if I play them too much. I was kind of getting this way with Pokémon (played X, then replayed X, then started Platinum), so I decided to take a break to make sure that I wouldn't be too burned out for ORAS. I find that playing other, different games is the best way to kind of clear my mind out. For example, I'm currently replaying some Fire Emblem games (Awakening and FE8) right now, which is significantly different enough from Pokémon that ORAS should feel fresher when I get to it.
 

HoOhLugia

The most Ultimate and Powerful Pokemon Master!
Member
I would never become burnt out of Pokemon. Pokemon is my dream, my life! However, when I finish certain games, I may not play them as often as I played them through my journey, but when I put a certain game aside, I just play a different Pokemon game. I just never feel the fire burn out for me, and I even made a vow that Pokemon would always be my best game! (Please don't start asking why, it's my life...)

But when I do stop playing a Pokemon game to take a break for my eyes, I just draw Pokemon, talk about Pokemon or just escape into my imaginary world where I pretend that I am a Pokemon!
 

PsychedelicBreakfast

We can live beside the ocean leave the fire behind
Member
This always happens with me and a new Pokemon game, but it's temporary. Once a new Pokemon game comes out I'll spend months playing it, almost daily if I'm able to. Once I beat the game, fill up the PokeDex (if that even happens), finish the post game, I'll put the game down and won't pick it up for months on end, but I never completely get burned out on Pokemon. In the past, when I wanted to start playing again, I'd trade over Pokemon that I want to keep to my other copy of the game, and then start a new journey with different Pokemon. Now that the Pokemon Bank is out, I can just transfer them to that.

A new Pokemon game always rekindles the fire for me though. I'm looking forward to playing OR/AS throughout the winter to make the season more bearable (I hate snow). As far as Megas go, it doesn't really bother me which Pokemon get a mega evolution and which don't. I mostly like to admire the artwork for them. I'm not a big competitive online player, so I'm not disappointed when one of my favorite competitive Pokemon doesn't get a mega. I do get disappointed when the design for the mega feels lazy, like for Mega Sableye and Mega Slowbro. I wish there was more effort put into some of the mega evolutions. I do dislike it when a Pokemon that doesn't evolve is given a mega evolution. Mega Audino, for example; I don't think that was really necessary. I wish they would've just given it a regular evolution, like Chansey->Blissey, but this isn't the place to talk about that...
 

SotS

Cycling the Stress Away
Member
In long-running series it's so easy to get burnt out. Especially when other games, hobbies, life is a thing. I think I have more fun now getting caught up in hype and first week craziness than I do actually playing hahaha.
 

PhantomHaze

Aspiring Trainer
Member
A couple years back I was crazy for Pokemon. When every I had the chance I would play whether it be for 5 minutes or 5 hours but then, I just lot the urge to play. I stopped playing when Black and White came out and didnt pick it back up until X And Y, but hat was once it had been released for like a month or so. I honestly think its good to get burned out, I look at it as if you realize you need a break but want to come back. Thats what happened with me and now I enjoy pokemon like i used to(I no longer play for those longs of times though). Just give it some time and you will want to come back and play.
 

Klonoahedgehog

Ace Trainer
Member
The only time i guess i've been burnt out of Pokemon was the tailend of generation 5, i'm not really a fan of that generation. Usually when i play a Pokemon game i would come back to it even after the story is done and do whatever i could afterwards for months until the next one came out, but with generation 5 i just beat it and put it back on the shelf, hell i haven't touched BW2 since 2012.
I did keep track of the series but i never bothered to go back to gen 5, i played X when it came out and instantly falling in love with the generation and it revitalized my love for Pokemon.

And nowadays i'm completely hooked on the franchise again.
 

Pineapple X

former local demigod
Member
I haven't played in a long time, and that's most likely due to X & Y not having a decent post-game. It really started boring me just riding around Route 7 (I think) just breeding stuff because that was the only thing that I felt like doing.

ORAS releases in a week here in Europe - I'm really hyped about those and I hope they'll get me back to playing Pokemon.
 

Leaf_Ranger

Knight of Nature and Pokémon
Member
Card Slinger J said:
After completing the National Pokédex on Pokémon X I haven't had much of an urge to play the video games as much as I used to however I still play the TCG whenever the opportunity arises for it in my area. I want to be excited for ORAS later this month but for some reason I'm just not feeling it where I feel like Game Freak is dividing the fanbase by choosing which Pokémon get Mega Evolutions and which one's don't.

Anyone else feel this way or is it just me?

I spend quite a while playing HeartGold even after buying B2 this year because it's one of the best games and don't feel the need to migrate, or rather, I have but the lack of Pokémon following you and the fact that I hate Isshu, made me return to HG since XY didn't appeal to me due to Mega-evolution, the heresy of the series.

Like I keep saying, Mega-evolution has led to an arms race just for competitive sake only and disregarding mere evolution (be it simple or branched), not to speak that GF didn't came up with a good background story, more so with ASOR and Steven Stone.

The fact that the player character is always a child doesn't help in the long run, because it gets boring to always have to be forcefully taught the basics and to be a child.

Pokémon was the third of my three favorite VG franchises, with MGS next and Castlevania in 1st but all of them are suffering from appealing to the masses, so it hurts knowing that everywhere I turn, I see things that I used to love but are now becoming tired.

Even last week I found myself humming Pallet Town's original tune because I miss that early excitement. Sure, things don't last forever but unfortunately, Pokémon VG are always targeting kids and not the old time fans and players.

I will end up buying AS and perhaps X if Chespin is not available elsewhere, but now I feel like buying Pearl and revisit Sinnoh, the last great region before I felt things going sour.

PS: having three Fire/Fighting starters also helped feeling tired and burnt out!

PS: there's a good side to this, at least when there's the desire and hope to get back, that is the fact that we won't be spoiled because we don't care that much.
 

Pangoro#1999

Fear the bear
Member
I am always look forward to the next game but, some times I get the feeling that get tired of pokemon. At those times I wish the next game is already out. I enjoy shiny huntting but sometimes after a long hunt I dont pick up my game for 2 weeks.
 

Toro Rosso

Pokemon Racer
Member
For me, I get burnt out with Pokemon much earlier. I suppose the reason is that I'm older in comparison to my younger years. When I was younger, I could enjoy Pokemon and the simplistic story. Nowadays, I can't get myself interested enough in Pokemon despite restarting my Y game a couple of times as I can't get over the linear story. Fight and get the badges, challenge the bad guys, catch the legendaries and win the Championship. There are a few moments that I appreciate in Y but overall, I feel the story has lost its appeal.

True, I've spent more time on my Vita because the games is much more interesting on it (Persona 4 Golden, Freedom Wars, Tearaway). But I just can't get myself wanting to play Pokemon like I used to.
 

GODZILLA

Team Twilight 4eva \m/
Member
I got burned out on Pokemon several years ago. I started playing the TCG, but branched into the video game upon coming to Pokebeach in 2006. I left the TCG in 2008 due to the rising cost and time commitment needed, but I stayed with the video game. However, my trouble was that I understood 2vs2 battling and little of the wider online community played that. So the video game changed around me while my skills were stuck in the Gen 3 & 4 eras with not enough 2vs2 players to support my staying in the game. Things haven't changed much for 2vs2, so there is nothing to pull me back in. I supposed if 2vs2 gathered a significant following I might try another go, but I feel the game has changed so much overall that it would be unfamiliar to what I "grew up with".
 

Card Slinger J

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Pokémon has already begun to lose it's novelty where back when it first debuted in the mid to late 90's it started off as something different and interesting but as time went on Nintendo and Game Freak lost sight of what they we're originally trying to do with Pokémon so at this point they're just trying to milk their Intellectual Property to the ground. One person I've talked to says that the Pokémon TCG is a very linear game with not that much strategy involved where PCL (Pokémon Card Laboratories) isn't very transparent to the public worldwide about what they do behind closed doors.
 

Leaf_Ranger

Knight of Nature and Pokémon
Member
Card Slinger J said:
Pokémon has already begun to lose it's novelty where back when it first debuted in the mid to late 90's it started off as something different and interesting but as time went on Nintendo and Game Freak lost sight of what they we're originally trying to do with Pokémon so at this point they're just trying to milk their Intellectual Property to the ground. One person I've talked to says that the Pokémon TCG is a very linear game with not that much strategy involved where PCL (Pokémon Card Laboratories) isn't very transparent to the public worldwide about what they do behind closed doors.

I can't speak for the TCG, but what concerns the VG, you make a very good point and one that isn't commonly talked about or thought when thinking about the series current state because I think what is now known as "series" were actually meant to be just the two original games and so GF ended up with something they didn't antecipated and decided to follow the formula of the first one and with time adding features but without really chaning the core and without really surprising anyone. We were all praising XY ability to change clothes and skin colour but that's because it was new to this series but is something done for a long time in other VG series, and yet here we were praising it and GF remove it, just like the season systems, the ability to have Pokémon following, stuff that should had become standart and on which to improve.

I feel the same about Mega-evolution because it doesn't have a coherent story and explanation and instead serves to expand the competitive side of the game, that expresses itself in battles between people and the VG championships...otherwise, the story only serves as an excuse in order to delivering not just "battle updates" consisting of new Pokémon and abilities/TM...By Arceus, it's cruel and sad to realise that the exploration that I love is nothing more than a side thing, just like shows are side things to fullfil the space between commercials, because that's what provides the money to TV companies. :(
 

Bolt the Cat

Bringing the Thunder
Member
I'm starting to, mainly because I don't like the direction the series has gone in since 5th gen. The series has become too dumbed down since then and it feels like the gameplay is declining. They nerfed the region design so you have to progress through the region the way they want you to. The difficulty went down a few notches, first with the limits on trainer rosters in 5th gen and then again in 6th gen with the EXP Share. Game content and replay value is on the decline. They're so intent on pandering towards kids and mobile fans that they've removed all sense of depth from this series. I think if Game Freak doesn't reverse this direction soon (and considering what they've said about 7th gen, it doesn't sound like they are) then I'll probably just wait for DP remakes and then leave the franchise for good.
 

yorepoor

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Play online with poeple. It's actually pretty fun to go in-depth, understanding how your pokemon get certain stats and stuff. You know, evs and ivs.
 

Bolt the Cat

Bringing the Thunder
Member
yorepoor said:
Play online with poeple. It's actually pretty fun to go in-depth, understanding how your pokemon get certain stats and stuff. You know, evs and ivs.

That's not the kind of depth I'm talking about, and I'm not really interested in competitive because breeding and training for competitive is a laborious and repetitive process that sucks all of the fun out of the game.

Perhaps a better word to use here would be freedom. The games are feeling less like large, explorable worlds that you can adventure through and more like streamlined, artificial experiences that hold your hand the entire time. There's too much of an on rails feeling in the more recent games and they feel really stripped down.
 

yorepoor

Aspiring Trainer
Member
Bolt the Cat said:
yorepoor said:
Play online with poeple. It's actually pretty fun to go in-depth, understanding how your pokemon get certain stats and stuff. You know, evs and ivs.

That's not the kind of depth I'm talking about, and I'm not really interested in competitive because breeding and training for competitive is a laborious and repetitive process that sucks all of the fun out of the game.

Perhaps a better word to use here would be freedom. The games are feeling less like large, explorable worlds that you can adventure through and more like streamlined, artificial experiences that hold your hand the entire time. There's too much of an on rails feeling in the more recent games and they feel really stripped down.

Hmm, I kind of get what you're saying. I do think you should consider it this gen though. It's hardly repetitive anymore, you can max out 2 stats in 15 minutes this gen if you know what you're doing. Breeding is kind of optional. And you can have way more fun playing this game when you're being strategic and are on equal chances as your opponent imo.

Anyways, in the sense of freedom, I think this game is limited, but I think you can explore more in ORAS? Not sure though. HGSS had a pretty big world, would be cool if they did something like that.
 
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