HOUSTON — Fans from all over the country have reported that one of the most exciting and innovative features of the new “Pokémon Legends: Z-A” game is that it allows the player to exit the game, turn off their Nintendo Switch, and go do something else entirely whenever they want, per sources.
“Game Freak has truly done it again,” long-time Pokémon player Tom Lee told the press. “With each new generation, you can expect that they’re pushing the technology to its very limits and seeing what’s possible. As I’m playing “Legends: Z-A”, I’ll often walk up to an NPC and their dialogue is about smelling their Pokémon or some shit, which pisses me off so badly that I suddenly remember the extra feature they included this time around. That’s when I turn off my Switch, stand up, walk into my kitchen and start doing the dishes or making myself some lunch. It’s the most immersed I’ve ever felt while playing.”
When approached for comment, Game Freak designer Rei Murayama had the following to say:
“What can we say, we just really enjoy putting the freak in Game Freak, am I right? Haha, but on a serious note, we’re always striving to make each new Pokémon game more interactive. With “Pokémon Go” in 2016, we got people outside and talking to each other. Now, with “Pokémon Legends: Z-A”, we want those in-person interactions to happen more naturally, without any gameplay to keep them distracted while doing so. To that end, we set this game in one of the most bland and visually uninteresting places imaginable, Lumiose City. We feel that this barrage of nothingness in-game will encourage people to take a break from it all, step out of their homes and perhaps appreciate the outside world just a little bit more.”
Journalists have had mixed reactions to the game, but some have called the experience one of the most unique in recent memory.
“The gameplay loop is very interesting,” reporter Samantha Weiss said in a statement. “The real-time combat system sets it apart from the turn-based combat of entries past, but what interests me the most is when you just can’t stand looking at the endlessly copy and pasted jpeg windows and stop playing completely. Then, while you’re doing your laundry or out grocery shopping, you think to yourself, “you know, I should give it another shot.” So you start playing it again, only to turn it off fifteen minutes later. It’s a fascinating cycle that just continues to surprise.”
At press time, Pokémon players everywhere were observed agreeing that maybe it was time to just leave the series alone for a little while.
