How The Internet Affected Pokémon X And Pokémon Y’s Design

Pokémon X and Pokémon Y are out now, but there’s still information to be gleaned on the two games—most notably on the brand new Fairy type that has been introduced in X/Y to counter Dragon-type Pokémon. In a recent issue of Famitsu magazine, Game Freak director Junichi Masuda shared some thoughts on the new type as well as elements that will make this generation of Pokémon different than its predecessors.

Since Nintendo had Pokémon X and Y lined up for a simultaneous worldwide launch with a number of new Pokémon, Masuda says that special care was paid to adjusting the balance of the game, as well as the brand new Pokémon Amie feature.

Famitsu asks about some of the parts of the game that were worked on the most, during the development of Pokémon X and Y.

“While we did integrate a lot of detailed adjustments into the game balance, another part would be the ease of raising Pokémon,” answers Masuda. “Nowadays, we have the Internet, smartphones, and more, so I think the time spent playing games has decreased.”

“For those reasons, we made it much easier to raise your Pokémon that will allow you to play smoother and more comfortably than before. For example, simply catching a Pokémon with a Pokéball will net you some experience points.”

With regard to the subject of his thoughts on a simultaneous world release, Masuda explains that in the past, Pokémon games would take a year or two to localize in different countries around the world. While the games did come out earlier in Japan, Masuda feels that many players missed out on features due to the delay it took for the game to come out in other countries, such as the Unity Tower in Pokémon Black and White, which was used to trade with others around the world. This is no longer the case.

Moving on, one of the biggest changes in Pokémon X and Y are the new and improved 3D graphics. For the first time, the games utilize far more dynamic camera angles, which according to Masuda, is partly due to the fans who voiced their opinions on wanting to be able to see their Pokémon from the front, and not only the back, during battles.

Masuda then moves on to discuss Fairy-type Pokémon. With the new Fairy type being introduced, it will be the 18th type in the series, and also the first new addition in 14 years, since Pokémon Gold and Silver. Famitsu asks what made Game Freak decide to introduce a new type to the series after all this time.

“This is something we’ve talked about since we released the very first generation of the games, but Dragon-types are strong, and we saw little deviation in the Pokémon that were used, even at tournaments,” says Masuda. “While we did balance the games for each new title, this time we put more effort into the adjustments, and added a new type that is strong against Dragons.”

Masuda adds, “We had many candidates for the new type, but in the end, you could say it’s due to a fantasy-like connection, that we went with a plan that involved having ‘a fairy that is strong against dragons,’ and settled with the type name as Fairy.”

Pokémon X and Y are available now for Nintendo 3DS.