The recent reveal of Pokopia in the latest Nintendo Direct marks an interesting turn for the Pokémon franchise. It finally takes the series into the life-sim genre, emulating some of the success of titles like Minecraft.
Considering the runaway success of titles like Stardew Valley, Minecraft, or even the recent Disney Dreamlight Valley, the market shows players like to relax, and they like to create. Whether it's simply rearranging their farm how they like or creating whole worlds, player agency is on the rise, and Pokémon is in a fantastic place to deliver.
We've only got a very brief glimpse at Pokopia so far, but the idea of living as a silly little Ditto, while bumbling around with Pokémon friends, is so exciting. I look forward to sitting back and wiling away the hours, creating my own little escape, and building terrible buildings.
But the main reason I'm excited about Pokopia has actually nothing to do with Pokémon. Instead, it's actually got everything to do with the team behind Pokopia. As far as we're aware, Pokopia is developed by Koei Tecmo in collaboration with The Pokémon Company.
One of my favorite games is Dragon Quest Builders 2. I know, I was as surprised as you are. Developed by Omega Force, a subsidiary of Koei Tecmo, this title expertly blends many RPG elements with the gorgeous Akira Toriyama-designed world of Dragon Quest to deliver an unforgettable experience.
If you've never heard of it, I highly recommend downloading the demo right now; it's absolutely massive and carries your save over to the main game. Even if you haven't played a Dragon Quest title, DQB2 is full of charm, really smart twists to building mechanics, and a huge story with real emotional beats.
While Minecraft gives you minimal story, Dragon Quest Builders 2 expertly twists its building mechanics around the narrative, while also fitting into the greater Dragon Quest lore. It's genuinely impressive how well DQB2 rolls out the many different building mechanics over its playtime, and the smart addition of new features every chapter engaged me in a way Minecraft never had.
It's not completely confirmed whether Omega Force is behind Pokopia, but Koei Tecmo is definitely responsible, so it's likely the team will either be developing or helping. Either way, there are so many parts of Dragon Quest Builders 2 that I think would be really beneficial for the Pokémon version of Minecraft or Stardew Valley.
One thing Pokopia could do well is introduce farming and simulation gameplay to children. Pokémon is for kids, always has been, and always will be, so it's important for people to remember that. It could end up having deep and creative mechanics, much like Dragon Quest Builders 2, but it could take ample time to explain these clearly for newer gamers. That's great news, and makes this a strong entry point for this genre.
Dragon Quest Builders 2 has a phenomenal hub, where every chapter brings new characters to your island, and you watch it progress. This is where I'm really pumped, because the idea of building up a home base with a growing Pokémon team is so exciting.
I'm excited for Pokopia, because while a Pokémon-farming and building game is already promising, the team behind Builders 2 pushed the genre forward and created a fantastic Minecraft-esque package for hundreds of hours of gameplay. If Pokopia is anywhere near that level of quality, everybody wins.
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