In an effort to make the fifth generation of the Pokémon franchise feel more like the first, Nintendo made the decision to have the story mode of the game feature exclusively new Pokémon. With every game since the first, Pokémon has kept at least a few old guys around, whether its out of laziness or to keep things somewhat familiar. Well, no more of that. Pokémon Black and Pokémon White are to be entirely new experiences. Of course, after you beat the Elite Four (unless that’s revamped too?), the floodgates will be opened as they always are.
According to Junichi Masada on Gamefreak, those outside the studio who have had the privilege of playing the game equate it to the experience of play the original games for the first time. He also says that there’s a feeling of mystery in not knowing the types or attacks of the Pokémon you encounter (as if we won’t be checking online).
But let’s step back and think about this decision. It’s a huge deal. First of all, because it means that in caves there will be NO ZUBATS. NOT ONE DAMN ZUBAT. That is a magical fact. But what are the long-term consequences of this? Will this mark a new beginning for the upcoming generations? Will generation six include generation five but nothing before until you beat the story? I don’t know, but I’m very excited to find out.
And if you, like me, want to know who all these new friends you’ll be making actually are, this page has a list of all the Pokémon we know so far.
