When Pokopia was first shown, many people quickly compared it to other games based on its cute trailer. The general idea that came out was that Pokopia would be Pokémon’s version of Animal Crossing. It also turned out that some of the people who made this game also worked on Dragon Quest Builders, a game that was inspired by Minecraft and is a spin-off of another popular Japanese role-playing series.
So, it seemed simple: Pokopia is Pokémon mixed with Minecraft and Animal Crossing. But after playing it for about an hour, I can say it’s all of those things, and something more. And that ‘more’ is what makes it feel like one of the best, most overlooked games about raising creatures ever made. That game is Viva Pinata, a gem from the Xbox 360 era.
As someone who really loves Viva Pinata, I’m surprised I didn’t see the connection sooner. Looking back at the longer trailer for Pokopia, it’s actually quite obvious now. But it wasn’t until I sat down and played the game myself that it truly hit me.
The way the game plays is where the biggest similarities lie. In Pokopia, you don’t catch Pokémon in Poké Balls to carry them around. Instead, the focus is on the environment where they live. Every Pokémon in the Pokopia Pokédex will show up if you create the right conditions for them.
You’ll start by making simple areas of tall grass. Any Pokémon fan knows that Pokémon like tall grass. This will attract the most basic creatures. But as you want to attract more, the requirements will get harder. Some Pokémon might need to be near water, or in tall grass under a tree’s shade. Others aren’t interested in nature at all. For example, the fighting-type Hitmonchan needs a place that looks like a gym, like a punching bag and a bench to rest on, and it doesn’t even need grass.
When Pokémon decide to live on your island, some of them will give you new abilities. For instance, Bulbasaur might teach you Leafage, a move your Ditto character can use to create tall grass. Squirtle might teach you Water Gun, which you can use to bring dry plants back to life. You can see how these abilities will help you shape the world, similar to how you do in Minecraft by adding, removing, or changing the land. I saw a few of these abilities in the part I played, and it seems like there will be many more, though not as many as there are Pokémon. Only some Pokémon will teach you a new move.
Besides building places where Pokémon want to live, another part of the game is fixing up ruined areas. While the demo didn’t explain exactly what happened, it looks like these areas are places from the first Pokémon games, but they are now ruined and look like they’ve been through a disaster. It’s not clear how this happened, but all the people are gone, and the Pokémon are hiding. So, it’s up to you to rebuild.
Making dead grass green again by splashing water and fixing up old trees is one thing. But there are also buildings to repair. In the demo, I could gather materials to rebuild a Pokémon Center. Instead of building it piece by piece like in Minecraft, I had to put the materials in a chest near the ruined building. Then, I had to assign the Pokémon I had already attracted to help with the building. Since every Pokémon is different, some will be better at building certain things than others. You can also place individual blocks, but it seems like the buildings will be mostly pre-made.
This is how the game’s enjoyable and addictive cycle works. You need to get more Pokémon to help you fix up more areas. This, in turn, unlocks new skills or items you need to attract even more kinds of Pokémon. It’s a continuous loop.
It’s wonderfully simple, and right away it feels good and keeps you wanting to play. Even though the main story seems like it will guide you with helpful Pokémon telling you what to do next – making it kid-friendly – going beyond that feels natural. You can find small clues in the environment that add to your Pokédex, giving you hints about what you need to do to make a new Pokémon appear. Then you can figure out how to do it. You’ll also want to keep the Pokémon you already have happy. For example, one Pokémon might want a toy or some other improvement near its home, which makes it happier. Happiness is a score that shows how good of a home you’re providing.
These things pop up, and I find myself wandering around the starting area. I’m finding materials to use at a basic crafting table, completing challenges from the Pokédex to earn money for items that improve happiness or create new homes. Attracting new Pokémon, finding a hint for a new habitat, and getting excited about it… time just flies by. There are some things I can’t talk about from my hands-on session, which is normal. But the funny thing is, I didn’t even notice a lot of those things because my own curiosity led me off the main path and away from any big reveals. That’s usually a sign of a great game.
There are also those more modern Minecraft-like elements, of course. The team clearly used the skills and technology they gained while working on Dragon Quest Builders. In a multiplayer game, we needed to get a specific Pokémon from one island to another across the water. This Pokémon couldn’t swim or fly safely. In the end, our group of four players worked together to break blocks from the side of a mountain, creating a bridge the creature could carefully walk across.
What I’m saying is that building with blocks is definitely a part of the game. As the game goes on, this kind of strategy and building might become even more important. There’s also the Animal Crossing-like stuff, which I didn’t get to try in this version – like having your own house and decorating it. It’s clear there’s more to the game than the loop I’ve described. But from what I played, it feels like the core of Pokopia is that Viva Pinata-style loop. And honestly, it works really well.
I’ve been doing this job for a long time, and I’ve played many games before they are released. I think I have a good sense for what makes a game good. I usually don’t have to play a game for very long to get a good idea of what it’s about. But during this hands-on session, I wasn’t checking how much time I had left or watching what the public relations people were doing. I just got completely absorbed in the game. In my experience, this is almost always a sign of a truly excellent game.
I love the game mechanics, and they’re combined with characters and a world that I also really like. I haven’t felt this way about a Pokémon game since Conquest, which was a crossover strategy game with Nobunaga’s Ambition back in 2012. That was a decent tactical RPG that I enjoyed a bit more because of how it used Pokémon’s world, characters, and gameplay. My hope now is that Pokopia will be even better than that. I suspect it might be. An excellent spin-off… that also has that special Pokémon magic. Next month, we’ll find out if I’m right.
