Best on a handheld?

Earlier today The Pokémon Company International provided names and some attractive artwork for two Legendary Pokémon in the upcoming Pokémon X & Y, and now some more crumbs of information have emerged. J.C. Smith, the director of consumer marketing for the Pokémon company international, answered a few questions posed by Game Informer.

One area that Smith did willingly address was related to the continued absence of a main series RPG title on a home console, with the question pointedly referring to Wii U.

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I can’t speak to the specifics, but traditionally Game Freak has always loved the game to be on a portable device because of the communication, trading, and the experience of taking this adventure with you. That’s why they’ve always prioritized a portable version of the game first. They’ve always liked what you can do in the real world with that.

With the vague promise of utilising the full functionality of the 3DS, we can probably expect to see Wi-Fi, SpotPass and StreetPass all play a role in the title, while that real-world portable experience is particularly relevant, it can safely be said, in the Japanese market.

In terms of the X & Y name Smith pragmatically said that, from the perspective of his teams, it's a title that's easy to localise worldwide for a universal identity. There's also been much speculation about customisable avatars but Smith only went as far to say that, despite the potential of the titles being related to male and female chromosomes, there'll be a choice of gender for the player.

Yes, the titles they have given us are the hero and the heroine. Yes, it is certainly going to have that functionality.

It's also been clarified from Japanese sources that the title will feature at least 50 new 'mon; there will also be an in-game online presence, or possibly one that gathers online data and still uses it when offline, called 'Real Play'.

People around the world will be able to simultaneously experience 'Real Play'. The game uses an innovative communication system that makes it feel as if you are playing with other players around the world.

What do you think of these snippets of info? Do you think the series is best kept on handhelds, and what do you think of the idea of 'Real Play' that allows players to feel like others are part of their game? Sound off in the comments below.

[source eurogamer.net, via gameinformer.com]