Nintendo Calls On 'Stranger Things' Star To Promote Its New Pokémon Adventure For Switch 2

That was one of the most boring Nintendo ads I’ve ever seen

I don’t even know what to call this ad. Weird energy from Australia.

I don't understand why this looks so rough. Like embarrassing rough.

@LikelySatan 'Cause there is zero pressure or consequence on Game Freak to do better. Never mind the fact it will sell 10 million +

Laaame.

I'm also skipping this until there's a physical release with the DLC on the cart. I'm not paying AU$110 for a game with half of the content missing and/or tied to an account.

They could have swindled me harder by announcing the DLC after the fact though.

@LikelySatan : The game looks absolutely barren, which seems to be the only reason why it seems to be running so damn smooth. At least Legends Arceus had older hardware to attribute its limitations to.

Look guys it’s Gaten Matarazzo!!! We got Gaten Matarazzo here…See nobody cares.

To quote AVGN’s James Rolfe- WHAT THE HELL WERE THEY THINKING?!

Nintendo has some really poor advertising campaigns lately; Cripes, I really miss the Iwata era… at least those ads were fun, exciting and kept your attention.

This advert just REEKS of desperation and cluelessness.

I wanna be a fly on the wall when these ads are being conceived and written.

@SillyG I spend a lot of time with sixth generation. I know everyone is going to think I am being a big meanie, but Steambot Chronicles on PS2 looks better than this. I dont get it.

Even if you a hardcore fan that dismisses most of the present day criticism of Nintendo.
You have to admit to how boring, clueless, and corporate they are recently.

@LikelySatan
I did not even know about Steambot Chronicles. Looks like a cool game worth playing. Thanks.

Pokemon is dead to me.

There's not even a proper voice-over or anything. This definitely didn't seem like a commercial in the traditional sense of the word. I'm still on the fence about Pokémon Legends Z/A myself. I'll wait for reviews before I buy anything Pokémon related from now on, but I will say this: I think the game will be a 7/10 at most. I just can't see it being an excellent game. Dropping turn-based battles was not a good idea, in my opinion and the whole setting just seems kinda boring.

@Jhena its AWESOME! Huge learning curve on controls, like Virtual On or Gun Valkyrie. But once it clicks it feels great and like nothing else.

Well, that was shoddy. Even the thumbnail for this article looks 'derpy'.

@Pillowpants It feels a bit too chaotic for me, and I don’t think I could keep up with it. I really enjoyed the strategic planning and sweating to make the right moves while deep in a cave or base, running low on supplies and Pokémon. In the games before you could just access all your Pokemon anywhere anytime, at least. I’m sure it will be good, but the battles honestly put me off!

what is this seriously??¿

I've seen a lot of times that people complain about Pokémon games being stale and boring because they keep repeating the same formula. Now GameFreak changes the formula and even before the games release, people complain about the formula being changed. (about it being in a city, about the new battle mechanics, etc..)

People really don't know what they want.
Anyway, I do think this game looks awesome and I can't wait for the 16th. And the ad looks exactly like most of the "celebraty game ads" Nintendo has made before. Boring, but the whole reason is "look this celeb is playing our game, buy our game now!" Which is boring, but well.. it's an ad.

@SillyG I agree it is terrible, but these optimisations were obviously made around the Switch 1; the fact that it leads to very good Switch 2 performance is fairly irrelevant, since most of the version differences are lighting related and so not appear to be rooted in the artstyle and map design choices.

@ShadLink For me personally, the Pokémon formula is fine. I play it because I like turn-based battles. But if the battles are anything close to how they are in Xenoblade Chronicles, maybe then I'll get this game. I just don't care so much for what I've seen of the setting so far.

In other words; I know perfectly well what I want, but there are different people and different wants.

Worst case scenario, I'll just replay the classics with Retro Achievements.

Pokemon Legends Z/A is a Legends game, so we already knew what we were getting in terms of gameplay.

It wouldn't have been called a Legends game if it had the traditional turn based combat and mechanics of the Mainline games.

So I don´t understand why people are shocked, disappointed and upset?
Next year we probably get new Traditional Mainline games that follow up on Scarlet/Violet.

So you just have to wait for those next year, while people who enjoyed Legends:Arceus will continue to enjoy Legends:Z/A.

October is a huge month for Switch with the launch of Tales of Xillia alone. Pokemon who?😎

That was so bad it wasn’t even accidental ASMR. As an ad it looks uninspired and unfinished, like someone hired the actor because a budget was approved and just showed up and winged it. That did not need to be longer than 30 seconds, lol, and I’m definitely not any more hyped for Pokémon.

@Pillowpants But my point stands. People are complaining about a new game, of which they don't know how it's going to be played. Just because the game doesn't fit exactly with what they want that game to be. Or don't like the play style. Or the graphical style. Or the story.. or anything really.

All this before they play the (final version of the) game. Just remember that games change during development. Also developers/publishers rarely show every aspect of a game before release. And no game caters to everyone, and that is okay too.

For example, I don't like Warriors-style games. So I won't be buying Hyrule Warriors. I have played the previous entries but could never really get into those games. But do I complain about it? No. I will just skip it and buy a different game later on (Kirby AirRiders).

One thing I'm keen to learn before I inevitably buy, as a S2 owner should I buy the S1 or S2 version, like is there a noticeable difference, or is 90% the difference just the hardware runs it better?

@ShadLink There's a big difference between complaining and voicing concern, if you ask me. If something you love is changing into something you don't like you should be vocal about it. Of course it matters in what way you voice it, on that I think we can agree.

In the case op Pokémon Legends: Z-A, there's been a LOT of footage and in-depth videos to get a very good idea of how the actual gameplay will be. I've been gaming since I was 8 and I'm now 44, so I have a very good idea of what I like and don't like. Also, I'm quite aware of how game development works and how the final product is usually not what we see in preview footage (hence all the disclaimers.) But from what I've seen now PL:ZA is not a game I think I will enjoy, specifically because I don't think the mechanics are particularly well designed and voicing my opinion about that is important to me. It's what causes good discourse in communities like this.

What you're basically saying is that "if you don't like something, keep your mouth shut." Or something to that extent. Well, I will do anything for love, but I won't do that.

@Pillowpants Sure, but people are unreasonable to expect Legends:Z/A to be the same gameplay as the traditional Mainline titles.

Which it isnt. It follows up on the different gameplay formula that was introduced with Legends:Arceus (which in turn is a follow up/evolution from Lets Go Pikachu/Eevee games). Games which I wasn't a huge fan of myself.
(though I must admit I enjoyed the Lets Go games a lot more than Legends:Arceus, which I got bored of fairly quickly)

I really dont mind that they try something different with the Legends games and that they become a series in itself with different style gameplay.

People that want the traditional Pokemon gameplay (like myself), just have to wait till next year when inevitably the next generation mainline games will launch that follow up on Scarlet/Violet.

@SillyG "half of the content missing" this nonsense again DLC is not cut content, according to Serebii all Pokemon DLC has had different directors PLZA will more than likely be the same. It's developed separately hence why it is additional content not cut content.
SwSh and SV had complete stories pre DLC it is not like they left a cluiffhanger forcing people to buy the DLC. Part 2 anyway PLZA will be the same.

Also you not wanting to own digital DLC is your prerogative but in this day and age there is no true physical releases, with updates and patches most game discs and carts are outdated

A lot of people took home a paycheck for that add and they really shouldn’t have. What a completely boring commercial and waste of talent.

@ShadLink It's hilarious so much double standards when it comes to Pokemon like new Digimon has season pass DLC yet there was so much furore when they announced PLZA will have DLC next year.

BOTW/TOTK get praised to high heaven yet those games are the very definition of barren. You just have the same cut and paste animal or enemies but the majority time you are traversing the land it is just you in an empty field...

It's just internet brownie points to hate on GF & Pokemon, the fact SV became the 2nd best selling games tells you what the majority of people thought! Haters are always louder as they say.

I'm excited for the game but this ad really lacks energy to drum up excitement. They must have spent all the ad money on paying the actor to just sit and make some faces instead of any other kind of production value.

Give me more ads like the one with Paul Rudd

@Pillowpants

@ShadLink There's a big difference between complaining and voicing concern, if you ask me. If something you love is changing into something you don't like you should be vocal about it. Of course it matters in what way you voice it, on that I think we can agree.

Sure I agree here. But when talking about Pokémon it is not a few people voicing their concern. But it's a smal extremely vocal group complaining at every opportunity they get. That is NOT the same thing as voicing concern.

In the case op Pokémon Legends: Z-A, there's been a LOT of footage and in-depth videos to get a very good idea of how the actual gameplay will be.

Yet we have only seen a few area's of the game. Just like with previous titles. This says absolutely nothing.

But from what I've seen now PL:ZA is not a game I think I will enjoy, specifically because I don't think the mechanics are particularly well designed

And this is something you absolutely can't say without playing it. This game is going to have a completely new battle mechanic never seen in earlier Pokémon games. So how can you ever assess if it's well designed or not?!!

What you're basically saying is that "if you don't like something, keep your mouth shut."

WHERE DID I WRITE THAT?! No, my point is now and has always been: if you don't like it, don't buy it. And if you want to voice your concern, tell Nintendo. Every single Nintendo website has a contact@ address. Which is a lot better than complain in an echo chamber. (it is not going to change anything, and takes away enjoyment of people who are wanting to play this game (like me))

@ShadLink Thanks for the reply. Look man, I hope the game will be better than what my current estimate is, based on what I've seen and know about it. I just don't trust the Pokémon Company any more after Scarlet/Violet and will definitely never buy their games day 1 any more.

I never said you wrote "if you don't like something, keep your mouth shut.", but you seemed to imply it. I think discussions about games are good, especially when there's people who are enthusiastic and people who are less so. I don't reply in an attempt to reduce anyone's enjoyment. I just want to have a good conversation and I think we had a good one.

Whenever I get the chance to voice anything to Nintendo through questionaires, I do so. Also sometimes through other means.

ive seen nintendo do stranger things