Why People Hate Pokémon

There are many reasons people may hate Pokémon. These reasons may be opinion-based, religious, or because they just think it's dumb. Here are some of the main reasons. Quotes are from The Cave of Dragonflies. All text in this section is by Aobaru.

It's For Little Kids

For years, older Pokémon fans have been tormented by snide remarks about Pokémon being "for babies", to the point where many don't even admit in public that they like the series.

Indeed, it is hard to deny that the way Pokémon is marketed is primarily geared towards younger audiences, and this unfortunate fact has spawned an infamous anti-Pokémon argument basically stating that to enjoy Pokémon over a certain age points to anything from immaturity to low IQ to mental retardation.

Of course, it's only natural for people to want to fit in, and for a twenty-year-old to be holding a DS and Pokémon Pearl game while sitting at desk at a real estate office may not seem too appealing or mature, right? Well, mentally replace that DS with a sudoku puzzle. Is it so immature now? Well, there is little difference; both Pokémon and Sudoku are strategy games, right? The simple fact that a DS is a video game system makes something in our brains associate it with childhood.

Like Butterfree said, Pokémon is marketed towards a younger audience. To be more precise, 7-12 year-old boys. But do only 7-12 year-old boys play Pokémon? No. Though approximately 65% of video game players are boys, that doesn't mean that if you hand a girl a DS she'll say, "What's that?"

It's the same thing with age. Do only 7-12 year-olds play Pokémon? No, of course not. Fantasy in general is associated with imagination, which in turn is associated with immaturity. Of course, many adults make a living with their imagination. They're not necessarily immature. Fantasy can be very mature, such as The Lord of the Rings, or immature, such as Teletubbies, which Butterfree used as an example in her article.

In conclusion, a culture such as Pokémon, which is marketed towards children, is not limited to children, as society would have us think.

It Requires No Thinking

Many people like Pokémon because of the games' complicated strategy.

It is easy to deny that Pokémon requires no thinking. Unlike some other games in which the main objective is to kill everything in your path, the Pokémon games require you think of which attack would be most effective against what type, and in capturing a Pokémon, to stop, carefully weaken it, and capture it. If it has too much energy left, the capture will be unsuccessful. If it has too little, it will faint. Repeatedly pressing the A button won't work here.

Additionally, Pokémon have types. For example, a fire-type attack will not be very effective against a water-type foe. Randomly choosing attacks will not usually lead to victory.

It's Evil

We all know the tragic tale of the lone Pokémon fan who is unfortunate enough to have a family member who firmly asserts that Pokémon is evil. Given the general diversity of religious beliefs and interpretations, it is no surprise that most if not all popular franchises have sprouted objections from some religious groups, and Pokémon is far from being an exception.

Religion and beliefs are qualities in a person that do not change easily. If your parents/guardians think that Pokémon is evil, that is their opinon, and whether or not it is your opinion, you have to recognize that is what they believe. I, for one, do not believe there is any "moral corruption" present in the Pokémon franchise. My advice would be to show your parents/guardians a website like We All Live in a Pokémon World, which intellegently explains common misconceptions regarding both the Pokémon games and anime.

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All content, including layout, is copyrighted to Aobaru of AobaruNet. Rotom courtesy of Arkeis.