Growing up, we all definitely watched Pokemon at one point or another. Just like the level 99 Hydro Pump Magikarp, someone who doesn’t know what Pokemon is the hardest to find! Watching the anime and being a fan, most of us even dreamt of being the no. 1 Pokemon trainer!
Fantasies aside, Pokemon games are something we all love to play. And what if I tell you that you can make your very own Pokemon game? Incredible, right? So, in today’s article, we’ll let you on about everything you need to know to create your own Pokemon game.
Can you make your own Pokemon game?
The answer is yes. Many fans have made their own Pokemon games to this date. The easiest way is to use RPG Maker and Pokemon Essentials. We’ll let you know more about it below!
Which RPG Maker is used for Pokemon?
In order to make a Pokemon game, choosing the right version of RPG Maker is very important. “Which version should I use?”- is a question that’s asked very often in the Pokemon community. If we try to cut the whole discussion about the pros and cons of different RPG Makers to make a Pokemon game, it all comes down to one thing. That’s RPG XP. Mostly because Pokemon Essentials only works with that version of RPG Maker.
What is the best fan-made Pokémon game?
Developed by Game Freak, the main series of Pokemon games have a huge fanbase. However, the bigger the fanbase is, the more fan games there are. The members of the Pokemon community met up and developed fan games for years.
However, not all fan games gained as much popularity as some games like Pokemon Insurgence and Pokemon Showdown did. Pokemon Insurgence is known to be the best fan-made Pokemon game till now. Pokemon Reborn, Pokemon Fire Ash, Pokemon Zeta which is also known as Omicron is also some of the best Pokemon fan games.
As time passed, more fan games like Pokemon Sage, Pokemon MMO 3D, Pixelmon, Pokemon Phoenix Rising were made and gained quite an amount of popularity among Pokemon fans worldwide.
Is it illegal to make a Pokemon fan game?
Although it doesn’t happen often, there still remains the possibility of you being asked by Nintendo or Game Freak to stop developing your game. That, if your game gets enough attention. Pokémon Prism, a popular Pokémon fan game we all know about, had to face the same consequences. This game was in development for 8 consecutive years.
Alex Tutty is a renowned digital media IP expert, who’s been advising and representing clients related to areas like games, apps, website development and virtual goods said- “In order to demonstrate copyright infringement, the owner of the original would need to show that a substantial part of a screenshot in the original is copied in the fan game.” He continued, “Where the fan game copies the original, exactly then there is obviously a huge issue here.”
So as we can understand, if your fan game is very much similar to a properly copyrighted game then you will get sued for sure.
“Fans who wish to make fan games can approach the owner of the original and request a license,” Tutty said in an interview. He also explained, “The benefit of this is that a company has control over third party use of its material and generates revenue from it.”
Well, you’re not obligated to do that and you’ll probably have a hard time getting any of the famous game makers to grant you a license, but you can still give it a try if you want.
Is RPG Maker XP easy?
RPG maker gives its users a basic script language, a map editor and a combat editor to help users make whatever they want. Plenty of games worth recommending was made using RPG Maker.
If we try to understand, the history of RPG Maker is pretty much full of fan games, piracy, cease and desist letters and many more. There are various versions of RPG Maker. The very first one, RPG Maker 95, 2000 and 2003 were created by a division of a Japanese company that had no interest in westernizing its products. However, in 2000, a Russian student ended up translating the RPG Maker and it spread like wildfire.
Now, RPG Maker was easy to use back then. It offered the opportunity to recreate without coding. Then in 2004, a new version of RPG Maker was released which featured higher screen resolution, a map system and a scripting system. It was easier to add or remove functions from a game then.
The next updated version RPG Maker VX was certainly a step back with reduced screen resolution and a simplified map. Then came RPG Maker MV which was a game-changer. The program had been rewritten by JavaScript and new features were included.
With all those updates, RPG Maker surely changed a lot in comparison to the very first version of it. But with the basic computer knowledge, you still can make your own game using RPG Maker. We can’t say it’s easy but it’s not so difficult either. And of course, there are always YouTube tutorials on anything and everything!
How to make your own tabletop RPG game?
The whole process of making up your own tabletop RPG game can be overwhelming. A sense of accomplishment can make you feel glorious. But at the same time, the process can be harder than you think. So start simple. Think about what exactly you want your game to be about and then write down your thoughts. Create your characters and objectives and decide what you want your game to look like. Once you’re done, start at the end and go backwards.
You have to always remember that this is your game and you can change it anytime you want. If you want things to be more complex, then you can definitely change it that way but you’ll have to get the basics right for that. So start simple and go forward with your plan slowly but effectively.
Can you make a Pokemon game on YouTube?
If you’re thinking if you can learn how to make games on YouTube, the answer is yes. In this current world of information and technology, there’s so much information about so many things available online, you can easily learn from watching tutorials on YouTube.
Who is the guy that makes Pokemon games?
Pokemon was invented by a Japanese man named Satoshi Tajiri. He’s a video game designer and director. Best known as the creator of Nintendo’s Pokemon franchise, Satoshi Tajiri wrote and edited his own video gaming fanzine with his friend Ken Sugimori who’s a digital illustrator.
Conclusion
Making your own Pokemon game can feel really good if you do it successfully. Although working with RPG Makers can seem really complicated at first, when you get a hold of the whole process, you’ll certainly start to enjoy it. We tried to provide as much information as you would need to create your own Pokemon game but if you have questions then feel free to leave a comment!
