The new Detective Pikachu Returns game for Nintendo Switch is fixing and highlighting a problem the main Pokémon series has had for ages.
Summary SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT The release of Detective Pikachu Returns for Nintendo Switch has highlighted a problem that the main Pokémon series has had for decades.
Detective Pikachu Returns is a spin-off game in the franchise and a sequel to 2016’s Detective Pikachu, which was originally released for the Nintendo 3DS. The new game follows the story of the titular Detective Pikachu and his investigative partner, Tim Goodman. The duo’s goals are to search for clues in order to solve the several mysteries that shroud Detective Pikachu Return’s Ryme City. There are curious events taking place in the city, such as the disappearance of Harry Goodman, Tim’s father. Essentially, Detective Pikachu Returns retains the concept of the original title. It is an adventure game in which players need to explore certain areas, find clues that are somehow connected to the lead they are pursuing at the moment, and use that to continue progressing through the campaign. One of the main differences between the new game and the original installment is that the title has been updated with Pokémon from the most recent generations, including those from Gen 8’s Galar, like Galarian Darmanitan. Even though it is a spin-off game, Detective Pikachu Returns has one feature that sets it ahead of all other Pokémon games in the core series.Detective Pikachu Returns Has Voice Acting Whereas Other Pokémon Games Do Not Unlike all the games in the main Pokémon series, Detective Pikachu Returns has voice acting. The element is quite present throughout the majority of the game and is a vital aspect of the narrative itself. The titular Detective Pikachu’s humor heavily relies on not only what he says, but how he says it – the creature has a deep, hardened voice replicating that of stereotypical detectives from old movies. The presence of voice is something that makes Detective Pikachu Returns stand out, as the lack of it has been a recurring problem in the core series for decades – and one that has been worsened with the most recent generations. Voice Acting Improves Immersion Within Detective Pikachu Returns The voice acting element in Detective Pikachu Returns significantly improves the immersion experience within the game. With characters actually voicing out what they mean to say, the game gets an entirely fresh perspective and one that sets the tone and humor across the campaign. Arguably, the Detective Pikachu character would not have as much appeal as he does without the presence of a voice. His rough and worn-out voice gives him a lot of personality and makes him stand out as a character, different from all others in the game. The same can be said about Tim Goodman, even his voice is completely different from that of Pikachu’s. Of course, the quality of the voice acting itself plays an important role in Detective Pikachu Returns. Having a neutral and more realistic tone like Tim Goodman’s is evidently different from Detective Pikachu’s exaggerated and comic-like timber. These antagonizing forces are part of what gives the game its strength and allow for a larger sense of immersion while playing, even if this happens within a fantasy-like story led by a coffee-addled talking Pikachu. The immersion created by voice is exactly what is missing from the core Pokémon series, and this has been made shockingly evident with the Gen 8 and Gen 9 games. Lack Of Voices In Pokémon Gen 8 & Gen 9 Feels Especially Off With the shift in style from Gen 7 to Gen 8, and then from Gen 8 to Gen 9, Pokémon games in the main series have been suffering even more with the lack of voice acting. This has been a recurring problem throughout the decades, but one that was tolerable, as the lack of voice acting was not actually detrimental to the game. That changed with Gen 8’s Pokémon Sword and Shield. In the games set in Galar, there is an extensive set of cutscenes focused on characters, and the lack of voice while they have their mouths moving is dreadfully uncanny. One particular moment in which this weirdness is highlighted is when Spikemuth Gym Leader Piers is singing at a concert before the battle against him. Players have to sit through an awkward cutscene in which they have to watch Piers sing, but never actually listen to anything. It is a terrible event to witness in Pokémon Sword and Shield, and the main fault is the lack of voice acting to make that song come true – even if the song were terribly performed, it would be better than the complete absence of it. This is something with which Detective Pikachu Returns does not struggle at all. Of course, the lack of voice acting in core Pokémon games not only creates strange moments like the one with Piers but also undermines its own immersion. The most recent titles in the main series, namely Pokémon Legends: Arceus and Pokémon Scarlet and Violet are excelling in terms of storytelling. The narrative aspects of the two games are much better than in previous generations, and yet they do not reach their full potential due to the lack of voice acting. Dramatic moments, like when Arven reacts to discovering a hard truth, are sold short simply because there is no voice to dictate the actual tone of the moment. Even when facing the final boss in the Pokémon Teal Mask DLC, there could be voice-acting elements to make the encounter much more impactful – and meaningful, as it sets the stage for The Indigo Disk DLC. The general audio design and how music is presented do play a major role in these situations, but they no longer seem sufficient. As Pokémon games in the core series get more complex in terms of character animation, the lack of voice acting seems to be even more impactful. The titles are also expanding to an open-world design, and the lack of voices with characters makes them feel like an early-2000 game. Not all NPCs scattered across the worlds of the core Pokémon games have to be given a voice, but having voice acting applied to the main campaign cutscenes can improve the titles in major ways. Immersion can be augmented, and awkward moments can be avoided with characters actually having voices, and the prime example of how that could work can be learned from Detective Pikachu Returns, which shines with its voice acting.
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