It‘s Time for Pokémon on PC

As a lifelong Pokémon master and gamer, I‘ve always wondered—why is there no full-fledged Pokémon RPG for PC? We have spinoffs like Pokémon UNITE now on Switch and mobile. But the main series remains locked down, playable only on Nintendo‘s devices.

This hardware exclusivity does stem from some reasonable business logic. Nintendo owns part of The Pokémon Company and wants to keep the flagship games selling Switch devices. But as a passionate fan, I firmly believe Pokémon has reached a point where it‘s leaving money on the table and disappointing its most loyal players by shunning PC.

We Shouldn‘t Have to Resort to Emulators

Plenty of enterprising Pokémon trainers have taken matters into their own hands, using emulators to enjoy classic Game Boy and Nintendo DS titles on PC. But as any fan knows, emulation involves workarounds and imperfections that detract from the experience. We crave a modern Pokémon adventure tailored for PC, with cutting-edge graphics natively rendered and exciting mods made possible.

The Winds of Change Are Blowing

The PC gaming market grows exponentially annually, expected to hit $50 billion this year alone. Japanese publishers from Sega to Capcom have brought once unthinkable console exclusives like Yakuza and Monster Hunter to Steam. Even Nintendo sees the appeal of PC now, expanding big names like FIFA across platforms. Pokémon feels like the next holdout franchise destined to make the inevitable leap.

The Pokémon Company left an estimated $90 million on the table last year alone by not having a mainline PC or Xbox entry available. As hardware sales plateau and Pokémon‘s popularity swells, does it really make sense to keep limiting such a beloved franchise strictly to Nintendo platforms?

Evolving Beyond Hardware

Pokémon has proven itself this decade with bold evolutions into mobile (Pokémon GO) and extended gameplay styles (Legends Arceus). It feels like the next frontier lies in fully embracing cross-platform publishing, where gamers on PC/console can quest together into fantastical new Pokémon domains.

Nintendo and The Pokémon Company have walked a careful line so far, wary of undercutting 3DS and Switch hardware revenues. But it‘s time to take more inspiration from the creatures they created—to adapt, grow, and journey onto new horizons and technical terrain. Venues like Steam offer sales terrain too lucrative to ignore.

Gotta Mod ‘Em All

Imagine the wondrous new Pokémon adventures modders could conjure given proper mod support. Fans have already created unofficial content that transforms Skyrim into a Pokémon playground. Think what a dedicated creator community could build if Game Freak combined their world-class creature designs with the malleable foundation of a PC RPG toolkit.

The Future is Now

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet garnered criticism at launch for pushing aging Switch hardware beyond its limits in places. Those framerate hiccups and muddy textures could have been smoothed over on capable gaming rigs. Nintendo can only restrain the true open-world scale of this franchise‘s potential for so long before consumer frustration mounts.

If recent developments tell us anything, it‘s that Pokémon games could thrive across myriad platforms now, bolstered by cloud play and improved development tools that simplify porting between console and PC SKUs. The time has come to give fans the flexible, future-facing Pokémon RPG they crave while still supporting Nintendo‘s business. Game Freak‘s developers would relish tackling new technical challenges too and adding billions more to yearly revenues.

Mr. Tajiri—tear down that hardware wall! Your beloved Pokémon await on PC.