Pokemon company's chief operating officer (COO) Takato Utsunomiya reportedly aims to "keep Pokemon alive for hundreds of years" with more, new, and appealing Pokemon species a must for the company, according to a Comicbook report.
While addressing the company's longevity, Utsunomiya reportedly said he sees the franchise living for "hundreds of years" as well as surviving "well past our lifetimes."
When asked how the Pokemon company can continue their grand ambitions, the COO said, as per the Guardian interview, that "we must create more appealing Pokémon if we want to continue passing on Pokémon to the next generations," with him adding that the company's team now have "people who grew up playing Pokémon as kids... creating new Pokémon and coming up with new ideas."
Pokemon's audiences were also emphasized by Utsunomiya as a multifaceted avenue focusing not only on its long-standing adult fans but to younger kids as well. "It's easy to just focus on adults: they have a lot of disposable income, you can see their reactions in real time on social media ... But we need to make sure that we are still keeping the younger kids interested," he continues.
"Kids are very honest - they won't play something they don't like. If your brand feels old or boring, they will immediately dismiss it."
Pokemon Games at the Forefront
In relation to games, the Pokemon company boss stated that "video games are truly at the core of the brand - and that will continue," as he states that it really is the "best way" to experience Pokemon with the games showing a realistic and living appeal to the pocket monsters.
Utsunomiya also addressed the original game's pokedex description gaps, with the modern games like Legends Arceus and Scarlet/Violet reconciling the mistakes by seeing Pokemon like "Bidoof creating dens in the game, and you have Pokémon travelling in packs. So there's a newfound realism of their setting. When it comes to delivering the descriptions seen in the original Pokédex ... there's a lot more we can do there."
A Loud and Clear Pokemon Community
As for the Pokemon community's current sentiments surrounding the franchise, most notably after Pokemon's 2022 games, Scarlet and Violet, having underwhelming graphics and riddled with flaws, resulting in a reaction unprecedented in the genre, Utsunomiya stated the company is well aware of the feedback.
"Regardless of whether we publicly respond, we're always paying very close attention to the feedback and conversations happening in the communities."
But he clarified that there are some areas where the gaming giant cannot always be completely aligned with what members of the community desire and what the company wishes to give.
The Guardian reports that Pokemon is as popular as ever, with 2019's Pokémon Sword and Shield for the Nintendo Switch already selling 26 million units, and the games as a whole selling over 460 million. Pokémon Go has an estimated 80 million active gamers.
Utsunomiya echoes the current state of the company by saying that "there is something that is just universal about Pokémon," with him further emphasizing the diverse range of audiences and worldwide-appeal behind the Pikachu-riddled company.
