How emulation is making Pokémon accessible for fans
Five fans give their story on why they emulate Pokémon titles
Since 1996, Pokémon has been responsible for the sale of millions of games across multiple platforms. Over time, it has become increasingly difficult to obtain certain titles due to the lack of reprints, the closure of the Nintendo eShop, resellers commanding high prices, or because the games never had an official release in specific countries.
A number of older titles have become much harder to find and more expensive, and counterfeit products have become widespread. Pokémon fans, especially those who are younger or with little money, have been priced out of the hobby, or are at risk of falling for counterfeit products. Some have turned to emulation as a form of accessing the franchise’s vast catalogue of games. Today we are highlighting a selection of real-life stories from our readers, asking them why they turned to emulation to play Pokémon and what it would take for them to purchase the titles legitimately.
Disclaimer: Johto Times does not condone piracy and always encourage readers to enjoy Pokémon in an official capacity that is accessible and affordable for them.
Firstly, we have Mateusz Kuchnecki, a Pokémon fan and Railway Industry Planner from Poland who started to emulate when he was a child. He describes his barrier to playing Pokémon as being the fact that it was difficult to obtain earlier Pokémon products in his country.
Games emulated: Pokémon Sapphire, Ruby, Emerald, FireRed, HeartGold, Black
Up until 2010 I didn't have access to the internet, so if any kid back then had an emulator with any Pokémon games, we used that opportunity to play. On the other hand, it was very hard to obtain [the] Game Boy [consoles] and games in Poland before the Nintendo DS era, so for most of us, emulation was the only way to play Pokémon games. When I finally got my DS, it was too late to purchase HeartGold or Black due to enormous prices, so my adventure began with Pokémon Y as the first official Pokémon title I ever bought.
- Mateusz
Mateusz went on to tell us what it would take for him to give up on emulation, and highlighted his enjoyment of fan created ROM hacks, which wouldn’t be possible to play by official means.
If Nintendo allowed us to purchase good old titles (like Emerald or HeartGold) even as electronic releases, they’d probably encourage me to stop emulating. However, there are so many really good hacks made by fans, and emulation is the only way to battle with Hoennian Tentacool.
- Mateusz
CelestialBlaziken is a student from the USA who is currently trying to save money for college. Finances need to be managed carefully, and current hardware is out of the question.
Games emulated: Pokémon Ruby, Emerald, Platinum, Black, Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team, Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness
Well, first off, I'm still a student and am trying to save money for college, vacation, etc., and I don't have a Switch or anything with an official eShop. The games [I emulate] are relatively older games that aren't being produced, so there isn't much of a profit from them anymore since people aren't primarily buying these games [new]. For the market that does exist for these games, however, the price is above the roof, and additionally, there is the chance that it could be a fake copy (I heard there's especially a problem with this for the Gen 3 games).
Of course, there are ways to tell, but even then it can be hard to discern this since some cameras don't do much justice. I could always watch gameplay [videos], but to me, I'd rather get the experience myself because videos may also miss out on additional details and you can't really see the team you want.
- CelestialBlaziken
When I asked CelestialBlaziken what it would take for her to give up emulating Pokémon titles, she wanted affordability and wished to look into buying Pokémon in the years ahead once her priorities are in order.
To me, if I had an easier way to access this (eShop for Switch, as mentioned, where older games are more reasonably priced), and when I graduate and am able to buy myself physical copies of these games, then there may not be a reason to emulate, but for now, if I [want to] continue supporting the series I'll have to rely on merchandise (i.e shirts and plushies), or even expressing my liking of the series with fan sites or making fan art.
- CelestialBlaziken
Oshi is also from the United States, and he enjoys emulating Pokémon titles for games that he cannot find legitimately or affordably.
Games emulated: Crystal, FireRed, LeafGreen, Emerald, Platinum, Black, White, Black 2, White 2, Omega Ruby, X, Y
Finding some of these games legally can be a pain in the butt. But thank goodness for the internet to make it not nearly as bad. Just need to shell out a good bit of money for it. It's fun and easy. Being poor growing up, and having horrible internet, made [emulating Pokémon] the best pastime I could have had.
- Oshi
Oshi would continue to explore emulation, but own them legitimately if there were valid and accessible ways to do so.
I feel like I would always emulate games out of simply wanting to see what games I can get to run on what system. (After legally owning them and dumping them of course). But for the older games, just if they were available easier and on a hypothetical "eShop" of some sort, I would gladly buy the game and continue to emulate them.
- Oshi
Miles from the United States told us how his games were stolen from him when he was a teenager, and some were lost during a house move. He wants the opportunity to play his beloved games again, and emulation has given him the opportunity to do that.
Games emulated: Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky, Red Rescue Team, Ranger, HeartGold, FireRed, Emerald, Black
The games that I listed are games that I've mostly had since they released (FireRed and Emerald aside), however, I lost FireRed and Emerald during a move and the rest of the games were stolen from me in my teenage years. While these games hold a lot of sentimental value to me, their prices have [risen] steeply, with each game usually being roughly ~100 USD without its box. I can't afford such a steep price for a fraction of my childhood. Emulation provides a free and accessible alternative, with additional options to customize it to mix up the gameplay such as randomizing the game.
- Miles
Miles states that if Nintendo added DS titles to their Switch Online service, or they re-released these titles on the currently available eShop as a one-time purchase, he could be swayed from emulation.
Nintendo could add a DS version to their Expansion Pass that would allow people of all age ranges to enjoy the older Pokémon games on their Switch, as well as the Game Boy games. Or they could re-release the older games similarly to how they did Red/Blue/Yellow for the 3DS, which would be a one-time purchase instead of the subscription fee that Nintendo Switch Online is operating on.
- Miles
Finally we have Fangking Omega from the United Kingdom. He only emulates titles that he has legitimately purchased, purely for convenience. He highlights ways that he uses emulation to enjoy his games in enhanced ways.
Games emulated: (Too many to list!)
More often than not, I use my own ROM dumps from games I physically own, so saving money through piracy was never the objective. I like to replay my games on more capable hardware to enhance the experience in some way, such as enjoying the early Pokémon games on a big, bright Switch OLED screen, or having Generations 1 to 7 installed on one 3DS along with a homebrew alternative to Pokémon Bank for maximum convenience and portability.
Another advantage is running the newest games on PC with higher resolutions and smoother frame rates than native hardware can produce.
- Fangking Omega
Like our other guests, we asked Fangking Omega what it would take for him to give up emulation moving forwards, but since he continues to purchase his games legitimately, he doesn’t see this changing. In fact, he would even consider double-dipping on titles he already owned!
Since I already purchase and own Pokémon titles legally, and then make my own personal backups, there isn't anything I would do differently, even if Nintendo made the games more accessible. Chances are if they made older games available on new hardware I'd also rebuy them or subscribe to the relevant service, because I'm a complete sucker!
- Fangking Omega
We want to thank each of our guests for their insight into how emulation has helped them access Pokémon more easily. We are interested to hear what our readers’ approach to emulation is, so if you have any words you wish to share, please feel free to leave them in the comments below!
Without emulation, we never would have had Twitch Plays Pokémon. That alone makes it a net good!