>>57237212I actually genuinely enjoy the videogames. Despite all the misgivings about the most recent gens, the core gameplay loop is still quite fun to me. The battle system is genuinely fun and, even if I don't like competitive, I can appreciate all the thought and strategy that goes into it (though I'd prefer if the games focused more on the singleplayer aspects again). I've also gotten attached to the creatures, and even if there were other monster-collecting RPGs, the fact that the monsters I've gotten so attached to wouldn't be there would detract a lot from them. Pokémon has genuinely incredibly solid creature designs.
The franchise just really tickles my autism in a way that nothing else does. I love thinking about the games, discussing about them, etc. I think people are being dumb when they say that “Pokémon was never good” - have you actually played any Pokémon videogame? They all have their flaws, and I don't want to say that criticism is illegitimate (as I've also criticized the games a fair bit myself), but I think that all the genwarring discourse has brainrotted many people into thinking that no game is actually good.
>>57237239Also, this. You can always replay your favorite games. It's genuinely quite fun to experiment with teams and choose unorthodox Pokémon for your playthrough. The games are easy enough that you can beat them with basically any Pokémon on your team. It's very fun.
I also enjoy the porn, but really I enjoy the porn because I enjoy the franchise - it's because of my emotional attachment to these creatures, that I find them attractive 