>>37873446There was probably a push to make the games more accessible since Yokai watch was gaining popularity. Even if someone is the director, doesn't mean they have full 100% control over exactly what the game is going to be, it's quite possible TPC has certain marketing goals that push each gen in a certain direction.
Ohmori gets a bad rep but I do think a lot of the problems with the more recent games stem more from the almost yearly release schedule and the way the jump to 3D and how it causes less of the experience to be within our imagination compared to the 2D sprite titles. I have a feeling that if you took some of the DS era games and made it 3D, they would come across a lot worse, the way dialogue happened in those games FELT more like gameplay even though it was a cutscene because the camera is at the same angle it is during gameplay, meaning long dialogue segments in previous games werent as noticable.
Ohmori's biggest sins are "the battle frontier project has started" (which was probably moreso due to development cycle constraints than anything else), and Festival Plaza in SM (I feel like if Festival Plaza and Pokepelago had existed in Alola rather than a menu, SM would have felt a lot more full of content, it's funny how small things like that can have a big impact).
