>>39925788IMO they would ideally get rid of all the handholding and forced friendship/rivals.
What I liked about the earlier gens was how you were kind of in your own journey, with only the bros on your team by your side. Occasionally you'd find your so called rival/friend, but they were relegated to a quick showdown/battle, no cutscenes or long dialogue.
Not only that, but the rivals were often competent too. Blue had the nugget bridge fight and his Alakazam in Gen 1. Silver had a decently varied team that was no pushover. Everyone remembers the fight against Brendan/May before Mauville. Barry is often cited as the last best rival because while even if he was a bit intrusive, he often put up a real fight.
Gen 5 started the trend of forced rivals/friends, and Gen 6 overdid it with the four stooges literally following you on your journey. They were with you every step of the way and their teams were small and often even lacked four moves. Serena/Calem especially had no personality whatsoever.
Then you add the rotomdex which is basically the equivalent of the Skyrim compass aka destroying any sense of exploration.
This is an age where kids are the smartest they've been IMO, being able to handle smartphones and what not from ages 2+, yet the new Pokemon games have been the most "child-friendly" ever in the recent years. We need to go back.
