>Sugimori: The first Pokémon were Rhydon, Clefairy, and Lapras. At first, we’d planned to have Pokémon living alongside humans, making their lives easier. So, during the early stages of development, many of the characters we came up with had clear roles, like carrying things around or sailing across the sea with people on their backs.
Makes me wonder why pokemon in the overworld aren't more common in the games. You don't really see or interact with Pokemon (both yours and others') outside of battles and the generation specific nintendogs-esque gimmick