>>50280417Well this philosophy has allowed them to prosper greatly.
https://youtu.be/qJk3wrvL6ToHere James Turner says the same thing about Pokémon design, that Pokémon should feel as you could be friends with them. It's a very calculated image and one they greatly want to express. I've mentioned that even in Arceus this manifest itself from side quests, your own interactions with your Pokémon and seeing how NPCs interact with Pokémon even when the setting was willing to portray the Pokémon as being more feral-like than usual, it shows that even as wild creatures willing to kill you a Pokémon is at their very core a friend.
It's also why I take interest in the portrayal of Pokémon within the series and the framework they exist in. I'm not aware of any work done towards this since most content creators focus more on design inspiration but I find the subject fascinating as well as it allows me to smash a few inane mirages here and there. This is a big part as to why I find the leaked guides so fascinating because it gives us an insight into how TPC wants the Pokémon to be seen as. I'm aware these aren't absolute rules for them but nevertheless it is a guide for others on how they want their franchise to be handled. And to add to my points from the other post these guides have guidelines *against* humanizing the Pokémon which I believe fits well into the overall picture they present of the Pokémon themselves and what they think would hurt the brand's image if handled incorrectly which is in part why these exist in the first place.
