(Little) Things that annoy you in Pokémon

[R_N]

Me: "Despite the forced Exp. Share, from what I've seen, they got the level curve right in SwSh".

Literally 2 days later...

Me, finally getting to play SwSh: "Ok, how do I turn the Exp. Charm off?"

It's like 1 step forward and 3 steps back with this franchise, my word, that's infuriating to deal with.

Aggressively disagree that ,even before the EXP Charm was added, SWSH had a pro-exp share level curve.

I had to go out of my way multiple times during SWSH to avoid just instantly out leveling the competition and leaving them in the dust. You just earn too much EXP in aggregate unless yo ustart ignoring pokemon and eventually ignoring trainers where possible and even then it is staggering how quickly you catch up.


So then you do add the EXP Charm AND you get it near instantly in the DLC designed to be started as soon as you hit the wild area AND you can't turn it off and I just go what?

 

[Suspicious Derivative]

Making the Exp. Share mandatory is such a weird design choice. It was really great in Gen 6 & 7 where it was optional and could be turned on or off depending on what the player wanted. Thus, every player could choose depending on their playstyle, it was possible for everyone to make the game easier or harder (relatively speaking). But then they changed it in Gen 8 (and LGP/E from what I have understood). I just don't get it. Yes, the games have always been easy and they are made for kids, but from a gameplay perspective, making things optional is pretty much always better than making them mandatory. When I played Sword, the only solution I found was to train more than one team in order to not get ridiculously overleveled (I ended up training a "team" of 15 Pokémon in the end). And I even got underleveled in the end against Eternatus and Leon, which was unexpected and made these fights surprisingly hard. But even so, I definitely think they Exp. Share should have been optional like in Gen 6/7. I'd also say the mandatory Exp. Share is one of the biggest issues I have with S/S because of the above, it also makes it harder to train teams to an even level since they will always get Exp. in every battle and there's no good solution to prevent that.

As for the Exp. Charm, I don't really mind it because I like easy grinding in Pokémon games and the Charm definitely helps with that since S/S doesn't have super great training spots. Though I guess that's also something that could be solved if you could just turn it off (or just have the option to not receive it).

 

[Rapti]

Exp. Share should have been optional like in Gen 6/7. I'd also say the mandatory Exp. Share is one of the biggest issues I have with S/S because of the above, it also makes it harder to train teams to an even level since they will always get Exp. in every battle and there's no good solution to prevent that.

I definitely agree, yet I foud a way to have my pokemon at even levels
just run around with only 1 or 2 pokemon at a time (which means yes I did run around for most of the game with just 2 pokemon in my party even though I trained 30 total)

it definietly makes the constant PC access useful without trivializing the game that way

 

[Celever]

I definitely agree, yet I foud a way to have my pokemon at even levels
just run around with only 1 or 2 pokemon at a time (which means yes I did run around for most of the game with just 2 pokemon in my party even though I trained 30 total)

it definietly makes the constant PC access useful without trivializing the game that way

Honestly, I think this directly contradicts the core of the player experience of Pokémon games, which is growing attached to your Pokémon. It's often forgotten behind all the mechanics and features, but inevitably the reason we're talking about Pokémon on a forum is because of emotional attachment to the characters in the series, and if you have to stick your new friends in a PC just so there's a modicum of challenge... the game's failed to be a good Pokémon game.

In general this is why I believe challenge is necessary for Pokémon to be good. When the games can be cleared without trial by even young children, those children don't bond with their Pokémon in the same way because they never actually... do anything exciting. Clutch victories are an important way players grow connected to their characters in any RPG, so Pokémon deciding to essentially preclude clutch victories from potentially happening during SwSh is the biggest flaw of the game, above all the graphical errors and the monotony of the Wild Area. This is dangerous for the Pokémon series, too, because without the same attachment to the universe of Pokémon, the audience retention isn't there.

I actually think this is the whole reason why Dynamax exists. It creates the illusion of difficulty because oh no your opponent is now huge better make your Pokémon huge as well, Hey look, your huge Pokémon took down your opponent's huge Pokémon, aren't they great!? Issue is, kids don't even fall for these smoke and mirrors because a visually exciting battle =/= a mentally taxing one, and requiring thought is why clutch victories are clutch in RPGs.

 

[Worldie]

Issue is, kids don't even fall for these smoke and mirrors because a visually exciting battle =/= a mentally taxing one, and requiring thought is why clutch victories are clutch in RPGs.

It is interesting to note that sales sell otherwise.

Kids do fall for those smoke and mirrors and get interested in the fancy scenic mechanic enough to buy them / ask their parents to.

Do they keep playing the game after finishing the story? No, not really, but that doesn't matter, they bought the game already.

 

[Rapti]

Honestly, I think this directly contradicts the core of the player experience of Pokémon games, which is growing attached to your Pokémon. It's often forgotten behind all the mechanics and features, but inevitably the reason we're talking about Pokémon on a forum is because of emotional attachment to the characters in the series, and if you have to stick your new friends in a PC just so there's a modicum of challenge... the game's failed to be a good Pokémon game.

HEY! I always keep leveling all of my pokemon mister! >:[
whether I need to rotate them 2 at a time or 6 at a time doesn't really matter
*angryface*
*angryface*


Seriously thought, playing with just 2 pokemon at a time actually increased my enjoyment of the game; when NPCs carry around only 2 pokemon with them (or 6 of the same pokemon like in earlier games) and you carry 6, there's very little stategy even if you take steps to no overlevel
when is 2v2 you actually need to strategize

 

[earl]

Honestly, I think this directly contradicts the core of the player experience of Pokémon games, which is growing attached to your Pokémon. It's often forgotten behind all the mechanics and features, but inevitably the reason we're talking about Pokémon on a forum is because of emotional attachment to the characters in the series, and if you have to stick your new friends in a PC just so there's a modicum of challenge... the game's failed to be a good Pokémon game.

In general this is why I believe challenge is necessary for Pokémon to be good. When the games can be cleared without trial by even young children, those children don't bond with their Pokémon in the same way because they never actually... do anything exciting. Clutch victories are an important way players grow connected to their characters in any RPG, so Pokémon deciding to essentially preclude clutch victories from potentially happening during SwSh is the biggest flaw of the game, above all the graphical errors and the monotony of the Wild Area. This is dangerous for the Pokémon series, too, because without the same attachment to the universe of Pokémon, the audience retention isn't there.

I actually think this is the whole reason why Dynamax exists. It creates the illusion of difficulty because oh no your opponent is now huge better make your Pokémon huge as well, Hey look, your huge Pokémon took down your opponent's huge Pokémon, aren't they great!? Issue is, kids don't even fall for these smoke and mirrors because a visually exciting battle =/= a mentally taxing one, and requiring thought is why clutch victories are clutch in RPGs.

Ok but this is the same series that was designed to be steamrollered by the starter (at least that’s what me and my friends did when we were 7 and playing Diamond, one of the harder entries). I sure as hell got attached to my Gold Feraligatr and my Diamond Empoleon, but I cannot for the life of me remember any other team members I had in those original runs outside of the cover legendaries and the Red Gyarados. And I’m sure as hell confident that no battles were mentally taxing. I remember Cynthia being hype, but that was because of the big levels and the music (smoke and mirrors, one may say). Baby me probably would have been just as hyped by the Leon battle. Maybe more because the Charizard got really big at the end.

I really think the games are harder if you do attempt to build a full, balanced team because pooling EXP in one or two strong mons is just the easiest way to win. Maybe gen 5/7’s EXP mechanics made this strategy less potent, but I’m older than 7 and not soloing with starters anymore lol.

Honestly the most mentally taxing battle kid me ever went through was Yellow Brock, because I had to actually use my noggin and catch a Nidoran then train it up to learn double kick. Felt pretty smart.

 

[Sonikku A]

Megas are unbalanced as heck, and similar to modern mechanics was barely accounted for in game difficulty
Z moves are similar in that regard as well

 

[Samtendo09]

Megas are unbalanced as heck, and similar to modern mechanics was barely accounted for in game difficulty
Z moves are similar in that regard as well

The thing is, Pokémon was already unbalanced, but some of the modern mechanics available for all Pokémon did worsen the situation by dividing the strong and the weak even further. Gen 6 is where the power creep can feel like it is going out of control.

While Z-Moves it wasn't really too bad despite the unpredictability, Dynamax can take the cake as it have a lot of benefits even for just three turns, with Max Moves, immunity to flinch + phazing + less damage from most kind of set damage, and up to doubled HP - effectively doubling the Pokémon's bulk. While it is more manageable in VGC does to lower level, it's obvious that a great part of Smogon wasn't very forgiving towards this mechanic at all despite giving it a chance.

 

[earl]

The thing is, Pokémon was already unbalanced, but some of the modern mechanics available for all Pokémon did worsen the situation by dividing the strong and the weak even further. Gen 6 is where the power creep can feel like it is going out of control.

While Z-Moves it wasn't really too bad despite the unpredictability, Dynamax can take the cake as it have a lot of benefits even for just three turns, with Max Moves, immunity to flinch + phazing + less damage from most kind of set damage, and up to doubled HP - effectively doubling the Pokémon's bulk. While it is more manageable in VGC does to lower level, it's obvious that a great part of Smogon wasn't very forgiving towards this mechanic at all despite giving it a chance.

We’re talking about in-game though- Megas and Z-Moves break the in-game difficulty, given very few trainers use it themselves so you can kind of just stomp every encounter. Dynamax is handled much, much better in-game as it's only available when the opponent also uses it, making it both more balanced and feel more special when you can use it (compared to steamrolling with mega lucario or spamming Skystrike Hawlucha in every fight)

 

[Celever]

Ok but this is the same series that was designed to be steamrollered by the starter (at least that’s what me and my friends did when we were 7 and playing Diamond, one of the harder entries). I sure as hell got attached to my Gold Feraligatr and my Diamond Empoleon, but I cannot for the life of me remember any other team members I had in those original runs outside of the cover legendaries and the Red Gyarados. And I’m sure as hell confident that no battles were mentally taxing. I remember Cynthia being hype, but that was because of the big levels and the music (smoke and mirrors, one may say). Baby me probably would have been just as hyped by the Leon battle. Maybe more because the Charizard got really big at the end.

I really think the games are harder if you do attempt to build a full, balanced team because pooling EXP in one or two strong mons is just the easiest way to win. Maybe gen 5/7’s EXP mechanics made this strategy less potent, but I’m older than 7 and not soloing with starters anymore lol.

Honestly the most mentally taxing battle kid me ever went through was Yellow Brock, because I had to actually use my noggin and catch a Nidoran then train it up to learn double kick. Felt pretty smart.

Everything with regards to soloing is actually extremely fair, I concede that. Though maybe I was a dumb kid since I still never beat my first playthrough of Red -- a Blastoise solo. Maybe because my Blastoise was loaded with HMs.

However, with regards to "mentally taxing" I want to clarify that Pokémon as a whole is indeed that, usually. If you over-level and solo and just spam your strongest move then sure, but in every other situation players usually end up with a varied team that they switch in (even if on "Switch Mode" and do so before the opponent sends out their Pokémon) based on what the opponent is sending out, trying to hit them with a super-effective attack. Thinking through type matchups, especially with dual-types being a thing, even more so for new players sometimes having to guess what type the opponent is based either on their design or the effects of the previous moves that they've used, does require thought.

I'd liken it to Persona. Of course, Persona's characters are humans with dialogues and personalities that help grow attachment. But beyond this, clutch victories occur even on easier difficulties because you have to intelligently use status to overwhelm opponents who have specialised movesets of their own, and all enemies also have weaknesses that you want to try and hit them with. Persona games aren't hard, especially if you level adequately, but battles require thought and care. Pokémon battles, if you ran with a full team (or 5 mons + a HM slave), which is imo what most older kids are inclined to do, used to also be challenging to this extent.

Now you can plough through everything with neutral moves because Exp. All and especially Exp. Charm force all of your party members to be over-levelled. It's the equivalent of soloing with your starter except with 6 Pokémon, which defeats the entire purpose of "tailoring your playthrough to your style", forcing players who want a challenge to jump through hoops to try and derive minimal challenge from a game easier than what you would find on Neopets.

 

[Worldie]

I'd liken it to Persona. Of course, Persona's characters are humans with dialogues and personalities that help grow attachment. But beyond this, clutch victories occur even on easier difficulties because you have to intelligently use status to overwhelm opponents who have specialised movesets of their own, and all enemies also have weaknesses that you want to try and hit them with. Persona games aren't hard, especially if you level adequately, but battles require thought and care. Pokémon battles, if you ran with a full team (or 5 mons + a HM slave), which is imo what most older kids are inclined to do, used to also be challenging to this extent.

Fun that you mention Persona, because if you ask any Persona veteran (as in, anyone who didn't literally only play Royal and Golden), they will tell you that the games have become excessively easy after FES and 4 vanilla, that any idiot can faceroll them without even thinking, and that the balance is terrible, the enemy AI too stupid, and there's no challenge outside of selfimposed ones.

....sounds familiar?

 

[Pikachu315111]

Exp. Share: We've discuss to death that it's so annoying what they did with Exp. Share by having it always on, as if they hated the concept of the Nuzlocke or Solo Run and wanted to assure those challenges were pointless. I'm curious how the difficulty of the games would change if you could turn off the Exp. Share or return it to the way it worked in Gen II-V.

Now sure, this allows us to use even more Pokemon that normally would be sitting in our box or have another Pokemon more easily catch-up with the others... but how many people actually do the former? Most people usually stick with a core team, only kicking out a Pokemon if they either catch a new Pokemon they want to train (and thus they'll probably be at a level around where all the other Pokemon are unless you went back to an earlier route/location) or that Pokemon isn't performing as they like it to (and in this case most will keep the Pokemon on the team until they encounter a Pokemon they'd like to use instead as not to have to go through a level grind). "Well it now makes challenges like creating a whole new team after defeating a Gym Leader or having to use a new Pokemon you caught possible!". True, but then again isn't the point of those challenges or similar where you're constantly training up a new Pokemon is in the training-up of the new Pokemon, the normal experience felt so easy with one team you wanted to spice things up by using as many Pokemon as you can and how these Pokemon did in battle? Them and every Pokemon gaining experience in every battle sort of taking away opportunities to use them more as you can have the weaker ones sitting in the back until they're up to level or it's a battle where they'll have the advantage. Sounds no different if you just kept a normal team and just kept going until the end instead of having to focus on training (not to mention the Exp. Candies make catching up a Pokemon almost a non-issue).

I'm just asking either let me turn off the Exp. Share. If I could make another request I would dial it back a bit, instead of it giving all Pokemon 50% experience it only gives the weakest 50% of the experience. Also, during the main game, I'd go to how they did experience back in Gen V where how much experience a Pokemon got was based on Level difference of Pokemon which participated in battle and then post game you can return to all Pokemon having a set amount of experience they give. And how about also trying another crack at difficulty settings but letting us choose them when we start a new game instead of the stupid requirement of needing to complete the game first (or at least give us an additional save slot. Actually, why not do both?). "Um, that's like 4 requests" Well when you get starved for actual meaningful challenge and are asking what you'd like in giving yourself more challenge shouldn't be a surprise we'd ask for an entire feast.

Exp. Charm: And while I haven't seen it in action as I played the DLC after completing the game, I can't imagine how much experience you'll be gaining with the Exp. Charm on top of all that. Exp. Charm sounds like it should be an end game/post game item, something you get when you're just about to face the Pokemon League so train up that team before you enter. But giving it for essentially starting up the DLC when the DLC offers a lot of additional stuff to begin with feels like overkill. At least wait until we complete the Dojo Trials and get Kubfu.

 

[R_N]

Exp. Charm: And while I haven't seen it in action as I played the DLC after completing the game, I can't imagine how much experience you'll be gaining with the Exp. Charm on top of all that. Exp. Charm sounds like it should be an end game/post game item, something you get when you're just about to face the Pokemon League so train up that team before you enter. But giving it for essentially starting up the DLC when the DLC offers a lot of additional stuff to begin with feels like overkill. At least wait until we complete the Dojo Trials and get Kubfu.

exp charm is a flat 50% increase

 

[Pikachu315111]

exp charm is a flat 50% increase

For the whole party, which is important to my point. Like sure for your higher level Pokemon it would only be a smaller push so no more helpful than if you gave your Pokemon a Lucky Egg (though as we've discussed you don't really need help to become overleveled already so this just guarantees it), but for Pokemon of lower levels that'll probably boost them up a few more levels.

 

[CPU]

Pikachu315111 Are you saying the Gen 5 games removed the experience level scaling once the main games were complete, or just that you think that level scaling should be turned off once the Champion (or similar final boss) is defeated? 7 and 8 have level scaling and, while it doesn't remove the poor choices to make the Experience Share give experience to the whole party as well as making it permanent, it does remove most of the need for grinding without ending up with a grossly overlevelled team.

Not trying to tell you what you already know but I'm just confused on what you mean.

 

[Pikachu315111]

Pikachu315111 Are you saying the Gen 5 games removed the experience level scaling once the main games were complete, or just that you think that level scaling should be turned off once the Champion (or similar final boss) is defeated? 7 and 8 have level scaling and, while it doesn't remove the poor choices to make the Experience Share give experience to the whole party as well as making it permanent, it does remove most of the need for grinding without ending up with a grossly overlevelled team.

Not trying to tell you what you already know but I'm just confused on what you mean.

They went back to the level-scaling? *Checks* Oh, they did! Huh, well I guess bringing back level scaling doesn't help that much afterall.

 

[Worldie]

Even though it's not completely absent, calling SwSh's wild area and DLC level changes "level scaling" is still quiiiiiite a big stretch.

They have a long way to go there sadly

 

[Pikachu315111]

Even though it's not completely absent, calling SwSh's wild area and DLC level changes "level scaling" is still quiiiiiite a big stretch.

They have a long way to go there sadly

That's not what we mean. We're talking about experience gained relation to levels, specifically for Gen's 5, 7, & 8:

In Generation V, Generation VII, and Generation VIII, the amount of experience gained is dependent on both Pokémon's levels: the lower the victor's level is compared to the defeated Pokémon, the more experience points the victor will gain.

Here's the formula if you're curious.

 

[DreamPrince]

It is interesting to note that sales sell otherwise.

Kids do fall for those smoke and mirrors and get interested in the fancy scenic mechanic enough to buy them / ask their parents to.

Do they keep playing the game after finishing the story? No, not really, but that doesn't matter, they bought the game already.

I’m genuinely curious what super mechanic they will come for next gen. They already did form change, moves, and the two combined together, so what’s next? Maybe they should go back to Mega Evolution. It’s just debuted in Go, and as well as being prominent in Masters. It would be a good time to bring it back to profit off the hype.

We’re talking about in-game though- Megas and Z-Moves break the in-game difficulty, given very few trainers use it themselves so you can kind of just stomp every encounter. Dynamax is handled much, much better in-game as it's only available when the opponent also uses it, making it both more balanced and feel more special when you can use it (compared to steamrolling with mega lucario or spamming Skystrike Hawlucha in every fight)

Megas, yes they definitely break the game, but I don’t think Z-Moves break the game, or at least not on same level as Megas. Because of Z-Moves are part of the trials of Alola, there more widely distributed. That means there are more people who use them, like Kahunas, Trial Captains, and even generic NPCs, so it’s more fair in that case. It’s also noting that while Megas last for the entire battle, Z-Moves are one turn only, meaning they are much easier to mess up and waste than Megas. The only broken thing about Z-Moves was that in USM, the Rotom Dex could grant you multiple ones, which Is undeniably broken.

On the top Exp. Share and difficulty, I like having the Exp. Share on and it reduces time in grinding. Lot of RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and DragonQuest have built in EXP Share and can prove to be difficult.

Pokémon‘s difficulty lies in the fact that Bosses are given significantly less options than the players, for example; in SwSh, every trainer that is not a gym trainer/significant NPC has 0 IVs meaning even if you have a ditto team you still have an advantage over the NPCs since it is highly unlikely to have a team of 0 IV Pokemon. Lot of the bosses don’t even have full movesets. Allister is a pretty notorious example: He uses Mimikyu, but his Mimikyu does not know a single Fairy type move, which prevents it from countering Dark types. It doesn’t even have 4 moves. Most other RPGs have bosses have an unfair advantage over players, but in Pokémon it is the reverse, which is the real problem, not the Exp. Share.

 

[Worldie]

I’m genuinely curious what super mechanic they will come for next gen. They already did form change, moves, and the two combined together, so what’s next? Maybe they should go back to Mega Evolution. It’s just debuted in Go, and as well as being prominent in Masters. It would be a good time to bring it back to profit off the hype.

Well Gamefreaks never said they aren't coming back, if anything they said that "they may or may not bring back mechanics depending on when we think it's a good idea".

Ironically by their words, the more people give up on the idea of megas returning, the more likely it is they bring them back.

 

[kakaks]

Well Gamefreaks never said they aren't coming back, if anything they said that "they may or may not bring back mechanics depending on when we think it's a good idea".

Ironically by their words, the more people give up on the idea of megas returning, the more likely it is they bring them back.

megas are probably not coming back, since important mons with megas, like medic ham, arent coming bacc

 

[R_N]

megas are probably not coming back, since important mons with megas, like medic ham, arent coming bacc

Putting aside that I don't think worldie is suggesting they'd bring megas back in SWSH, just in general in a future title...
Of the 46 pokemon who can mega evolve, 32 of them are currently in the game or are known 100% to be coming back in the tundra and another 7 seem to be present from datamining.
I think that's more than enough and more than covers the marketable important megas if they had wanted to bring them back now.

 

[ScraftyIsTheBest]

I think the fact that Mega Evolutions are still very much registered as a thing in Pokemon Home, sprites and all, and their individual Mega characteristics (Base Stats, different abilities, and all) are still in the Home data, means Game Freak still acknowledges them as a thing, which means that the door is always open for them to bring Megas back whenever they want to. Of course, that doesn't mean they will bring them back in Gen 8, but it does mean that Game Freak still has them in store in case they ever do decide they want to bring them back someday in the future, so in other words, Megas have not been fully erased from existence entirely.

Granted, we don't know when Game Freak will decide to bring them back, but that depends on when they feel they have a game they want to have Megas in. The most likely candidate for a future game that will have Megas for certain is if Game Freak decides to revisit Kalos again in a future title (like, say a remake), given how important Mega Evolutions are to the Kalos region lore.

 

[Samtendo09]

I think the fact that Mega Evolutions are still very much registered as a thing in Pokemon Home, sprites and all, and their individual Mega characteristics (Base Stats, different abilities, and all) are still in the Home data, means Game Freak still acknowledges them as a thing, which means that the door is always open for them to bring Megas back whenever they want to. Of course, that doesn't mean they will bring them back in Gen 8, but it does mean that Game Freak still has them in store in case they ever do decide they want to bring them back someday in the future, so in other words, Megas have not been fully erased from existence entirely.

Granted, we don't know when Game Freak will decide to bring them back, but that depends on when they feel they have a game they want to have Megas in. The most likely candidate for a future game that will have Megas for certain is if Game Freak decides to revisit Kalos again in a future title (like, say a remake), given how important Mega Evolutions are to the Kalos region lore.

And yet there's the fact that Game Freak insists of making a new battle gimmick in an attempt to make each subsequent region unique. Dynamax was already vastly impactful in VGC formats, so bringing back Mega Evolution will not only make the power creep worse (though thankfully I doubt the two mechanic will overlap), but also breaks the uniqueness Galar is supposed to have. And while Mega Evolution was also available in Hoenn, it did have a lore about it (though your mileage may vary about the lore) and Mega Evolution already had deep importance in Kalos... despite being underplayed.

The good news is that Mega Evolution is relatively simpler to set up; all you need is a strong bond (that's something to be a mechanic to make it possible), a Mega Key and a Mega Stone for compatible Pokémon to make it work. This is why it can be easily installed in Hoenn, as that region also discovered Mega Stones in ORAS (does to the Ultimate Weapon's firing thousands of years ago in Kalos) without needing setting up a lot of things to make Mega Evolution possible.

At the same time, Z-Moves is something that could only work on Alola with the posing, Totems and all, while Dynamax requires very large building and Raid Dens to make it work. If either (more likely Dynamax as we are in Gen 8) were being shoehorned in any remake of prior generation (Let's Go Johto or Gen 4 remake), this can spark some serious controversy (or worse, severe hatred) and contradicts the fact that each region is supposed to be unique.

If it is a minor battle gimmick that grants minor boost - and hopefully cannot be stacked with Mega Evolution - then it should not be impossible for Mega Evolution to be implemented. Although I know that Mega Evolution itself crippled the game balance more than it helped... and that is because it helped more powerful Pokémon than it helped underwhelming Pokémon. I saw a few fan regions that completely forego any battle gimmick and focus on making the Pokémon themselves standing out (with some Regional Variants and/or fan evolutions in some cases).

All in all though, I doubt that Mega Evolution will return in any future mainline game anytime soon.