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Pokemon Super Bowl Commercial Analyzed - WOW!

I hope whoever did this commercials makes all of Nintendo's commercials from now on. This was great.

My favorite part was the "like no one ever was" ...I didn't even notice the 1996 part. Damn.
 
The advert is about people tooting their own horns. Tooting a horn can also be referred to as playing a trumpet, a reference to the soundtrack of Sapphire and Ruby.
 
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Where is shy guy I'm sick of this gen 1 pandering!!!
 
Pokemon changed my life when I was a kid. It was my first rpg. I've played every entry and had a blast. I met my wife because Pokemon actually. I love this series. It's been a huge part of my life and that commercial really resonated me. Thanks Pokemon.
 
I've stuck with Pokemon for 20 years. Played all of the main games and the remakes.

Still like Gen 1 the best.
I quit after Gen V, which was only marginally better than Gen IV. The games have improved in terms of competitiveness but not in terms of scope.

It's not that Gen 1 was some amazing thing that can never be beat. But, back then we had the show and the game and the big dream was that, eventually, the games would become more like the show. You'd get put into Ash/Red's shoes in a more meaningful and immersive way.

It never truly happened, and the games' structures aren't much different today than they've ever been. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but it obviously means that, for a lot of "fans" the newer generations have had less impact. It's just the way it is.

Basically, Gen 1 took hold of our imaginations and ran with them. It was really fresh, even after growing up with other video games and cartoon shows. This is what makes it so memorable. It's also what makes people disappointed when they look at newer gens and see that not much has changed other than the fact that the game mechanics are tighter and there are nearly a thousand Pokémon now.

I say this all as somebody who, at the end of the day, probably puts Pokémon Silver above any other Pokémon game, even though I started with Red and Yellow.
 
When people over-analyse like this:

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I always worry they're just one bad day away from becoming Jeff Rigby.

You seriously believe that it's just a coincidence that the red and blue rug are hung together and put the boy in a jersey that says 20 isn't supposed to recall the 20th anniversary of the series?

Are you one of those people that believes the Earth is flat and that everything is a conspiracy?
 
The young boy at the beginning eventually has to stop running because the directors remembered in Pokémon you can only run with the running shoes.
 
The average viewer is not the main focus of a video celebrating 20 years of the franchise, I'm pretty sure about that.

They kinda are, why else would this be a superbowl commercial? The Pokemon they used in the commercial also suggest that it's meant for a general audience.
 
The young boy at the beginning eventually has to stop running because the directors remembered in Pokémon you can only run with the running shoes.

I imagine you'd be the person walking into the stadium with your Pokeball ready to throw down.
 
Right. It's a test. If you don't get that this is a Pokemon commercial before the Pokeballs show up, you're not good enough to be a Pokemon fan.

I think it's more of a:

Average Joe: "Oh, look, Pokémon."
Fans: "Oh, look, Mew under the truck! It says HM03 over there! Hah! They put the Volcano Badge on the helmets!"

That's the impression I get anyway.But yeah, it doesn't leave the "Pokémon" part very clear anywhere but at the end.
 
I don't even like Gen I the most, and not by a small distance, but you're being daft if you can't see why this ad, of all ads, is focusing on the generation that's held dearest in the minds of the target audience.

The long-time fans are getting Mythical Pokémon distributions, merchandising and who knows what else. I don't see the problem with focusing on the most iconic generation in this advert.
 
God, the gen 1 haters are just as annoying as "genwunners," except these days the haters are much more prevalent. Obviously the anniversary is going to "pander" to gen 1, it's the gen that started it all. It's the anniversary of those specific games. Get over yourselves.
 
Yep, those are references.

Doesn't make the commercial good.

Most people familiar with Gen 1 aren't even going to catch the references. It's a waste.
 
Ok I'm just gonna preface these responses with I don't have a problem with Gen 1, I was there as well and enjoyed it immensely. But seeing as all these easter eggs would go over the casual viewers heads, why limit themselves to just Gen 1. Would it have killed them to throw in some references to Pokemon Eggs or maybe a Pillar in the shape of a Spear? Or christ, maybe even the kid runs past a gem stall of some kind and the ones on display are, hmm I dunno, rubies and sapphires? Diamonds and pearls? I think I've made my point.

The main target for this commercial (and a lot of the advertising) is people who knew what Pokemon was 20 years ago but probably haven't paid all that much attention to it since then. People who are bigger fans probably don't need to be reminded that the Pokemon game that came out 2 years ago was great, or that Pokemon game that came out 3 years ago certainly existed, or that Pokemon game that came out 4 years ago poke'd all the mons.

Ok.. and then what. So the dudebros are all watching the game and then Pokemon comes on. 'Hey man, remember that, oh those were the days!' What, are they gonna go out and buy 3DS' and download RBY? No. First of all, this commercial does nothing to advertise that, and second, like fuck are some jocky football fans gonna start playing Pokemon in-between Fifa/Madden and COD sessions. Yeah I'm generalising, but I highly doubt that just reminding people Pokemon exists is going to have much impact in the grand scheme of things. Had this tied into Pokemon Go somehow then yeah maybe, as that's the only shot TPCi really has of getting older fans into newer games.

Well all anniversaries are supposed to bank on nostalgia. Look at the 30th anniversary logo for Mario.

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Or even the 25th anniversary logo.
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They both use SMB1 aesthetics. There not ignoring the other Mario games or saying that they are inferior, but they are making a callback to the original game because it's the one that started it all and it's nostalgic to look back on how far the series has come in the past few decades. The Pokemon 20th anniversary is all about nostalgia, specifically for generation one, so of course they would heavily feature it. But that's not to say there won't be stuff for long time fans. I mean Pokemon Z is probably coming this year and who else knows what.

Yeah I appreciate that, of course the 20th anniversary is going to centre around what started it all. But don't forget that SMM was a perfect execution of the old and new by featuring aesthetics from SMB, SM3, World and the New series of games. Which is what I feel should have been replicated here.

I hear you man, it's mega annoying how people think Pokemon is still all about cycling around some region, battling gym leaders and taking on the Elite Four whilst stopping some nefarious Team from using Pokemon to do their evil bidding.

K.
 
I'd be so disappointed if they announce another remake of gen 1, but it's probably coming after all this celebration of the "original games".
 
The average viewer is not the main focus of a video celebrating 20 years of the franchise, I'm pretty sure about that.

The average consumer absolutely is the main focus of this video.

The references are for the fans though, and are not integral for the video's message.
 
Ok I'm just gonna preface these responses with I don't have a problem with Gen 1, I was there as well and enjoyed it immensely. But seeing as all these easter eggs would go over the casual viewers heads, why limit themselves to just Gen 1. Would it have killed them to throw in some references to Pokemon Eggs or maybe a Pillar in the shape of a Spear? Or christ, maybe even the kid runs past a gem stall of some kind and the ones on display are, hmm I dunno, rubies and sapphires? Diamonds and pearls? I think I've made my point.



Ok.. and then what. So the dudebros are all watching the game and then Pokemon comes on. 'Hey man, remember that, oh those were the days!' What, are they gonna go out and buy 3DS' and download RBY? No. First of all, this commercial does nothing to advertise that, and second, like fuck are some jocky football fans gonna start playing Pokemon in-between Fifa/Madden and COD sessions. Yeah I'm generalising, but I highly doubt that just reminding people Pokemon exists is going to have much impact in the grand scheme of things. Had this tied into Pokemon Go somehow then yeah maybe, as that's the only shot TPCi really has of getting older fans into newer games.



Yeah I appreciate that, of course the 20th anniversary is going to centre around what started it all. But don't forget that SMM was a perfect execution of the old and new by featuring aesthetics from SMB, SM3, World and the New series of games. Which is what I feel should have been replicated here.



K.

If 500 go out and buy based on this commercial (for themselves or their kids) Its a success. Why? Because the current Pokemon fans are going to buy anyway
 
If 500 go out and buy based on this commercial (for themselves or their kids) Its a success. Why? Because the current Pokemon fans are going to buy anyway

Are 500 people going to cover the costs of making this commercial and getting a Super Bowl timeslot?
 
My love of Pokemon passed years ago. I still respect it and have fond memories, but recent attempts to get back into it have left me cold.

But fuck me, that's a great fucking ad.
 
People who still like the series got sick of people who haven't played it in over a decade constantly going around saying things like "wow, all the new designs suck," "these games used to be so good back in gen 1," and "there are only 150 pokemon, past that doesn't matter." It's just pointless shit posting.

So now there's also a sizable group of people who absolutely despise the aforementioned group and go out of their way to shit on gen 1 and the people who like it. They're just as bad as the "genwunners."

This is an excellent post. I'm quoting this whenever needed.
 
It's just getting a little tiresome that TPCi/Nintendo are only wanting to acknowledge 'the good old days' when celebrating the anniversary, as if the franchise hasn't actually developed any further since '96.

And I can't wait for the salt/rude awakening people are gonna have next month when they download RBY and discover they are borderline garbage by today's standards.

that's how I feel about modern pokemon games.
 
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