Code Affairs

It's been a few days since the National Pokédex affair, and the controversy has not died down online. In fact, it has only heated up some more and has even spilled over into scrutinizing the technical aspects, including what may be known of the game code (though not of the games in question). Personally, it does seem like it's a bit much for this Pokémon fan; there are a few Pokémon things that I could scrutinize to some extent, but the game code isn't really one of them. And yet, code remains a vital part of Pokémon, in particular the games.

The Pokémon games are video games that run on consoles, but at their hearts, they're essentially computer programs that run on computer-like devices; Pokémon Go could be included, for what are today's smartphones if they aren't computers in miniature. They may be programmed in the same ways, and if rather unfortunate, may have bugs that interfere with how they should operate. These are things that not just anyone knows - including me, but I'll get to that in a second - but the people that know them obviously know a lot of things, including how to realize the games in a form that any fan (also including me) can love. They deserve lots of credit.

As for myself, I'm not a programmer. I've taken a couple of programming classes in my school years, but I didn't really enjoy them despite getting good grades. Today, my background is mostly with the social sciences, though knowledge of natural sciences and mathematics (which ties into computer science) still persist and in my view are important as well. What I can do is to scrutinize Pokémon more through social affairs, issues, and matters, but not really touch on the game code, though if at all, it may be on the surface. Beyond that, it's something that I can't really authorize myself to do. Computer code in general is a complex affair that boggles the mind of those who don't know what they're in for. I can't and won't deal with Pokémon code, but I'm happy to enjoy Pokémon and deal with it in other ways.

The prospect of no National Pokédex and a limited (though perhaps not very) assortment of Pokémon is a little depressing to be sure. But it's also depressing in some ways to see people (fans) go into the game code and tear it apart, possibly without sufficient knowledge or authorization. The code is important, but not so much for me, or maybe even the controversy in a general sense. At this point, what is perhaps important is that the controversy dies down and that the game code is excluded from it.

One year ago: Number One for...
Two years ago: 15^th Feature Film Mini-Figures