Road of 25th Anniversary: The Final Month

This month, of course, truly marks the final month of the big anniversary of Pokémon, its 25th or silver anniversary. Almost all special things for that anniversary have pretty much been divulged over the course of the past year, so not much of that remains to be discussed. I've also already essentially recapped the anniversary last month, so now it would be wise to discuss about expectations of the future - as in beyond the anniversary - as opposed to expectations of the anniversary itself, which I had already discussed in September in the year prior. Still, it also seems wise to respond to that while looking forward to the future.

Looking back, I noted that the anniversary ought to "pull out all the stops" and maximize things, and that did happen, also as noted in the "kaleidoscope". Special things have occurred in a manner that is expected (commemorative merchandise, exclusive items), immersive (featured regions, musical offerings), and unusual (unique collaborations, fanciful things). All this occurred while Pokémon stayed true to its gaming mainstays and animated entertainment - as has been served up on some occasions by different parties - even during not the best of times. At the least, my expectations have been met; other fans may evaluate that to different degrees.

Meanwhile, in the other direction, the next most significant anniversary milestone will be the 30th anniversary in four years or so, which is a nice round number, though without any other particular connotations. Four years is also quite a long time, and within those years, one or more Pokémon games ought to be expected to be released, along with necessary updates to existing ones. Only time will tell what happens then, and whatever happens between now and then will still be something to look forward to.

Still on the topic of expected games, Pokémon Legends: Arceus is due out for its proper release tomorrow. After all the attention that it has gained over the past year, and even now on the eaves of the release after some "special previews", the momentum of its release tomorrow is a significant one. The eyes of many fans have been turned toward this new approach to a Pokémon game with "the open-world proposal", and time awaits on how they declare their ultimate responses to this ultimate new game.

In considering the tagline of the anniversary as "Train On", things really did go on for this major anniversary. Regardless, it's still up to the Trainers to decide how to realize that with everything that Pokémon has today, and then (again) onwards with whatever the future has in store. That said, a little celebration - or more than a little, in this case - is always in order, in order to build motivation to train and move ever onward, even to the next big anniversary.

Thank you for a wonderful, gleaming, and gilded 25th anniversary, and until next time on the 26th in a month and the 30th in four years to come.

One year ago: BT's Coins, My Coins, Our Coins

Two years ago: Spinning Like a Spinda

Three years ago: The Cards, Revisited

Four years ago: Changes

Five years ago: A Loss Is... A Loss?