Return Back, Return Forward

Five years ago, a guy's fantasy became reality, in a form never seen since ages, as a return to the popular Pokémon mobile installment of Pokémon Go. (That sounds oddly familiar, for those into food shows on television.) Today, it becomes the time to look back on that moment, as with the posts of previous years. However, in a way, the return at this point can also be described as a "forward" return of sorts, despite the suggested retroactive quality. How that can be so is a matter that is worth discussing, as is that return itself.

The return back (including my personal one) was obviously for a very different Pokémon experience from the main series games, still a particular norm at that time. It was different, but it was also very unique, and there had been a chance for me to experience that initially before being forced to be removed from it due to "technical difficulties". That return can then be described as the ability to overcome those difficulties and to bring back that experience in the perspective of that current time after being absent for a full year at that point.

As for the return "forward", that would be to the Pokémon experiences in the main series games that I experienced concurrently with and/or after the Pokémon Go return, which would be the sixth and seventh generation games, the elements of which have since been implemented (one particular and big one being Mega Evolution). There is now even the "forward" to the eighth-generation games, which I've still yet to experience in their true form and only in tangential form with the addition of their species to Pokémon Go.

Since Pokémon Go came when Pokémon itself had been established for two decades and through several already-existing generations, for most Pokémon fans, going into Pokémon Go serves as a "return back" to them, especially in recent times with the Pokémon Go Tour events. The concurrent development of the main series games along with Pokémon Go today will certainly mean returns in either direction, including a significant amount of "forward" ones, depending on what has or has not been experienced by Trainers.

Whichever direction the return goes, the key point is still the experience, which for me personally involved making that finally be realized again at that time, as much as realizing the earliest generations of Pokémon in a more profound manner. The latter bit progressed further with more developments, catching up with the later generations after the Pokémon Go epoch and making the return "forward" possible. Now, with Pokémon Go firmly established in the franchise, returns in either direction are a testament to its supreme lasting.

One year ago: Returns in Various Guises

Two years ago: Returns Come and Go

Three years ago: Return, Return, Return, Return...

Four years ago: A Happy Return

Five years ago: Here I Go (Again)