No, Game Developer!
2: Chapter 2: Trainer?
No, Game Developer!
That’s right!
A Pokémon game!
A Trainer?
No, a game developer!
Making games was a business with outrageously high profit margins!
The audience was enormous, the speed of dissemination was fast, it could be directly connected to Pokémon, and it was incredibly easy to generate large-scale positive feedback.
Most importantly, game development had been his dream ever since childhood…
As long as the game was good enough, it would essentially be reaching directly into other people’s wallets for money while simultaneously snatching BP Points from the system’s reserves!
Killing two birds with one stone!
A double victory.
No, a victory where he won twice!
Although he had never actually developed a Pokémon game before, he was standing on the shoulders of giants.
He knew exactly what kinds of games were fun.
He knew exactly what players wanted.
Games had accompanied nearly his entire childhood.
Moreover, when it came to the depth and breadth of Pokémon knowledge, he had considerable confidence in himself.
Back when he had been messing around with pirated Pokémon cards, he had practically memorized the official Pokémon setting books by reading them over and over until they fell apart.
Then, after transmigrating, all of his experiences and adventures had served as the ultimate supplement to his knowledge.
His theoretical understanding and practical experience were both completely maxed out.
The only real challenge was— How could he perfectly combine the game itself with Pokémon in a way that would make people willing to spend money, happy to spend money, and continuously generate positive feedback?
The Pokémon series…
A sharp light flashed through Gray’s eyes.
He refused to believe that turning the adventures of legendary Trainers into games would fail to attract players.
Take Red, for example.
According to League regulations, the minimum age for beginning a Trainer’s journey was sixteen.
At sixteen years old, Red set out on his adventure.
By himself.
Single-handedly.
He defeated Giovanni, the final boss of Team Rocket, causing the criminal organization to collapse and disband.
One year later, he ascended to the position of Champion of Kanto.
And that was not even the end.
After retiring as Champion, he traveled to the summit of Mt.
Silver to continue training in seclusion.
Later, he also participated in resolving numerous crises throughout the Johto region.
In the end, he became a true legend.
Forget making a game.
Just putting that title on a promotional poster would be enough to make countless people rush forward to pay.
Besides, judging from the current timeline, it was roughly after the conclusion of the second-generation story arc of Pokémon Adventures.
Businesses related to Pokémon were springing up everywhere.
More importantly, nearly all of them were still in their infancy.
New industries.
New companies.
New opportunities.
A vast blue ocean market with almost unlimited potential.
This was both an opportunity and a trend.
As for how he knew the timeline…
Heh.
Relying on the enormous amount of Pokémon knowledge he had accumulated and the experience gained from his previous adventures, he had successfully become one of Professor Oak’s researchers.
And he had been slacking off comfortably ever since.
Over the past three years, he had quietly used his foresight behind the scenes to push things in the right direction.
Or, to put it another way, show off a little.
He had subtly guided people like Red, Gold, and the other so-called Children of Destiny during their growth.
He practically had no choice.
There would be no shortage of world-threatening disasters in the future.
Someone had to stand at the front and handle them.
Gray certainly had no interest in returning to his old profession and becoming a hard-working Trainer again.
Fortunately, all he needed to do was occasionally offer a few hints.
It required almost no effort.
It did not interfere with his leisurely lifestyle.
And it allowed him to establish bonds with the protagonists.
It was simply perfect.
Precisely because of this, he possessed absolute confidence in Pokémon: FireRed/LeafGreen.
This game perfectly embodied the core spirit of Pokémon: Collection.
Training.
Battling.
Trading.
For countless people, it was an irreplaceable introduction to the Pokémon world.
Gray’s original concept had been simple.
He planned to use Red’s growth and adventures as a blueprint and create a traditional linear Pokémon adventure game.
But now that he had a clear goal— To make money.
And earn BP Points.
There was no way he could continue treating the project casually.
Returning to his desk, the seriousness in his eyes deepened.
He entered his identity credentials and logged into the Regional United League’s official developer platform.
As Professor Oak’s trusted researcher, and thanks to the contributions he had made to Pokémon research over the past three years, he possessed the highest level of authorization for utilizing the League’s official technological resources.
In other words, aside from the core patented technologies monopolized by major corporations, every piece of advanced technology stored in the League database was available for his use.
Whatever he wanted.
He could use it.
Using all of that technology just to make a game…
Honestly, it felt like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
But…
“If I’m going to do it, I’ll make the best game possible.” His fingers danced across the keyboard.
Starting from the very foundation.
The map design.
Step One.
Build the world.
An open-world map right from the start!
Thanks to his previous work researching Pokémon ecology, complete three-dimensional scan data of the entire Kanto region had already been stored within the League database.
The existing models could be imported directly.
Of course, simply copying reality into a game would never work.
For the sake of gameplay, optimization and adjustments were necessary.
“Remove unnecessary areas…” “Improve route design…” “Add more interactive elements…” Gray muttered to himself while carrying out massive modifications to the map.
He wanted the entire Kanto region to retain its original flavor while becoming more compact, more logical, and better suited for storytelling.
Step Two.
Construct the Pokémon ecosystem.
He directly connected the game to the League’s official ecological database and integrated the newest artificial intelligence simulation system.
As a result, the behavior patterns of Pokémon inside the game would become nearly indistinguishable from reality.
As for the Pokémon data itself?
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Gray’s lips.
In this world, there was probably nobody who understood Pokémon better than he did.
Their appearances.
Their attributes.
Their characteristics.
Their hidden abilities.
Their move pools.
Their evolutionary methods.
Their strengths and weaknesses.
One could say that an entire Pokémon encyclopedia existed inside his mind.
And that would become the game’s greatest selling point.
After all, becoming a Trainer in reality was not an easy task.
Passion alone was not enough.
A Trainer also needed extensive battle knowledge.
Furthermore, the profession carried significant risks.
Raising Pokémon was difficult and expensive.
For these reasons, Trainers actually represented only a small proportion of all occupations.
What was even more surprising was how shockingly underdeveloped Pokémon education currently was.
Interestingly enough, the vast majority of publicly available Pokémon information came directly from Professor Oak’s Pokédex research.
At this point in time, the Pokédex had only completed records for the Kanto and Johto regions.
“Modern Trainers…” Gray shook his head.
“They probably can’t even recognize every basic move yet.” Forget advanced concepts like Abilities.
Even Pokémon moves themselves were unknown to most people.
Although widespread internet access had allowed people to develop a basic understanding of Pokémon species, that understanding rarely went beyond something like: “Oh, that’s a Charizard.” Experienced Trainers might possess deep knowledge about specific Pokémon.
However, that knowledge was often regarded as personal property.
Very little of it was shared publicly.
As for publicly available Pokémon knowledge, Professor Oak’s research and Pokédex work accounted for virtually ninety-nine percent of it.
Therefore, Pokémon: FireRed/LeafGreen could genuinely be considered the foundational introduction to Pokémon battling.
The starting point of countless Trainer dreams.
Through the medium of a fun, accessible, and low-barrier adventure game, players would not only experience the strategy and excitement of Pokémon battles, but would also unconsciously learn essential concepts such as Pokémon Abilities, move combinations, type matchups, and battle fundamentals.
It would lay the groundwork for becoming a real Trainer.
The game could help more people learn about battling.
Understand battling.
Love battling.
And eventually become genuine Trainers themselves.
With the core philosophy of “Become a Trainer Anytime, Anywhere,” Gray could already imagine the sensation this game would create once it was released.
The excitement.
The discussions.
The dreams it would inspire.
The countless people who would pick up the game and, for the very first time, truly step into the world of Pokémon.
And when that day came…
The flood of money and BP Points would surely follow close behind.
(End of Chapter)