The Pokemon franchise has come a long way since its first title back in 1995. The universe has expanded to nine regions and over 900 Pokemon. After so many innovations, it’s unclear why Pokemon doesn’t have voice acting.
Pokemon started as a black and white, 2D RPG with text on the screen. Through the years, as gaming consoles evolve, so did Pokemon, adding color, animation, and most recently, cinematics. Pokemon Legends: Arceus added yet another layer to the Pokemon universe by making it an open-world game.
According to the trailers, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet will be an open-world game. The newest installment in the Pokemon franchise includes multiple storylines that players can follow, deviating from the traditional journey to become champion of the Pokemon League.
While the game keeps evolving, one feature keeps missing, voices.
Why doesn’t Pokemon have voice acting?
Pokemon games are not voiced and probably never will be. According to the developers, adding voice would take out the players from the experience of a Pokemon game.
It is a stylistic decision that allows for some consistency across titles, but the games might be evolving beyond these choices. One clear example is a cinematic before the Spikemuth Gym led by Piers. The scene sees Piers on stage performing for a group of adoring fans. A scene that looks great suddenly becomes awkward when all players can hear is static. The scene is missing a key element that would make it perfect, the voice of self-proclaimed singer-songwriter Piers.
Will Pokemon Scarlet and Violet have voice acting?
The Pokemon Company seems adamant about not adding voiced NPCs. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet for all its innovations, will not have voice acting. However, players have the opportunity to listen to what it could be with influencer and Gym Leader, Iono.
The games will add other innovative features like the TM Machines and the Terastal Phenomenon, but voice acting appears to be off the table for Pokemon Scarlet and Violet.
