Pokemon Sun and Moon - Early Images Emerge

[Turner]

So the names have been made official, the press release has announced that it'll see a worldwide release in late 2016, it'll mark the start of Gen VII and we know it's going to be for the 3DS. But...while that's interesting, someone has done god's work in taking high-res screencaps of the 'Game Freak developing the new game' montage so we can all discuss it:


Concept art of some vehicles

What we can only assume is a new Pokemon centre

Concept art of some kind of water-pokemon themed building

Concept art on the pinboard, looks to be the interior of some sort of building

More overworld

New Pokemon being rendered. Looks like a bird of some kind. Some people are guessing it's a woodpecker.

The new logos in Japanese. Both these and the Korean ones seem to focus on the diamonds above the text..

[SirBlaziken]

I'm probably going to get Sun. My only things are I wish they had done Z and the fact that the names seem a little.....generic. At least go Sol and Luna to half mock solrock and lunatone.

However, the story from what i've heard of it being rumored to be is a lot more interesting than X/Y imo. The popular rumor going around that there's an evil team dedicated to your version who wants to use the legendary for your game to cause an eclipse to bring either endless sunlight or darkness. That sounds amazing imo.

[E.C.A.M.B.S.]

The popular rumor going around that there's an evil team dedicated to your version who wants to use the legendary for your game to cause an eclipse to bring either endless sunlight or darkness. That sounds amazing imo.

That's so like Gen 3. I seriously hope that's true and it would make sense too since ORAS were the last games released. GameFreak knows it hit home with RSE and is hopefully keeping the Gen 3 spirit alive

I usually decide my game based on the aesthetic appeal of the titles. I like Pokemon Moon's colors better but I'm also considering getting Pokemon Sun because Solrock was my main Pokemon in my first playthrough of Emerald. So at this point I don't know which one I should get

[sylar]

the bird looks like a new model for fletchling imo im not too hype about it but im still hype

[E.C.A.M.B.S.]

Not likely but considering how many cars there are in this I wonder if the protagonist will be old enough to drive. Car Keys and licenses would go in the Key Items pocket

[Pam-the-Lamb]

 It would make some sense for the Solrock and Lunastone to maybe get (mega?) evolutions or even some sort of acknowledgement with a Sun and Moon game.

They just seemed really crap in R/S so it would be nice for them to do something for us casuals who don't play competitively and stuff.

[Kpyna]

the bird looks like a new model for fletchling imo im not too hype about it but im still hype

no way -- they show the coloration in another model. fletchling doesnt have the head crest either. i think its the next gen pidgey

[Turner]

So the popular fan theory at the moment is that Sun/Moon will be set in something based on Hawaii.

I'm just gonna post this image I found on 4chan, it pretty much explains it all faster than I can:



So Hawaii looking likely. Definitely interesting, not sure how I feel about another tropical location after OR/AS but I guess we'll see.

[Captain Jigglypuff]

I am not convinced this is a next Gen game. There are no Starters shown and they are typically revealed with any next Gen announcement.

[Kpyna]

oh not but i don't waaant another map where i have to traverse massive amounts of ocean

[Captain Jigglypuff]

I think this is a BW2 type deal. Messing with the Sun or Moon will cause ecological damage which will make Zygarde come out. Zygarde may play a supporting role like how Groudon and Kyogre did in Emerald. It may not be the main focus but it could still be an important part of the main story.

[Spriter]

I am not convinced this is a next Gen game. There are no Starters shown and they are typically revealed with any next Gen announcement.

It pretty much has been confirmed as Gen 7. The website itself said it's a new region, with new pokemon and "new adventures". If that doesn't scream new generation to you then idk what would lol

I also find it really amusing that people are going off mere scraps already. I mean, we'll hopefully get something in a week or so (X/Y had screenshots of the starters released within a week of their reveal), but meanwhile I guess I get to watch everyone go ape over like, 5 or 6 screenshots.

That said though, and this makes me sound hypocritical, but it'd be great if the "woodpecker" was a starter. Water / Flying or Grass / Flying would be cool.

[sylar]

oh i didnt see the coloured images. damn then thats a cutie if it is the cardinal.

someone else said itd be spain but hawaii is much cooler i think. i feel like spain would make a lot more sense though? has everyone read the theory that this is the g/s/c of gen 6 where you can return back to unova? if thats the case then... i mean... europe.

[Turner]

oh not but i don't waaant another map where i have to traverse massive amounts of ocean

These are my thoughts too. One thing that would really help surfing on the overworld would be if the camera zoomed out slightly on larger bodies of water. I find the worst part about surfing isn't just the encounter rate, which is kind of annoying but the fact that you rarely know where the hell you're going and you can only see for a radius of about 4 tiles. Maybe my sense of direction is just awful or something but whenever I finish a battle with a swimmer I feel completely turned around and can't remember where I'm going.

This is a really silly thing to be slightly annoyed about but it really irks me that the game is coming out in Winter. I kind of like playing games when they reflect the season IRL, it just adds to the immersion. I would have settled for a Summer 2017 release.

One thing I have noticed with the screenshots is that the buildings all seem to have a focus on light, lots of windows and skylights - so I guess this is where the sun and moon stuff is going to play a role. I wouldn't be surprised actually if they made the sun and the moon huge environmental fixtures and used them as light sources instead of artificial lights in a lot of places. Lots of people who go to Hawaii will tell you how huge the moon looks at night so I wouldn't be surprised if it doesn't play off that a lot. Maybe there will be a Sun/Moon mechanic that works on the strength of the sun and the phases of the moon and powers up certain Pokemon depending on the environment.

[SirBlaziken]

If you look at the hotel with the horsea fountain, it looks a lot like a hotel somewhere in Southeast Asia (Singapore if i'm not mistaken). So there's a possilbility. I'd rather have one based on South or Mesoamerica.

Also I need to try hard not to pick the fire starter.