Well, here is the ‘Strange News Story of the Week™’. In a clip posted on Twitter during the last episode of Kate and Krista podcastIn fact, former Nintendo employees received a question from a fan on Patreon about whether they’ve played Pokémon’s Nuzlocke Run.
This prompted the pair to retold a story in which they offered the Pokémon Company an idea to play Nuzlocke on an episode of Nintendo Minute. Apparently, not only was their proposal shut down immediately, but they allegedly came close to being kicked out, with The Pokémon Company stating that the Nuzlocke Challenge is “on the same level as a hack or ROM.”
Of course, this grenade may come as a shock to those familiar with the Nuzlocke Challenge. For starters, it’s a self-imposed set of societal rules that must be adhered to when playing Pokémon. The two basic rules include shooting any Pokémon that faints during battle, as it must be considered “dead”, and the player must Just Capture the first Pokemon they encounter within each region. There are a slew of additional rules that most players abide by as well, and you can read about them all at Nuzlocke Bulbapedia Challenge page.
Regardless of your familiarity with the Nuzlocke Challenge, our brief overview should make it clear that Not At the same level as hacking or ROM; It is simply a set of self-imposed restrictions that occur within the basic parameters of the game. In fact, Kit and Krysta were visibly shocked by the Pokémon Company’s reaction and highlighted the unpredictability of the community’s suggestions.
Since the release of the clip, sribi Site manager Joe Merrick stated that he contacted the Pokémon Company regarding the claim, which confirmed that players are free to play Pokémon games in any way they see fit, as long as it remains within the confines of the game itself, saying “we don’t. You have any issues with fans/creators.” who play games according to the Nuzlocke Rules.”
While there is no doubt that Kit and Krysta’s story is true, we suspect that there may have been some misunderstanding regarding the definition of hacks and ROMs and their relationship (or lack thereof) to the Nuzlocke Challenge. It’s possible that while the Pokémon Company doesn’t have an issue with the Nuzlocke Challenge per se, they may not have been keen on showing the challenge via an official channel like Nintendo Minute. Regardless, Kit and Krysta seem to have taken the controversy in their stride, posting an amusing tweet yesterday evening:
What do you think of Kate and Krista’s claims? Are you a fan of Nuzlocke Challenge? Let us know in the comments below.
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