SO sequels announced, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon.

Announcement video here!

I am... not excited, and I'm as close to a Pokéobsessive as you can get. Sun and Moon left a really bad taste in my mouth to be honest and the thought of revisiting them so soon is just deflating, because they got so much wrong with these instalments. I'm usually the one to breed competitive mons, battle through the end-game facilities, spend every last minute doing everything etc etc. I just couldn't bring myself to do it this time around. Some of the wording - it being an alternative storyline alarms me and makes me feel like we won't get the big changes I need. I didn't even go into this with real expectations to be honest. I just wanted something that demonstrates they've learnt something along the way. The games have potential, of course. Platinum is my favourite game while the originals remain somewhat limp. But yeah, I need big changes.

I was really hoping they were going to announce Diamond/Pearl remakes. Sinnoh is my favourite region and I would really like to see it in their new graphics. Platinum is my favourite too! Was actually the first Pokemon game I ever bought (I was a fan of Pokemon as a kid, but never owned any of the games until I was a teenager).

I liked Sun/Moon, so I'm interested to see what they do with it in Ultra. Typically the 'third' games of generations (ie; Crystal, Emerald, Platinum etc.) tend to be really well done imo, so I'm hoping it'll help expand on Alola and let us delve into it more.

Yeah there is a strong history behind them, which is encouraging. :) Emerald is one of the games I go back to most and Platinum and BW2 are both series highs. I don't mind waiting for Sinnoh remakes if they're done right. Realistically, it looks like we're going to be waiting for a new generation on the Switch with the remakes to follow, possibly.

For the changes I'd like to see to Sun and Moon... well... a lot haha. The biggest problem with the games is definitely the lack of post-game, which made the whole thing feel quite empty and unfinished. The world needs fleshing out further - a location like Wela Volcano Park is the definition of a missed opportunity with, y'know, not being able to explore the actual volcano - as it felt quite small once you'd dusted through it. And then all the bonus stuff you want from these games that reset some of the questionable design choices: difficulty levels, obnoxious Rotom dex, switch back to PSS from Festival Plaza, removal of DexNav, no Frontier, remove the barrage of cutscenes and characters I don't care about, no National dex, no endgame levelling options, ability to turn off battle suggestions, underwhelming totem battles. You get the idea haha. There's good games buried underneath the sheen, but they really missed the mark for me.

Yeah, I totally agree with you. I was also really disappointed at the lack of post-game content, especially when the Delta Episode in ORAS and the Looker story in X/Y were really a lot of fun. And yeah, as much as I enjoyed Sun/Moon it did feel really underwhelming as far as the battles go and such. I would have just preferred gyms again tbh haha! Also the main characters expression never changed... which was just super weird. I hope for Ultra they'll at least give us some facial expressions like in ORAS, and even bits of X/Y.

To be honest, it isn't even the end game that bothers me about Sun/Moon. I also play every gen that gets released, and this one, I haven't even gotten past the second island. Rotoh annoys the stuffing out of me and I realized I hate the "call for help" function. My team is so overleveled just from dealing with the forty two helpers each wild 'mon calls that I'm having trouble actually effectively catching new 'mon.

I don't know. I think the idea was neat, but I don't prefer it and am lukewarm on a brand new almost the same version coming out so soon.

My biggest problem is Ultra Sun/Moon are coming out way too soon after the original Sun/Moon. I love Moon, but I'm not ready to go back after only a year. Another thing is it looks to be like Black 2/White 2, which I consider the weakest main games in the series.

I'm disappointed the announcement wasn't a Diamond/Pearl remake. They've been doing fantastic with remakes, and I want to see how they improve Sinnoh, a region I was always meh about.

Perhaps the gen 4 remakes will be here next year or 2019?

As for Ultra, no thanks. I liked Sun and Moon but it was also the games that kind of... made me realize I am getting too old for Pokemon. I will continue to check out what they come out with next but no longer will I play the games or anything of that matter.

I don't think we'll get the gen IV remakes 'til after gen VIII launches, imo, I think the 3DS lifespan is coming to an end and the next titles will be on the Switch, and they will be fresh instalments. And then we'll get the remakes. There does seem to be a real thirst for them now!

I am a -huge- Pokemon fan, and was pretty excited for the announcement. Talk about disappointed.

I'm mostly surprised by how early they announced Ultra S&M. They didn't really showcase much besides new forms for Nebby. Like, give me more to work with here, guys; I can't get hyped from a name alone!

I liked Moon, but I was kind of annoyed by the amount of hand holding the game had. Rotom Dex basically told you where to go even though it was obvious most of the time. And I can understand telling players what moves are super effective against what, especially for new players or those who have not memorized the type chart, but I found it distracting (and useless, because I have memorized the type chart). I was surprised/disappointed there wasn't an option to turn that off.

GameFreak is pretty good about their expanded games, so I'm sure the game will be fun; I just need more info about it because right now I just feel like, "Well, this is a game that is going to exist."

Also surprising we have news of a new title of the Switch from E3, albeit 'a new game is being developed'. Do y'all think it's a reaction to the backlash?

I wish there were some way to shut up the Rotomdex. But my biggest complaint is the lack of a National Pokedex. No, the Pokemon Bank app doesn't count. It needs to be in the actual game I'm playing. I'm never buying another Pokemon game again unless that comes back.

Absolutely. Any attempts to justify that from the fan base (yes, I've seen plenty) have been... questionable. I have a complete living dex on Alpha Sapphire and I have zero motivation to dump it in the bank with no benefit. I haven't even finished my living dex on Moon, it really killed my motivation there.

To be honest Sun/Moon totally failed to thrill me. I played it through (more or less, lol) but, apart from Kartana, Decidueye and Bewear, I don't even remember the new Pokemon or their names. I personally have no bad memories about the Rotom Dex BUT I found all those islands highly confusing, lost my track every couple of minutes and finally put my 3DS back to beauty sleep.

Nevertheless I might be unteachable enough to purchase the Ultra version, too simply because I played every Pokemon game starting from Gold plus the later relased improved versions. We'll see...

I just hope for Alolan Butterfree and Dewgong.

Two of the most forgotten pokemon. ;_;

Butterfree got gipped with no Mega Evolution, even though the other "main 6" (Starters, Beedrill, Pidgeot) got one. Then got gipped again when no Alola form. :/

They DO say new pokemon never before seen, so new alolan forms are likely.

The Chinese leak for Sun&Moon included a Bug/Psychic Butterfree, Water Arcanine, and Fighting Dodrio/Alakazam, but they weren't in the game, but every other thing the leak listed was, even a snowman pokemon in a hawaii region (Crabominable). So I think they may have cut them from SuMo after the leaker saw them, to put them in USUM.

The second these sequels were announced, I wanted to bury my head and close my eyes. I agree, it's waaay too soon for these, and I can't help but feel those B2W2 vibes :/

I never even finished my copy of Sun. I think I got to the third island, maybe? And then I had to bow out for a looong long break; I've yet to pick it back up. I've been playing Pokemon for almost two decades now and I'm fully aware that these games were made for children. The amount of hand-holding, however, is beyond 'for children.' It's just not fun to be told literally where to go (thereby eliminating the exciting exploration aspect of a new world), having your Rotom dex thing make endless comments, and it feels like I'm stopped by cutscenes and conversations every ten steps. I adore most of the new Pokemon and the Alola forms and I like improved the battle system, but it's hard to enjoy the game on the whole when every time I played I found something new that didn't sit right with me.

I'm not super on the "remake Sinnoh" train just yet (it was a gen I didn't care for at the time) but I loved ORAS to bits, I loved what they added and what they kept, so honestly maybe right now they should stick to remakes and banking on nostalgia. It's safer and we're all less miserable tbh

I agree. I'm firmly of the belief that the game needs to go in the opposite direction, in line with modern gaming expectations. Less hand-holding, more roaming, more exploration. I don't expect a full open world experience, because I don't think the series is there quite yet, but they shouldn't be forcing linearity and constant pestering. Give us options, at least. I've been playing the games since I was 8 and they have never been difficult, so I don't know why there was a need a fix something that wasn't broken. I understand wanting to pander to the casual player, particularly in the wake of Go, but don't patronise them.

I was so disappointed. I hated the post game of sun and moon, once you catch the ultra beasts there is nothing to do. The post game has always been one thing I NEED in a pokemon game..... I so hope they didn't just simplify the story and put in new forms of the legendaries cuz if they don't show me whats so great about Ultra I probs won't be getting it at all.

Didn't Black/White and X/Y have a lackluster postgame as well? I also suffered boredom after completing those game. I think post-game content sucks for every first game of a new generation. As far as cutscenes in Sun and Moon, those have made it one of the most compelling stories in Pokemon. Only Gen 5 (Black/White & Black 2/ White 2) have had that distinction. At least that's what I heard. :)

Uncover More Pokémon Ultra Sun and Pokémon Ultra Moon Secrets!

Finally some new info, only two months til release! The games look errrr... the same. I don't think I'm going to be buying at this point but we'll see. I'm open-minded but nothing they've shown thus far makes me want to buy, or convinces me they'll be better games than Sun & Moon are.