There’s no way around it: the world sucks right now. America is run by hacks and wannabe fascists. The internet is inundated with violence and disinformation. Masked men are mercilessly ripping our neighbors from their homes and families. Most importantly for this article, any semblance of control we exercised over climate change is disappearing like sand between our fingers.
When I bought Pokémon Pokopia, I had hoped somewhat selfishly that it would provide me with an escape from the endless stream of violence and cruelty that penetrates every aspect of contemporary American existence. Much to my surprise, Pokopia was not content to let me retreat into its fiction. Instead, the game reminded me that things will only get better if we refuse to resign ourselves to the way they currently are, and instead choose to care.
In Judaism, there is a concept known as “tikkun olam,” or “repairing the world.” This doctrine asks us to leave the world better than we found it. At its core, Pokémon Pokopia is a game about tikkun olam. In the world of Pokopia, a climate disaster has caused all the humans and most of the Pokémon to go into hiding. You play as a Ditto, a goofy, shapeshifting Pokémon with unique abilities that allow you to build habitats for other Pokémon. As you build habitats and repair the environment, Pokémon begin to appear, offering to help you. But building habitats isn’t easy, since every Pokémon has its own likes and dislikes. Creating the perfect home requires the right combination of location, temperature, lighting and decor.
As you progress through each area of the game, your ramshackle collection of habitats develops into a vibrant, growing community of Pokémon. This is in no small part due to the game’s surprisingly funny and endearing writing. It’s rare that an all-ages game is actually written for all ages, but I really do think that, regardless of age, everyone will find something to enjoy in Pokopia’s writing. I couldn’t help but chuckle every time Bulbasaur told me how much it loved humid weather, or when Tangrowth couldn’t figure out what a washing machine was.
It helps that Pokopia’s gameplay is far deeper than that of its peers in the “cozy game” genre. Despite misleading trailers, the game has far more in common with Minecraft than it does Animal Crossing. Pokopia gives you complete flexibility to reshape its blocky landscapes as you please through a wide variety of tools and items. With these in hand, you can carve out waterways, grow vegetables, construct houses, dig for ores and even build a railway system. If, like me, you prefer a more structured experience, then you can always decide to forgo a complete remodel and fix each level’s existing structures instead.
More than anything else, the game is relentlessly joyful. In the world of Pokopia, pessimism is nowhere to be found, and yet, the game doesn’t feel overly saccharine. Instead, Pokopia’s overwhelming optimism acts as a pleasant counterbalance to the undercurrent of darkness present in its ruined landscape and climate disaster story.
If you already have a Nintendo Switch 2, then buying Pokémon Pokopia is a no-brainer. It’s easily one of the system’s best exclusives, and the most fun I’ve had with a Pokémon game since 2019’s Pokémon Sword and Shield. It’s wonderfully constructed and well worth your time.
