We live in a post-platform world. Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo are no longer treating each other like they’re adversaries of the “he who must not be named” variety in their marketing material. Though console warriors are still fighting that battle in comments sections like soldiers who don’t know the war has ended, Halo is coming to PlayStation, so the war is over. Not only does that mean we get games on more platforms than we once did, but we also get some brainbreaking moments, like today when Pokémon developer Game Freak was featured in an Xbox showcase, and we got a rare look into the studio that made Pikachu.
The Tokyo office Game Freak operates out of has been the company’s home since 2020 when it moved to be closer to Nintendo’s own offices in the same building, called Kanda Square. It’s been about as long since we last got a good look inside the company’s office, whose decor is based on the Kanto region of the original Pokémon Red and Green. While the studio was showing off its upcoming action RPG Beast of Reincarnation in today’s video presentation, Pokémon got namedropped several times over footage of the team working on the game in its Kanda Square office. The clips we see show an office that, in some rooms, looks like any other video game developer’s space, with concept art on the walls and computers in cubicles. But some rooms look much different, like one that is covered in trees to look like Kanto’s Viridian Forest.
While Pokémon’s name was said a few times in the showcase and this room is an homage to one of its most iconic early “dungeons,” as far as I can tell there’s no sign of a Pikachu or Poké Ball in these brief glimpses into Game Freak’s inner sanctum. I understand why they wouldn’t show us shots of the team working on upcoming Pokémon games, but I am surprised that there’s not even a frame of iconography in these shots. That feels like a deliberate choice, perhaps to not distract from Beast of Reincarnation?
The Viridian Forest backdrop does work for the upcoming Xbox/PC/PS5 game, though, as it takes place in a post-apocalyptic fantasy Japan in which nature has reclaimed much of the land. Still, it’s odd to get an intimate look inside the historically secretive studio from an Xbox showcase. It’s a shame Pikachu didn’t get to make a cameo appearance, but I sincerely doubt we’ll be seeing a Pokémon game on Xbox, even as the console barriers are falling down.