User:Salmancer/Overworld Progression Obstacles draft

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The core series Pokémon games often obstruct the player's path with a number of objects, people, and terrain. These can generally be referred to as obstacles or roadblocks. These serve to prevent the player from accessing the entire map directly from the start of the game, in part because it is difficult to write a story where the player can go anywhere at any time and in part because games are more fun when there are places that the player can only access later on. The presence of obstacles allows the player to eventually come back and get past that road block, then feel accomplished for having done so.

Some non-core series games have loose equivalents to this, which are also listed here. Note that for the purposes of this article, simply being unable to select an option from a menu is not considered an "obstacle"; the term carries with it a certain amount of "physicality". So too do areas that the player does not learn about before they are unlocked, because something cannot be an roadblock if there is nothing on the other side of it.

In the core series

Obstacles seen in the core series games can be loosely divided into three groups: "requires item", "requires further story progression", and "requires Hidden Machine". They can be enforced in two different ways: "being insurmountable" or "NPC based".

Obstacles

Requires item

Some obstacles can only be bypassed or overcome by having or using a specific item that appears elsewhere in the game.

Snorlax is a useful representative example. In the games Pokémon Red, Pokémon Blue, Pokémon Yellow, Pokémon FireRed, Pokémon LeafGreen, Pokemon: Let's Go, Pikachu!, and Pokemon: Let's Go, Eevee!., there are two sleeping Snorlax that appear in the overworld, one on Route 12 and one Route 16. These Snorlax are blocking paths on those routes, such that the player is unable to access areas beyond them. One of those areas is Fuchsia City, which has a Gym and a Badge that must be collected to complete the game. Therefore, to complete any of the above games, at least one of the two Snorlax must first be woken up, then battled. Initially, the player does not have the means to wake up the Snorlax. Instead, the player has to obtain a Key Item called the Poké Flute, which serves to wake up sleeping Pokémon like the Snorlax. The Poké Flute itself has another prerequisite, only being obtainable from Mr. Fuji in Lavender Town after the player has completed the events at the town's Pokémon Tower. And that has several other prerequisites, involving a different Key Item and actually entering Lavender Town.

And as such, the structure of a core series Pokémon game is apparent: "gates" spread around the world that the player has to obtain "keys" to get past, which are usually behind other gates which require different keys to open up, and so on and so forth.

For the most part, items involved in clearing "roadblocks" are Key Items, which are one of a kind items exclusively given as part of a game's story that cannot be discarded outside of their intended use. Despite the name, some Key Items are not involved as part of story progression; some are just useful tools like the Old Rod and Bicycle. But many are figurative keys, such as the Secret Medicine in Pokémon Diamond, Pokémon Pearl, Pokémon Platinum, Pokémon Brilliant Diamond, and Pokémon Shining Pearl. And a number of keys and cards serve as literal keys, like the Secret Key and the Plasma Card.

The only instance of an item used in this manner that is not a Key Item is the Lemonade, Soda Pop, and Fresh Water items in Pokémon Red, Pokémon Blue and Pokémon Yellow. Saffron City has four entrances, but all of them are blocked by guards who are thirsty and will not allow the player to pass unless they are given one of the aforementioned items. Normally, the only location that these items can be found is the Celadon Department Store in Celadon City, which makes access to Saffron City more of a mid game achievement. However, because these are not Key Items, an exploit can be performed where the player uses Pokémon Stadium 2 to move the items from a game that has reached Celadon City to a game that has not. This means that the player can access Saffron City much earlier than normal, and through its four exits access a number of other locations early as well. This is problematic from a pathing standpoint. which may be a reason why the remakes of those games, Pokémon FireRed, Pokémon LeafGreen, Pokemon: Let's Go, Pikachu!, and Pokemon: Let's Go, Eevee!, instead require that the player obtain an equivalent Key Item in the Tea.

Some other examples of overworld progression obstacles tied to items are listed below:

Requires further story progression

Some obstacles are beyond the player's means to interact with. Instead, their purpose is to block the way until the player has done something relevant for the story, then the obstacle will allow the player to pass. Depending on what it precisely is, it may instead disappear without a trace, which has the same overall effect.

One example of this obstacle is a Galvantula web blocking access to Chargestone Cave in Unova in Pokémon Black and White. There is no way through the web until the player first defeats Clay at Driftveil Gym. After doing so, when the player goes back to the entrance, Clay will use his Krokorok to clear the way. Naturally, defeating Clay means clearing the rest of Driftveil Gym, which has a prerequisite of defeating the Team Plasma members at Cold Storage. And all of this battling means the player first needs to obtain Pokémon strong enough to win those battles, including battles required to enter Driftveil City to begin with. Which in turn have other requirements, and so on.

Some other examples of overworld progression obstacles tied to story progression are listed below:

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  • In Galar, the first three cities with Gyms, Turffield, Hulbury, and Motostoke, are laid out in a circle. The player starts at Motostoke, but is only allowed to proceed left. Attempting to leave Motostoke to the right is prevented by an unruly Corviknight and their Taxi Driver who is trying to calm it down. Therefore, despite the region's layout, the player cannot get to Hilbury from Motostoke at first. Rather, the player must go to Turfield and Hilbury in that order, then loop back to Motostoke from the city's right side. Once the player enters Motostoke from the right entrance, the Corviknight will have calmed down, meaning the player is allowed to enter and leave Motostoke from the right at any time.
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Requires Hidden Machine

HMs, also known as Hidden Machines, are items that the player can use to teach their Pokémon special moves. These moves can then be used in the overworld outside of a battle, in order to interact with certain objects and terrain that the player otherwise cannot. However, these moves have a "double unlock" requirement. The HM has to be obtained by the player in order for their Pokémon to learn how to use the move. The player also has to defeat a specific Gym Leader and obtain their Badge in order to gain the ability to use the move outside of battle.

HM01, an item which allows a Pokémon to learn the move Cut, is the archetypal example. (finish this paragraph)

(Surf paragraph, mention Waterfall because a HM needed twice over is interesting)

HMs are a little strange to have as a separate category, being that a HM is an item and the Badges required to use them are also items. However, HMs are not Key Items, instead being grouped with the Technical Machines. Those are items that only teach moves, without any use in the overworld. (Hidden Machines and Key Items share the property of being impossible to lose, but HMs are also never used up.) Hidden Machines have a special significance among Pokémon fans, mostly because people really do not enjoy using HMs. As such, they get a section dedicated to them.

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The double unlock system of needing both the item and a Badge can be partially bypassed through the use of Trading. A game can progress far enough to obtain the item, use it on a Pokémon, then trade the Pokémon over to a game which has not yet progressed far enough to obtain the item but does have the Badge. Thus, the second game can use the move that the Pokémon knows without having obtained the HM item. This allows players to skip certain gameplay segments tied to getting Hidden Machines.

Starting with Generation VII, HMs as obtainable items with this double unlock method were removed. They have been featured in Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Pokémon Shining Pearl, with an implementation that doesn't involve HM items but keeps the double unlock. Enviromental obstacles requiring a Pokémon to get past have remained. However, these are tied to obtaining Ride Pokémon or items that unlock new abilities for Ride Pokémon and can therefore be more accurately respresented as "obstacles that require items"

Enforcement of obstacles

Insurmountable

Reference Cut trees, water, doors, and so on

NPC-based

Reference Corviknight from earlier, the guards in Saffron, Brock enthusiast,...

Glitches

(Cycling Road glitch to walk past) (Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl Sunnyshore glitch)

In other games

Pokémon Quest

Statues


In the TCG

The Pokémon Trading Card Game does not have an overworld, so it does not have "overworld progression obstacles". However, certain cards reference certain Pokémon's roles as "overworld progression obstacles", usually with an effect that prevents Pokémon from retreating.

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