It’s been over 20 years since the last title in the Pokémon Stadium series, and a new game would need a particular set of features to not only live up the series’ standards but to justify its creation at all. The Pokémon Stadium titles originally offered Pokémon fans a way to use their Pokémon from the original games and battle with them in 3D on a TV screen. Ever since the series went fully 3D with X and Y, the need for a game like Pokémon Stadium has decreased, and the Nintendo Switch allows the games to be played either as a handheld or on a TV screen, further taking away from Stadium’s unique attributes.
Subsequent Pokémon home console games, such as the overlooked Pokémon Colosseum title on GameCube and Pokémon Battle Revolution on Wii took cues from the Stadium series, but have major deviations that indicate the lessening need for a Stadium-like game since even before the mainline series transitioned into 3D. Despite this, the Stadium series is a beloved classic that some fans have been interested in seeing return in some capacity. After the release of New Pokémon Snap 22 years after the original, the return of Pokémon Stadium may not be entirely impossible.
Pokémon Stadium is best known for its challenging battles and collection of mini games. Although the mini games are well loved, it would be for the best if they were excluded from a new Pokémon Stadium game. A separate Mario Party style game would be a better way to make the most of the mini games that fans love, with the opportunity to include a much greater number of them as well as numerous game boards for additional play value. Instead, a new Pokémon Stadium game should focus on the “stadium” aspect of the series; by honing in on a particular niche of competitive battle features, a new Pokémon Stadium game could act as a successful supplement to the mainline Pokémon titles and remove some of the pressure for such features to be included in the main games themselves.
A New Pokémon Stadium Needs To Include Tournament Creation And Online Play
The primary content of the Pokémon Stadium games comes from the Stadium Mode, where Trainers battle eight opponents in a row to earn a trophy. They are already split into different difficulties and Pokémon-centric rule sets, such as the Petit Cup where only unevolved Pokémon of a certain weight and height can participate. A new Pokémon Stadium can further expand its cups by including challenges for the new battle styles that were added after Pokémon Stadium 2. Double battles have become a staple of the series starting with Ruby and Sapphire, so a double battle Stadium challenge is a natural fit. Triple battles and rotation battles were also added to the series with Black and White, but were removed in Sun and Moon. With its focus on battling, a Pokémon Stadium game would be a great place to reintroduce these battle styles.
Building off of this, a new Pokémon Stadium title is a great place to offer custom tournament creation. Whether they play VGC or another competitive online Pokémon gameplay format, all sorts of players can benefit from a tournament creation function. They can set the rules of the tournament from allowed Pokémon to time limits, the number of participants, and open it up to friends or online players. If it can accommodate for different tournament types, such as round robin, single elimination, or Swiss-style, then it will solidify Pokémon Stadium as an indispensable tool for fans interested in competitive play.
The New Pokémon Stadium's Gym Leader Castle Should Be Replaced With The PWT
Instead of the Gym Leader Castle of the original Pokémon Stadium games, a new Pokémon Stadium should expand its Stadium to include the Pokémon World Tournament, or PWT, from Gen 5’s Pokémon Black 2 and White 2. In this fan favorite battle facility, players battle in tournaments themed after the different regions’ Gym Leaders and Champions. Including the PWT in a new Pokémon Stadium game would be a much better alternative to a Gym Leader Castle; players are already battling numerous Trainers in a row in regular Stadium challenges, and the tournament style of the PWT can help introduce newer players to the format for later online play. This PWT could include all the Gym Leaders and Trial Captains, Champions, and even Elite Four members - who were excluded from Black 2 and White 2’s PWT - in the series thus far. Another group of Trainers who could possibly be included in this PWT are the Frontier Brains from Emerald and Platinum, HeartGold and SoulSilver.
A Battle Frontier Can Be Included In A New Pokémon Stadium Game
The Battle Frontier hasn’t appeared in a Pokémon game since HeartGold and SoulSilver. Like the Pokémon Stadium series itself, the Battle Frontier - a collection of competitive-level single player battle challenges - has lost much of its reason to be included in newer games. To best succeed in the Battle Frontier’s myriad challenges, players would need competitive-level Pokémon teams, but IV breeding and EV training was incredibly difficult prior to X and Y. By the time the process of creating a competitive-level Pokémon team was easier to learn, the series’ online functionality was also improving drastically. As more players’ efforts went into online play, with its innately infinite replay value as well as practical value of battling against a real opponent, it makes sense to prioritize online and competitive features over a much more limited single-player experience that follows the Pokémon games’ already single-player story campaign.
But an all-new Pokémon Stadium game that focuses on competitive-level play styles could warrant the inclusion of special battle facilities to help balance out the standard battles that would be taking place in the Stadium Cups and PWT. This Battle Frontier could have all-new facilities separate from those found in Emerald, Platinum, and HeartGold and SoulSilver - although the Tower and Factory should return as they always have - and players can exchange BP they earn for items to use with their Pokémon teams. A new Pokémon Stadium game should have Home compatibility to give players a use for the Pokémon they have stored, but it also means they’ll need a way to earn items since Pokémon Home only transfers and stores Pokémon but can’t store any items.
The "Trainers' School" In A New Pokémon Stadium Should Focus On Competitive Teambuilding
Because a new Pokémon Stadium game should focus on competitive-level battling, the game’s Trainers’ School, or Pokémon Academy as it was called in Pokémon Stadium 2, should focus on teaching players how to prepare competitive teams, as well as basic rules for common competitive formats such as VGC. Players will know gameplay basics such as the effects of status ailments and the uses of held items and Abilities through simply playing the main games, especially since more recent titles can sometimes have extended tutorials through their own Trainers’ Schools. It’s important that players instead learn what EVs and IVs do in Pokémon, and how to train and breed for them, respectively. As an innately more advanced game, the tutorials should cover advanced topics, which will help players who have never gotten into competitive teambuilding before.
A New Pokémon Stadium Should Have A (Customizable) Day Care
To finalize a new Pokémon Stadium game as a hub for competitive-level play, it should include a customizable Day Care where Trainers can breed and hatch Eggs. By using Home connectivity, players can breed the Pokémon they’ve transferred from past games even if they can’t be sent to the latest games, such as some of the older generation starters that are still missing from Sword and Shield. Players will have more incentive to transfer Pokémon into Home if they can all be made use of in a game like Pokémon Stadium, and it will also give them the opportunity to try out IV breeding Pokémon for themselves after learning about it in the game’s Trainers’ School. The Day Care can also be where players can assign EVs to their Pokémon, giving them the chance to try out different EV spreads and seeing just how much they can affect a Pokémon’s performance. This feature will be especially crucial for Pokémon that are stuck in Home and can’t be transferred to the latest games where they can get EVs normally.
Something that can offer players the chance to express themselves in a more cosmetic way is the opportunity to customize their Day Care with furniture that can be earned by playing through the PWT and Battle Frontier. This will give players an activity that isn’t based on battling reminiscent of receiving special furniture and viewing their in-game room in 3D in Pokémon Stadium 2. Since the Pokémon Day Care would be the cornerstone of team creation in a new Pokémon Stadium game, it would be a fantastic bonus for players to be able to customize it as they please.