Pokémon Uranium is a fan-made video game based on the Pokémon series.[1][2][3] The game was in development for nine years, and used the RPG Maker XP engine.[4][5][6] The game adds 166 new fan-made species of Pokémon, with only 160 currently available, along with a new region.[7] Similar to the official games, Uranium contains both online trading and online battling.[4] In August 2016, after one and a half million downloads, the download links for Pokémon Uranium were taken down from the official website because the developers wanted to "respect Nintendo's wishes", after learning other sites that offered the download received DMCA takedown notice letters from lawyers representing Nintendo.[8][9][10] The following month, the developers officially ceased development of the title and shut down the website and servers.[11] Community members created a new website and continued to develop patches for the base game, including bug fixes and new features.[12]
| Pokémon Uranium | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Director(s) | ~JV~ |
| Programmer(s) | ~JV~ |
| Artist(s) | Involuntary-Twitch |
| Writer(s) | Involuntary-Twitch |
| Composer(s) |
|
| Series | Pokémon (unofficial) |
| Engine | RPG Maker XP |
| Release | August 6, 2016 |
Gameplay and plot
editIn Pokémon Uranium, the player navigates through the Tandor region (based on Rio de Janeiro, Brazil), and encounters 200 Pokémon species throughout their travels, most of which are fan-made. The story follows a young hero as they journey through the region, collecting a total of eight Pokémon gym badges and eventually defeating the Pokémon League to become the Pokémon champion. The protagonist receives a Pokémon they choose from the new Pokémon Professor Bamb'o, and set off. The player's mother has been lost after an explosion at a nuclear power plant, and their father, Kellyn, remains cold and distant as he throws himself into his work to avoid dealing with his grief, leaving the player with their aunt. Throughout the game, the player is given reason to be suspicious as strange happenings are going on around them, and a severely irradiated Pokémon looms over the region, ready to destroy everything.
Online connections to other copies of a Pokémon game is a returning aspect of previous games to Pokémon Uranium. The Global Trade Station (GTS) allows players to anonymously trade Pokémon with each other.[13][14]
Reception
editThe game was nominated for The Game Awards 2016 in the "Best Fan Creation" category, but was removed from the nomination page without notice alongside the Metroid fan game AM2R. Alissa McAloon of Gamasutra speculated that it was due to Nintendo's stance on unauthorized use of their intellectual properties.[15]
While there are few full reviews for the title, CGMagazine's Elias Blondeau outlined that "Pokémon Uranium manages to be a deep, fulfilling round of familiar mechanics and a mature evolution of the very franchise it's paying homage to".[16]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Pokémon Uranium is a brand new game made by fans". Metro. DMG Media. August 9, 2016. Archived from the original on August 12, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
- ^ Van Boom, Daniel (August 11, 2016). "Fan-made Pokemon Uranium launches after 9 years of development". CNET. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on August 12, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
- ^ Hilliard, Kyle (August 10, 2016). "Fans Come Together To Create The Original Unofficial Pokémon Uranium". Game Informer. GameStop. Archived from the original on August 12, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
- ^ a b Plunkett, Luke (August 10, 2016). "After Nine Years Of Work, Fans Release Their Own Pokémon Game". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Archived from the original on August 11, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
- ^ Hernandez, Patricia (December 26, 2014). "Fans Have Spent Six Years Making A Pokémon Game That Feels Fresh". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Archived from the original on August 12, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
- ^ Plante, Chris (August 10, 2016). "Fans spent nine years making this free Pokémon game you can play on PC". The Verge. Vox Media. Archived from the original on August 12, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
- ^ Morris, Tatiana (August 10, 2016). "Fan-made Pokemon game releases with 150 all-new Pokemon and a new region". GameZone. Archived from the original on August 12, 2016. Retrieved August 11, 2016.
- ^ Good, Owen (August 14, 2016). "Fan-made Pokemon Uranium is shelved by its creators after Nintendo notices". Polygon. Vox Media. Archived from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
- ^ Messner, Steven (August 27, 2016). "How Pokémon Uranium and a community of amateur developers is walking the line between love and theft". PC Gamer. Future plc. Archived from the original on August 27, 2016. Retrieved August 27, 2016.
- ^ Hernandez, Patricia (August 15, 2016). "Despite Takedown, Pokémon Uranium Creators Say It's 'More Alive Than Ever'". Kotaku. Gawker Media. Archived from the original on August 16, 2016. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
- ^ Pokémon Uranium. "Important Message from the Uranium Team". Twitter. Retrieved September 21, 2016.
- ^ "Info - Pokemon Uranium". www.pokemonuranium.org. Retrieved February 27, 2017.
- ^ "Pokemon Uranium Online Announcement". August 9, 2016.
- ^ "Pokemon Online Functions Review".
- ^ McAloon, Alissa (November 21, 2016). "Fan-made Pokemon Uranium and AM2R cut from The Game Awards nominees". Gamasutra. UBM plc. Archived from the original on November 21, 2016. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
- ^ Blondeau, Elias (August 16, 2016). "Pokémon Uranium Review". www.cgmagonline.com. CGMagazine. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
External links
edit- Official website for the community edition