Okay, time to explore Lumiose! (And avoid saving any more just in case it’s chance that makes the bug kill games.)

Incidentally, since we’re at a different angle I can say that the animation is really great. When she takes off on the roller skates, she lunges forward to build speed, then changes to more occasional, longer strokes, and if you ease up on the controls she slows and does the back-and-forth zigzag to keep her balance.

Unfortunately this also shows that wow, her skirt is very, very short. At least all it exposes is the black zone of shame and not her underwear, and as this is a simultaneous release that’s almost certainly true in all games and not something changed for the American release like in some other games.

I’ve decided her current outfit is a favorite dress she’s outgrown. She’s at the age for growth spurts. I’ll get her a nice new dress for cities as soon as I find a place selling them.

There’s a taxi cab whose driver explains that the power is out in half the town, so he doesn’t want to drive around in “such a confusion” so all taxi service is suspended. Does a blackout result in people running around screaming and rending their clothes in Japan? Where I am we just kind of ignore it and maybe go out for dinner.

Next to the non-taxing cab, there’s someone gushing about how unpretentious the restaurant is, but entering gets me a place with very well spaced tables and a guy in a suit. Anyway so this is apparently a double battle resteraunt, but I can’t afford it because I spent all my money on pokeballs.

Further along is that probably grass type sheep pokemon! It is apparently a skiddo and Serena thinks it makes very cute sleeping noises. It looks quite cute too. But why is it just sleeping there? Are skiddo the pigeons of pokemon cities?

Then going further:

I’m sorry. There’s a blackout. You can’t go any farther until it’s fixed.

Again, are blackouts considered actual disasters in Japan, on par with hurricanes and volcanic eruptions? The buildings behind him even appear to still be lit!

Heading back some people are discussing how there’s a pokemon center and it’s near the pokelab, I guess so we’ll know where it is.

I just tried an alley and construction worker guy materialized to tell me no, but he wasn’t there a second ago and also there’s people walking back and forth in the background. Why doesn’t he tell them they aren’t allowed to do this? Also, why didn’t they put him there first, instead of having it be open until I got near?

Another woman just loudly comments about how to find the pokemon center when I approach. I guess that’s all trainers ever want to know so she doesn’t even bother to wait for people to ask.

Then I try a cafe, which I discover is where shy people who still love to communicate with others gather. They appear to be doing so by each sitting as far away from each other as they can, with the one in the back actually facing into the corner. They tell me about the wireless stuff.

Beyond, I eavesdrop on people chatting about cafes. Then there’s somewhere that can do my hair! Yay! But I can’t afford to check any of it out, because unlike the dressing room, there’s no option to try it on before buying.

Sneaking by Calem, I find myself back with the sleeping skiddo…no, this is another one, and Serena explains that this one just looks super comfy sleeping.

I enter into some random building. Someone hands me a quick claw. Why do people do this? But then I guess it’s sort of like why I spent so much time trading stupid stuff. Upstairs I get special pokeballs, but otherwise the environment isn’t really interactive- I can’t read anything on the computers or desks. I’m still able to quiry the trashcans, but it’s saying nothing’s there.

The development of the Poke Ball really brought Pokemon and humans closer together!

Has there been fanfic about this period? We know from the Celebi movie that as shortly ago as Professor Oak’s childhood, people were using a very different model and pokemon containment in the time of the poke-atlantis stand-in was so alien they didn’t even realize the artifacts were containing pokemon, assuming we can take an episode that involved a godzilla sized alakazam as canon.

But point is – what did pokeballs actually do for people/pokemon relations? Black/Black 2 seemed to resolve, in so much as there was anything, by saying pokeballs were the problem although there largely was no problem of course and we should all respect differing viewpoints by shutting up about thinking there might be any problem.

It could simply be that pokeballs allowed people to stay nearby super dangerous magical animals long enough to safely form a bond – sort of like it’d be easier to bond with tigers if we weren’t so squishy and maulable.

One of the occupants in another building informs me that even pokemon of the same species can have different strengths. In practice, though, it’s really that some are just weaker than others, since the average pokemon species has an ideal stat layout.

In the floor above, it’s more people saying stuff about pokemon, still no battles. Gets weird with the final person, though. She’s sitting turned away from her computer, and when I talk to her she says, When we live aimlessly every day, we sometimes feel so emoty that we can’t even stand the color of the blue sky. I wonder if Pokemon ever feel like that, too? Disturbing.

Another cafe appears to be devoted to the photo feature. I wish we could just take reqular screencaps. I had to pay for the stupid SD card already, I should get to use it.

There’s also a road into the ciy I can take! I find people discussing the fact taxis can take you anywhere in the city, assuming they happen to run.

A clothing store! Apparently I’m not stylish enough to enter. The woman suggests I try other places in the city first, so I guess I have to find another store, buy stylish clothing, then come here to buy stylish++ clothes?

I go into a stone store and talk to someone and apparently Serena’s already well known? He says, If it isn’t the famous Trainer Serena that everyone is talking about! Indeed! Miss Serena, I’ve got the most perfectly perfect stone for you! Oh yes, I do! This is my most prized piece in my inventory: the Venusaurite! Have a little look-see, why don’t you! It’s a sort of power stone that will give your Venusaur shocking strength!

…wait, are mega evolutions temporary? It’s a held item?

And for you, Miss Serena, star of the city, I’ll let it go at a very special price! What do you say? It could be yours for just $1,000,000. Will you take it with you?

I have 170 to my name at the moment.

I still don’t get why he knows me, though. I mean, I’m glad that the game’s moved away from completely ignoring me, but I’d like to earn accomplishments too.

I’d be fine with this just being salesman speal, but he knew my name.

Meanwhile his kid says Look! It’s not a Metapod anymore, Dad! Not sure what that means. Maybe I should take it at face value and he’s just trying to show off his butterfree? It just sounds rather aggressive.

Anyway, the store itself currently offers just fire, water and leaf stones. Although you can see others. I guess it’s badge related, which really makes little sense but fine.

There’s a herbal meds place. I usually feed my pokemon on nothing else, but…they’d be upset if I did…

And a pokemon salon. But only for the poodle thing.

Another cafe, this one about fashion.

And a cafe for poodle thing fanciers. Beyond that is construction worker guy. So I guess I can’t get into the fancier clothing shop until the blackout’s over, unless getting my hair changed alone will let me in.

Being stylish means knowing all about everything in Lumiose City!

OH. Thank you, random NPC conversations!

We shall go everywhere in Lumiose City, and the city will love us for it, darling!

So definitely not until the blackout is fixed. Not sure how the clothing shop worker could tell this at a glance, but whatever.

Hey, let’s check out the GTS.

Regular GTS is still a pile of shit because you can’t filter trades for things you don’t have. The worst part is it shows the little icon for “caught” next to the pokemon asked for, and of course it only lets you ask for pokemon you’ve at least seen, so it so, so easily COULD sort the requested pokemon as well. Or at least sort requests by that so I could skim through the walls of charmander requests. And it still doesn’t seem to automatically match trades, which would help so much.

Ooh, wonder trade. Doesn’t solve the problem of not being able to find suitable trades, but does let me fulfill my desire to just give things to others. And it’s fun because you can just keep sending off whatever pokemon you get and seeing what’s next. And doesn’t seem to be getting particularly abused, either – it takes me a lot of trades before I end up with a bidoof. I can’t wait to figure out how to hack shinies and clone and fill the place with blue umbreon. And shiny haunter.

Also someone sent me a female eevee! I’ve been playing by unloading my slightly more valuable duplicate pokemon from trading and then whatever pokemon I get until I hit bidoof or some other really lame pokemon. But I’m keeping the eevee for now. I promise to breed it and send lots of baby eevee into the system once I find where the breeder is, though.

There’s also o-power, where you can give people a boost of some sort or heal their pokemon a little but it costs little green energy disks that recover over time. Looks like you can also use it on yourself, though, which seems a bit broken, unless it’s disabled for the elite four area.

I think I’ve figured out how the friending part works, but it seems really finicky.

Oh my, a ralts!

And now Spewpa’s evolving! Vivillon. L12. And now she can eat pokepuffs again!

Hey, I’m over on route 22 and a farfetch’d just appeared. So those are wild? I didn’t need to trade? Oh game, so tricky.

Even though it’s been true for a while, being able to get wild farfetch’d still seems amazing. It’s just, back then we were sure there’d never be anything but DUX. You couldn’t even breed your own from it back then. Trade-only pokemon were like really crappy legendaries.

Dunsparce! And a girl, too!

When spotted, this Pokemon escapes backward by furiously boring into the ground with its tail.

Riolu!

It uses the shapes of auras, which change according to emotion, to communicate with others.

Psyduck!

Okay, I’m out of pokeballs with no money to buy more (though I’ve still got plenty of greatballs). Back to the actual game.

Right then, now I’ll talk to Calem.

Come with me for a second.

I kind of miss automatic following. I know it doesn’t make sense, but it was this extra script you could trigger!

Anyway, I enter.

Oh, it’s Lysandre and… Is that Diantha?

Uh, sure, maybe.

So get this, neighbor, Lysandre is the head of Lysandre Labs

Yeah, that seems reasonable.

which created the Holo Caster, a video-messaging device. You already know about Diantha, right? She is one of the most famous movie stars in the world, after all. I wonder what the two of them are doing here together.

Clearly the answer is eavesdropping!

You played a young girl so wonderfully in your debut on the silver screen, Flamey says in a pink box.

Wouldn’t you rather remain young and beautiful forever and always play such roles?

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH RUN RUN RUN

What a strange question… she replies in an equally pink box. Lady do you possess no self-preservation instinct?! How do you manage to be the most popular star ever without figuring out a subset of your insane fans want to murder you and embalm the body RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN

Why would I want to play the same old roles forver?

YES THAT’S A VERY INTERESTING POINT OF VIEW BUT SERIOUSLY HOW IS THE MURDER SUBTEXT LOST ON YOU.

ESPECIALLY WHEN IT’S A “YOUNG GIRL” SPECIFICALLY YOU DON’T SEE PEOPLE SAYING TO MALE ACTORS THAT HEY IF ONLY YOU COULD BE FOURTEEN FOREVER STUFFED IN MY GLASS CASE IN THE BASEMENT. THE TRADITIONAL WAY OF STOPPING GIRLS FROM MATURING AND HAVING ALL THAT SEXUALITY EXIST IS MURDER MURDER MURDER.

And Serena, what’s your excuse? You’re eavesdropping on this, I know you’re just a kid but surely it’s sounding pretty sketchy.

Youth may be beautiful, but it’s not all there is to life, she continues blithely. Everything changes. I want to live and change like that, too.

Ah, so she has noticed the murder subtext and is just very very chill about it.

So I look forward to playing different roles as I get older.

“Or I would if it wasn’t for the fact Hollywood only gives roles to older men, not women. Ah well.”

And…the angle’s changed and she appears to be wearing wings wtf.

You were chosen to be a movie star, correct? Isn’t it your duty to be ever beautiful?

How is she not running yet?

Everything beautiful should stay that way forever. I would make this world unchanging and eternal so all beauty would last forever. I can’t stand the thought of the world becoming uglier.

Whoa there crazy guy freezing everything will prevent new beauty and keep old ugliness! Ah, you will be satisfying to beat, if confusing in how you manage to raise a team to battle me.

Oh. Hello, Serena.

Hello Mr. Scary Man, Serena hasn’t hit puberty yet so please keep the beautiful comments to a minimum.

This is Diantha, one of the most accomplished movie stars in Kalos. She moves the multitudes with her excellent acting…

“Yet all that matters is if she’s hot.”

Which is to say, she dedicates her life to making other people happy. Oh! If only everyone were like her–what a beautiful world this would be!

See, this would work better if she was already old and he was upset at the idea of her being gone in the sense of dying, not in the sense of being too old to play hot chicks.

If you’ll excuse me.

And he leaves.

Hm. I wonder if other people hated Douchy McFlamehair the way I did and so they’ve made the villain of their new game flamehaired too to capitalize on that hatred. Sort of like how comics published lots of books where various characters got to punch Iron Man in the face lots after their disasterous crossover event where he was an evil asshole they insisted everyone should love, only without the point where after the punchings the characters would realize the evil asshole was right and everyone should love him.

Anyway, Diantha decides we’re interesting enough to chat with herself. And who are you two?

The apparently famous Serena and some blue guy who wishes he could’ve been me and not alt-me.

I’m Calem. It’s a pleasure. This is…

Serena, right? she says, and then says our names are lovely. I didn’t even get to name alt-me this game. She also notes we’re trainers and apparently our pokemon seem happy and also she’s a trainer when she’s not moviestaring and we’ll battle someday maybe. She heads off.

Hmm… Calem says. Apparently all that registered in his head was the part where he might get to fight her someday and not Crazy McFlamehair explaining his ambition to murder the world.

Oh yeah. I wanted to ask you something, neighbor. How about you and I compete to see who ends up stronger.

Thought we were already doing that. But I guess Serena wouldn’t jump to that conclusion, so it’s good to make a formal declaration. Also, if you want to do that, you’d better start getting your name on gym pillars.

I know we set off on our journey just after you arrived in Vaniville, but we are neighbors, and having a competition with you sounds fun.

You are such a terrible gary. Are you seriously apologizing for being a rival even of the let’s all have fun and grow together type?

I won’t lose, though. Just so you know.

You’d better not! I’m sick of rivals giving up halfway through. Also, if I happen to kick your ass right before the pokemon league, you should still challenge them and depose the champion for the next time I come through instead of assuming that if you can’t beat me you can’t beat anyone. And remember the proper response to losing is to insist it means nothing, not mope and make me feel bad.