Detective Pikachu was a smash-hit as a movie, but the 3DS game didn’t fare quite as well. Obviously, the concept was used for a film, but the game itself suffered from sluggish pacing and incredibly easy puzzles.
With a sequel officially announced there are quite a few improvements that the developer, Creatures, can make. Of course, more challenging gameplay and puzzles are chief among these, but there are several story improvements to be made as well.
The next game can take a bit of inspiration from the Detective Pikachu movie, which does quite a few things better.
Detective Pikachu 2 Needs a More Interesting Protagonist
The biggest strength the Detective Pikachu movie has over its game counterpart is its main character. The two have the same main character, Tim Goodman, but Justice Smith’s portrayer feels far more interesting and personable.
Tim in the game is practically a blank slate used to push the story along, while Detective Pikachu is the one with all the personality. The dynamic between Tim and Pikachu is at the heart of the film, and Smith and Ryan Reynolds play off of each other perfectly. The next game should take inspiration from this dynamic and flesh out Tim’s character even more.
The game needs to give more background on Tim and his motivations, past just finding his missing father. The previous game already nailed the personality of Pikachu, but the dialogue and story could be so much more dynamic with a bit more effort.
Detective Pikachu 2 Needs Much Better Pacing and Variety
Detective Pikachu is such a novel idea, and so much of the game works just based on that concept alone. However, the game has abysmal pacing at times with chapters requiring a lot of wandering around, question people and Pokemon, and drip-feeding revelations on the core mystery.
Detective Pikachu moves at a breakneck pace to always keep things moving, going from one new area to the next. The movie feels snappy and works to keep things interesting across its 104-minute runtime. A huge part of this is the variety it has in its action scenes and events. On the other side of things, the Detective Pikachu game has an overreliance on basic puzzles and dialogue.
The film takes Tim and Pikachu to a Pokemon fighting ring, has them running through mountains that are actually giant Torterra’s, and fighting in a parade made up of Pokemon balloons. These are all varied action scenes that mix things up visually and thematically. The Detective Pikachu game does have a bit of this, like exploring an abandoned theme park inhabited by ghost Pokemon, but again there just isn’t enough variation.
The core of Detective Pikachu should still be investigations, but there are more interesting gameplay mechanics that can be implemented, and maybe even a bit of action. Detective Pikachu lasts roughly 8 hours, but so much of the game feels similar. The sequel needs to either cut down on that time or make things wildly varied across that runtime. Detective Pikachu is now a hugely recognizable property, appealing to a general crowd because of the film. More eyes and players mean the sequel needs to hold more appeal than being a quirky niche title.
Next: Detective Pikachu: 20 Pokémon Secrets You Missed
