Pokémon Frienda
Pokémon Frienda (Japanese: ポケモンフレンダ) is an arcade game developed by Takara Tomy A.R.T.S. and Marvelous, which also developed the Pokémon Battrio, Pokémon Tretta, Pokémon Ga-Olé, and Pokémon Mezastar arcade games. It was officially announced on April 15, 2024, and was launched in Japan on July 11, 2024. It was the first Pokémon-related arcade game, releasing initially at select locations in Japan, including at the Pokémon Center Mega in Ikebukuro, Tokyo.
| Pokémon Frienda ポケモンフレンダ | |
|---|---|
 Pokémon Frienda arcade machine | |
Basic info
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| Platform: | Arcade |
| Category: | Battle simulation |
| Players: | 1-2 |
| Connectivity: | None |
| Developer: | Takara Tomy A.R.T.S./ Marvelous |
| Publisher: | Takara Tomy A.R.T.S. |
| Part of: | Generation IX miscellaneous |
Ratings
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| CERO: | A |
| ESRB: | N/A |
| ACB: | N/A |
| OFLC: | N/A |
| PEGI: | N/A |
| GRAC: | N/A |
| GSRR: | N/A |
Release dates
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| Japan: | July 11, 2024 |
| North America: | N/A |
| Australia: | N/A |
| Europe: | N/A |
| South Korea: | N/A |
| Hong Kong: | N/A |
| Taiwan: | N/A |
Websites
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| Japanese: | Official site |
| English: | N/A |
Gameplay
Much like the main-series games, Pokémon Frienda focusses on battling and catching Pokémon, and the battles are in a turn-based format. It costs ¥100 to start a game, after which point you have the option to either battle Pokémon found in the wild with a chance of catching them, or move directly to a location where you can catch Pokémon, (the former leading into the latter anyway). Pokémon caught are distributed by the machine as physical game cards that can be used during future gameplay sessions.
The player also has the option to store their saved data in a separate game card for ¥200, which also gives the player a starter Pokémon out of the Paldea starter set (Sprigatito, Fuecoco, or Quaxly). This starter 'levels up' a certain amount at the end of each session, with the possibility of evolving.
Get it in battle!
The 'Get it in battle!' option is one of the two options given by the Captain for what to do during the session. This one is labelled as 'recommended'. On a wheel, a biome is selected at random, with the player having to choose one side of the wheel (one location within that biome) to progress. At the edges of each section of the wheel, a Pokémon's icon is shown, along with their star rating. When the player selects a biome, two of said Pokémon appear at either side, with only one of them appearing later on.
After a cutscene, a battle begins between one of the Pokémon mentioned previously, as well as two randomly-selected Pokémon. If the player does not have physical game cards yet, a team will be randomly generated for them.
- On both sides, there is one lead Pokémon out of the three. The player's can be chosen at the beginning of each battle. The lead Pokémon is responsible for dealing damage to the other side.]
- If the Pokémon is rated 5 stars, and therefore capable of Terastallization, the player can input the Tera Orb item (sold separately at some Pokémon locations) to do so. If they do not, there is no certainty of it happening, and it rather depends on a random selection.
- Damage is determined by a spinning wheel with arbitrary numbers, with the player having to stop it at the exact right time. A higher number leads to higher damage. Some of these possible numbers can be increased if the Pokémon were to Terastallise.
- Damage is dealt by mashing both buttons on the machine.
- All 3 Pokémon on the opposite side are damaged equally. Type advantages and base stats on both sides change this value. Once damage has been dealt, the player also has a chance of letting a 4th Pokémon deal damage, with a 50% chance that it occurs, and it being either the player's starter Pokémon or a randomly-selected one.
- The order of attacks depends on speed stats of both lead Pokémon.
After a set number of moves, and when at least one enemy Pokémon has been knocked out, the player can insert ¥100 for a chance to catch all of them. Another spinning wheel determines the type of Pokéball used, with the options being the standard choices of Pokéball, Great Ball, Ultra Ball, and a very small chance for a Master Ball. 3 of the ball this wheel lands on are thrown at all 3 enemy Pokémon, no matter their HP left. Multiple can be caught, but only one can be taken away, while the others are released.
When one battle ends and no Pokémon on the player's side have been fainted, another one begins. This repeats until one of the player Pokémon has fainted.
Stars are earned whenever a Pokémon is fainted and certain moves are dealt. These stars can allow the player to move that number of spaces along a board-game-like path. At the end of one path their is a large stone gate with a certain number of diamond shapes on the front (up to 3). In this gate, a Pokémon is found. It can be pet, raising a friendship meter, and the player can pay ¥100 to receive it.
Get it now!
This option can be chosen from the beginning, although playing with the previous choice would lead into this one anyway.
A number of patches of grass, of varying designs and sizes, are shown on screen. Quick Balls can be thrown, though the patch of grass it lands on is chosen at random, and each throw costs ¥100.
In each gameplay session, only 5 Pokémon can be caught. So if the player chooses this gameplay option directly, or they have caught nothing in the other option, then 5 patches of grass are shown. If 1 Pokémon was caught, 4 patches are shown, and so on. Stars can also be earned here, based on the Pokémon that were caught.
The End
The number of stars earned throughout the entire session accumulate and increase the level of the player's starter Pokémon, shown as a meter with 3 dividing sections. When the meter is filled, the starter evolves.
All Pokémon either encountered or caught are registered to the Pokédex, which is then saved into the player's profile.
Characters
The only consistent character in this arcade game is the Captain, who greets you at the beginning of each session, and gifts you your starter Pokémon.
Pokémon are stored in a similar way to the main-line games, with the main difference being the use of physical game cards to use them in-game. The following is the information stored on the front side of each Pokémon's card:
- Their name, in English and Japanese.
- Their 'primary' type (if they have two types, only one is shown here). If the Pokémon is rated 5 stars, this will be presented as its Tera Type.
- Poké-Energy, possibly determining catch rate.
- Pokédex number.
- Star rating, which determines how many stars are earned upon defeating them. This can go up to 5.
This is the additional information shown at the back of the card:
- QR code, to be scanned by the arcade machine when used in battle.
- Standard Pokémon stats; HP, Attack, Defense, Sp. Attack, Sp. Defense. Speed is not shown as a number, but rather as a rating between 1 to 5.
- The Pokémon's moves. They usually each only have 1, unless they have the possibility of terastallising, in which case Tera Blast becomes the second option.
- If the Pokémon is rated 4 stars, they also have a silver note at the back saying 'Treasure'. 5-star Pokémon have a gold note saying 'Super Treasure'.
There are also different formats for cards to be shown in:
- 2-star Pokémon are viewed when the card is placed vertically, with a red/pink background. The same pattern is shown behind all of them.
- 3-star Pokémon are the same, but with a blue background.
- 4-star Pokémon are viewed when the card is placed horizontally, and have a varying background color and pattern with the card's plastic now being blue instead of light grey. The image is also no longer a generic render of the Pokémon, but is slightly more stylized.
- 5-star Pokémon have a card with the plastic being a slightly translucent purple with flecks of white like stars. The image is of the Pokémon attacking while Terastallised.
The Pokédex number of a Pokémon can also be seen as a ranking number, as all of the lowest numbers are taken up by 5-star Pokémon. Matter of fact, the first 3 spots in the Pokédex are taken by the legendaries used as marketing for the game, namely Koraidon, Miraidon and Ogerpon. Numbers also are not based on evolutionary lines, to stay true to the system described. Fezandipiti is number 13, followed by Venusaur, because they are both 4 stars, and neither Bulbasaur nor Ivysaur could be as well.
The starter Pokémon, gained when creating a new user, is the only Pokémon owned by the player that can not be directly used in battle from use of physical game cards. It can be used, but only with a 25% likelihood, after the player's lead Pokémon has already dealt damage.
Gallery
Logo
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