I’m an avid Pokémon fan, and recently I restarted my copy of Black. I never noticed how based the games actually are.

The story takes place in a region based on the New York metropolitan area, and the evil team, named Team Plasma, is basically PETA crossed with Marxist revolutionaries. Oh, and they also larp while wearing corny D&D outfits like they’re the Knights Templar. I’m not kidding.

The Team Plasma Marxists’ main mission is “liberate all of the Pokémon from their oppressive trainers” because they believe trainers abuse their Pokémon. How are they going to achieve this liberation? By force, of course. Your character, on his journey around the region, encounters the larpers on multiple occasions. In one of these encounters, they do rallies and protests to try and convince the public that trainers are an oppressive bourgeoise. In another, Team Plasma is seen abusing wild Pokémon (Hey just like PETA!). But they literally have a scene where their minions kick the crap out of a wild Pokémon in an abandoned factory yard. Whenever you battle Team Plasma alongside some of the supporting characters, the side characters often question Plasma’s tactics, even saying how it’s hypocritical they want to liberate Pokémon while using Pokémon themselves. Gee, sounds like Antifa using fascism to fight nonexistent fascism!

Along the journey, you have repeated encounters with a little wokester named N. I’m not kidding, his name is literally N. He is seen whenever Team Plasma does their public rallies, and he frequently requests to battle you. As the story picks up pace, during a ride on a Ferris wheel with N, he reveals himself to be the crown prince of Team Plasma. He says how he needs to take on the Pokémon Champion to position himself as the most powerful trainer in the region, and then move forward with his plans for total Pokémon emancipation.

At the climax of the story, N is revealed to have defeated the Pokémon Champion. N’s gigantic castle rises out of from ground and Team Plasma swarms the Pokémon League. The war has begun. You follow N into his castle where you battle each other with your newly acquired legendary dragon Pokémon. After defeating N, he finally realizes he was wrong in his assumptions. His learns Pokémon and trainers have an inseparable bond, and it would be a disservice to people and Pokémon if Team Plasma were to launch its militant Marxist assault on the region.

As N is about to call off the attacks, Ghetsis, the shadow leader of Team Plasma, revealed that he only used N and his brigade of woke Marxist revolutionary larpers as a tool to achieve his mission of a global totalitarian rule, where he alone would be the sole controller of all Pokémon. Hmm, sounds a lot like the communist revolutions we all know and love! I also swear Ghetsis’ name sounds like Jesus intentionally, but instead of being a benevolent guy he’s a tyrant who views himself as a god. Either way, the final battle is between you and Ghetsis for the fate of the region. After his defeat, Ghetsis is arrested for treason, as all communists should be. N reconciles with his former beliefs and vows to make amends.

—————

When I first played these games 8 years ago, I didn’t really appreciate them. I felt the story was too convoluted and it didn’t make a lot of sense, but now replaying it at 22 and seeing what the game is centered around, I have more of an appreciation for these incredibly based games. I recommend you pick up a copy and play it yourself.