There is apparently someone (whose name I forget) who is using RPG Maker 2000 to try and make a PCA RPG. And I have to give him serious credit for it, that's an undertaking I'm not sure I could do myself. I tried making a game once, and even making the opening cutscene was SUCH A PAIN IN THE ASS.

However, contemplating this, caused me to wonder: What would make up the mechanics of the perfect PCA RPG? So, to try and answer this for myself, as a random flight of fancy, I came up with this exposition. It's probably incomplete, but I tried to cover as much as I could.

Just to warn you, this is a LONG ASS JOURNAL. I do NOT want any comments saying "tl;dr". If you want to look at this, then you take the time and read the whole fucking thing! D:< Otherwise it's simply insulting to just be a douche and look at the first paragraph, and then comment "lol, tl;dr"

Without further ado......

Perfect PCA RPG

1. Character Creation
While the temptation is to want to play a character that already exists in the setting (and likely, a separate mode of play), it would be much more meaningful and interesting to have the player create their own student. Character creation would involve choosing a name, gender, species, ability and first 4 moves. New characters will pretty much always start at Freshmen level. Again, while playing at higher grade levels could be an unlocked option, to experience the full range of gameplay and story immersion, starting as Freshmen is recommended.

As far as selecting species, a large range can be selected, as can different evolutionary stages. However, while a player would be tempted to play a higher evolutionary stage to allow for a stronger starting character, you might lose access to certain moves, and your stats won’t be as high by the end. For those genderless Pokemon, you can select a male shape, female shape, or simply genderless state. Also, a choice of some basic attire is also selectable from the start as well.

2. Stats, Moves, Skills, etc.
At the start, you have a pool of points which you distribute to your basic stats: HP, Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed. Also, you have your Nature, which makes points towards certain stats mean more or less (For example: an Adamant nature means each point put towards Attack counts as 2 points, but it takes 2 points to increase Special Attack by 1). Your Pokemon ability is determined automatically, unless your species has more than one, which gives you a choice then.

Once these are selected, you go on to moves. Now, unlike the actual Pokemon franchise, level does NOT determine what moves are available to you. In fact you have access to that ‘mon’s entire movepool. Of course, you still have to be careful what you select. Choosing overly strong moves right from the get-go may limit your ability to use those moves in combat (which will be explained later). But some species have better areas of attack, which makes choosing stronger moves easier. Note: this game assumes a familiarity with Pokemon already, though each move comes with a video demonstrating its effect so you’re not completely in the dark.

Evolution is also possible, assuming you meet the level requirements, and any other requirements that are necessary for evolution. And even then, evolution isn’t always the end-all, be-all of having a character. Evolving can change stats, alter the properties of moves, and can even effect your relationships. It’s a serious issue, never to be taken lightly. As for when evolution can occur, it can occur during a fight, in your dorm, even in class! (Those this is rare)

What are Skills? These are a new addition. These are things your character picks up as he progresses through the school year. Training, private tutors, studying/sparring with friends; all of these contribute to the learning of skills. All of them have some kind of prerequisite, whether they be having stats at a certain level, or having relationships, or doing well in certain classes. At the beginning, you can select from a small pool, but as you gain levels and progress through the school year, you’ll have access to more. Skill points are also gained at level-up, and are distributed separately. It should be noted, that to prevent players from feeling gypped that certain skills can’t be obtained until they are much higher levels, plenty of skills are retroactive, so that the player doesn’t feel they wasted their time earning that one skill they wanted.

Not all the skills are combat related, either. Some improve your stats, others improve the chances of success at varying mini-games, some improve your ability to make friends.

Traits are another new addition. These help shape the character’s personality and, well, character! These are usually like skills, only they cannot be improved offering a single benefit that has an effect over the entire duration of the character’s playtime. These are things like Anti-Social, which improves your ability to study (as long as it’s done alone or with a Fellow Anti-Social), while making it harder to improve friendships. Like your Nature, they make is easier to do one task, while making it more difficult to do another. Some of them are even more complicated.

Other Traits are actually gained over the course of gameplay! Are you a goody-two-shoes? There’s a trait gained for that? A combat junkie? Trait for that as well! Each Trait shapes your character’s design. Of course, if you change your character’s routines and habits, his traits will change too. Originally a Pacifist (opposite of Combat Junkie) and started fighting again to the extreme? Your traits will change to reflect this shift. Of course, if you only begin fighting in moderation, you’ll simply lose the Pacifist trait. You lose its advantage, but you don’t suffer its disadvantage either. This reflects the changes a character can undergo. Now, not all traits are double-edged. Some are purely beneficial, some are purely negative. It all depends on your character’s choices.

Of course, your ability to do well academically, as well as with your personal relationships, is also a Statistic, from which you allocate a small pool of points as well. However, you do not gain more points as you gain levels. Academics is an actual stat that grows automatically as you take classes and courses, do homework, and study, and reflects your actual ability to perform in those classes. Your Personality is also a set of stats that grows automatically, but does not reflect your ability to perform certain tasks. For example, if a school bully threatens you, having low Courage won’t keep you from standing up to him. The personality stats more reflects the actions your character has taken, and thus affects your relationships with others. In the same example, a character with low courage will be expected to not fight the bully. Doing so might cause some surprise among your fellow classmates.

3. The School Life
PCA is a private Academy for the best of the best, based in Viridian City. As such, your character may either live in Viridian with relatives or family friends, or could have come from other cities, or even other regions! Also, what economic class did you come from? Upper class? Middle class? Did you get in on sponsorships, scholarships, or did your folks pay for your attendance. Do you live on or off campus? What part of the city do you live in if you live off-campus, and which dorms if you live on? Do you need to get up early to catch the bus or have your parents drive? Or do you live in the dorms and have the option of waking up 10 minutes before class? These can all have a tremendous impact on the way you play.

Also, this isn’t like Persona 3 or 4, where a schedule is rigidly determined from the moment you arrive at school. You get to choose your classes, alter your workload. Pick something to fit what you think your character, or even yourself would do! Remember though, as this is a Combat Academy, there is an obligation to take some combat related courses, whether you feel like it or not. Combat Basics 101 is your first combat course as a freshman, and serves as the tutorial for getting use to the system.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a complete academy without extracurricular activities like after-school clubs, sports, or other such groups. Some of the clubs might be school-sponsored, while others might be made by the students who share a common interest. Of course, don’t be afraid to make your own either! Who knows, you might find you’re not the only one who likes to watch old horror movies or participate in sewing! You might even make new friends through these clubs.

Also, school isn’t just a static day-to-day routine either. Events and happenings on school can have an impact on what you do in a day. School dances, vacations, random incidents, all of which can alter what you do in a day as well. Of course, while attendance is a good thing when it comes to classes, it’s not a requirement. Being a few minutes late to class is fine, 10 minutes late is alright, but you might not increase your skill as much in that class. Also, you can skip class entirely! But be careful, there are always consequences to your actions!

4. Your Friends and You
Easily the most important and most complicated aspect of the PCA, the people you meet, your fellow students and teachers, are what makes the school so ridiculously immersive. They’re not cardboard cut-outs either. They all have their own ideas, thoughts, hobbies, dreams, and quirks. Just like you, they’re characters with Stats, Moves, Traits, Skills, Academics, Personality, and particular friendships and rivalries. Each of them is a unique individual, and it’s your decision to make friends or enemies. Of course, you don’t have to talk to any of them, or interact with them besides what is absolutely necessary, but where’s the fun in that?

As each of them is different, how you interact with each of them is a little different. Not all of them respond to the same dialogue and choices as everyone else does. It’s harder for a Combat Junkie to make friends with a Pacifist, but it can be done! That’s the most important thing to remember, you can make friends with just about anyone on the campus, if you’re willing to spend the time (and sometimes money) to do so! Of course you can’t be friends with everyone, no matter how much you may want to. As you make friends with some, others may not like you for associating with them. Others may be indifferent to your activities. Others might take an interest in your associates.

And you don’t have to worry about making friends with each member of a team either. Knowing people in a team and getting to know them can quickly develop a friendship before you know it! Know a team member well? You might find his teammates may give you favors, gifts, come to your assistance in times of need, or even ask for help from you! The same thing goes for your team as well. Just as you have friends, they do too. And you can help encourage their relationships, or try to destroy them, whichever you decide. But again, beware of how you treat people, because all your actions have consequences as well.

And people react differently. Some friends prefer to be treated with the utmost kindness and respect, while others may prefer a tough love approach. But you’ll find that not everyone may approve of your methods. Are you an upper-class kid who showers his friends with gifts and shopping trips? You find others sneering and calling you rich-kid. Are you overly kind and respectful of your upperclassman peers who help you with tough courses and training? You might find yourself being labeled as a suck-up. You can’t get everyone to like you, but you’ll come to appreciate the friends you have.

Friends offer all kinds of benefits, from buddies who offer their emotional and moral support through tough times, study buddies, people who will eat lunch with you and discuss current events, sparring partners, and even buds to go to the movies with. And by making friends, you might get access to things, like private tutors or stores that weren’t originally available to you. But you’re not just limited there either. Make pals with your professors to make a normally deplorable class more agreeable. Or the teacher may offer you hints and advice to help you in other courses, or might offer you private lessons to improve your skills! Even the most anti-social of characters benefit from a few friends!

Your friends are not static either, their relationships are evolving and changing even they’re not hanging around with you. They have their own lives that they’ll engage in, and depending on how good of friends you are with them, you might find yourself engaging in a number of intriguing side-stories and sub-quests to help them, some of which range from minor fetch quests, to full-on boss battles and epic storylines! It’s all within your power to do so.

5. Can Love Bloom on the Battlefield?
Of course, with these relationships, comes affection, and possibly, love. Ah yes, dating, one of the biggest hurdles for any teenager. Did you meet a classmate who right away, impressed you? Did you admire their academic or combat abilities, and pay special attention to them? Do they have a personality that you find draws you to them? Well then, as you become their friend, there’s always the possibility to date! Now, during character generation, there are Traits that govern sexual orientations, making it easier to date one gender, and much harder to date the other (unless you didn’t pick one, or selected Bisexual), but that doesn’t mean you can to work inside the box.

If you’re really that interested in someone, go after them! Try to spend more time with them, get to know them, their quirks, likes and dislikes. Give them gifts, make them feel special. Now, of course, you can’t date everyone. Some characters are harder to date than others, and some unfortunately, can’t be dated at all. Still, as far as the student body is concerned, no one is completely off-limits. It may simply prove to be harder to get a particular person than others, but that shouldn’t stop you from trying.

This is where your Personality stats come into play. People are attracted to certain qualities, and having stats in these areas will improve your chances of successfully getting a date. This is primary reason for getting to know that person, so you can figure out what they like. You should know, even if you do secure the first date, there’s no guarantee of a relationship sprouting from it, though such dates do greatly solidify friendships! And if things don’t necessarily work out, don’t despair. You usually stay friends, and move on to greener pastures.

If it does work out, you’ve got something precious that you need to devote time to. Having a boyfriend/girlfriend is not a simple or easy thing, and takes time and love and affection to maintain. Make sure you visit them, give them gifts, and try to keep them happy. Attend their matches, and help them study. As usual, this can affect your relationships with others. Perhaps some of your friends were attracted to you, but didn’t have the courage to say so. Or perhaps one of your friends was interested in your current love interest, and now you’re left with them harboring jealousies towards you. Or, perhaps your friends don’t approve of your choice. Either way, it’s a choice you have to make. And your fellow students don’t sit idly by either. They’re working towards their own goals, which may include trying to get a particular guy or girl to be their special someone. Who knows, you might find yourself competing for the same person!

6. After Hours
Of course, campus is more about school. Once the school day ends, you have the rest of the day to decide what to do. Do you go home and study? Do you call your friends up and go hang out at the local fast-food joint? Or do you stick around on campus and do some after school work to earn a few bucks or extra credit? It’s again, all up to you. Viridian is your oyster to enjoy, so make the most of it! Go out and do some shopping to get those duds you wanted, or that new computer game.

Worried that if you don’t always study, you’ll lag behind, but still want to hang out with your friends? Go ahead and form a study group! Not only do you get to keep up on those mathematical equations, you also get to socialize as well, and keep up with your friends. It doesn’t always have to be studying either. Reading books, playing games, and even shopping can increase your Academics or Personality stats. So there’s no need to constantly fret over stat management either.

Of course, not all of these after-hour activities are fun and games. You might find yourself involved in any number of events and incidents as well. For example, when the campus changes and comes under new management, there’s a string of random vandalisms. Do you clean up after them and set an example for your peers? Do you try to find these wrong-doers and bring them to justice? Or do you join them in their random acts of violence and property destruction? It’s these decisions that make your character a person, and shape their school experiences. Of course, these after hour actions will of course your relationships with your friends, so think carefully.

Don’t feel limited to just Viridian either! Visit one of the other cities in Kanto, or go to Saffron and take the Bullet Train to Goldenrod for a little field trip! Or even a trip to Hoenn or Sinnoh during the vacations or on the weekends! You might get into all manner of adventures and quests while you’re out there. And you might come back with gifts and souvenirs for your friends. That is if you didn’t take them with you, or if they didn’t invite you on a trip of their own!

7. Combat
As you are a part of a Combat Academy, fighting plays an important role. From the beginning, you have the option to be in a team (as its leader or not) or to go independent and fight by yourself. Either is an acceptable option, and you may find that you wish to change your style as you go along. Perhaps the team you’re on isn’t working for you. Or perhaps you have friends, and want to fight with them. Or they might even come to you asking to have your power on their side! It’s an important part of the experience, so I would suggest that people try going independent at first.

Being on a team is a full-time obligation, and being its leader is even more attention-demanding. You can create a team at character creation, and while you can customize your teammates to an extent, their growth is not under your control. You can set emphases for them, but stat growth and character growth are out of your hands, as they are their own individuals. As a leader, you have to manage your team’s training, practice, and deciding who to challenge, and whose challenges to accept or deny. Being a follower isn’t too different, except that you have to arrange a schedule that allows for practices and team meetings, and always making sure you’re on time when your team has to fight!

Combat itself is an adventure all on its own. None of this turn-based stuff you were use to on the GBA, this is real-time! Fighting in a ring is an exercise in ability and skill. Use your moves carefully. You have your health, which directly determines how much you can keep fighting. Run out of HP and you’re knocked out. You also have your “Special”. This gauge determines the energy you have available to use for your special attacks, the moves you selected at character generation. As you use moves, your Special depletes. Based on your Attack and Special Attack scores, and which attacks you used, the bar will slowly regenerate, allowing you use of your techniques once again. This is why you didn’t go for those super powerful moves at the start!

Of course, every fighter has a finishing move, an attack they use to try and definitively end a match. Through successful attacks, combos, and dodging of enemy attacks, you build up a Stock gauge, which, when charged let’s you execute one of your attacks as a finishing blow, a Super! Use these to end a match in style! Your performance during a match determines how much exp you receive at the end of it too. Keep your health up, your attacks hitting, and play it smart to score major points. Of course, the tougher your opponent, the more you’ll receive too.

Now, different from other RPGs, is this important feature. With a few obvious exceptions (teachers and most adults/tutors), any of the battles in the game are winnable. There are no hopeless boss fights. There might be tough fights where it doesn’t matter if you lose, but if you win, not only can you earn a substantial reward; it can have a drastic impact on the game! A Freshman beating a Senior is quite a difficult feat (almost impossible in some cases), but if a smart and cunning player manages to pull it off; they should be rewarded, no? You might find that same Senior comes back for revenge, or that you gain friends who respect your victory or skill. Underdogs are awarded for smart choices!

As you progress through the school year, you’ll get to choose new moves that your character can slowly master, to use during the next grade level, or to try out against your next opponent in the ring! With help from teachers, you can improve the rate at which you learn your attacks, or even learn the ability to chain moves together to devastating effect! Of course, the exp you learn while fighting, contributes towards your level, which ultimately improves your stats, allowing you to fight better. And as you improve, you won’t be the only one who’ll admire the fruits of your labor. Other students may recognize your skill and prowess, which might nets you more friends, rivals, and possible challenges! Use these to improve yourself and work your way up!

7. Climbing The Ladder
Of course, all this progress doesn’t go unrecognized either. As your skills improve, both in the field of academics and combat, you’ll find that people will gradually begin to recognize you. Some of that recognition will be positive; some of it will be negative. Some will want to aspire to be like you, others will wish to bring you down a notch for your “arrogance” (real or imagined). People may wish to get you onto their team; others may try to fight you to recruit you. It’s even possible you could be recognized by talent agents from the League! Such recognition might net you special awards, like cash, and special training which will improve you far beyond what the school offers.

And of course, at the end of a long school year, you’ll go up a grade level, which leads to new moves, changes in schedule, and different events. All of which is altered and subject to change according to the choices that you made over the course of the school year!

8. Game Over?
How does the game end? Well, your character never dies. At worst, during a battle, you could sustain serious injury and wind up in the hospital. Even constantly losing doesn't mean that you'll fail either. Really, the only game over conditions are when you finally reach senior year and graduate, or if you're caught doing enough bad or naughty things and get kicked out of the school. Or, should the player choose to delete their character and start over!


And that's all I can think of at the moment. No need to take this too seriously. I was bored, and wanted something to get this thing out of my head and onto paper.