Hello there !
Pokemon is 30 years old.
Since it's a very popular franchise and mostly aimed to kids, it's often recommended as one of the first games to play for immersion.
So here's a mini guide on how to play them in Japanese.
Game Scripts
Here's the link for all Pokémon game scripts and other JRPGs.
Here's Pokemon Gen 1 for example.
Thanks to this website, you have all the game scripts available in different languages.
I oranized them in order, by generation, put japanese and english next to each other, so you have the official translation for every sentences.
Since it's in google sheet, you can use Yomitan to have the definition of everyword.
I also cleaned the text (the dumps included some programming terms) so it can be easy to use.
Just keep in mind that the text is stored by location, and not in game order. You usually have a column or header with that location so you can find where you're at. Otherwise, just use Ctr+F.
Vocab List
On each Google Sheet (I made one for each generation), you can also find all the vocabulary organized by frequency.
You can filter or order however you like, copy-paste it into a text file, and import your vocab into Anki.
Anki Decks
For some games, I already made some Anki decks as I played the game, so there is a tab on the spreadsheet where sentences are ordered chronologically. The deck includes screenshots.
Since the game decks and google sheet are ordered chronologically, you can use Morphman to reorganize cards, or just do your sentence mining automatically.
You can find them on the first link as well.
Here's the deck for Let's Go as an example.
Japanese Course
Lastly, I created a Japanese course that teaches you grammar and vocabulary.
The vocabulary is organized so you can immediately start reading.
I used video games as reading material, so you start by reading each introduction from Pokémon games.
Basically, you learn about 20 words, among the top 2000 most frequent words, and those words allow you to understand a new yotsuba chapter or game intro.
If you're an absolute beginner and you like Pokémon, you should check it out.
Here's the link that contains the deck, and the reading material.
YouTube Video
This is one of the first videos I checked when I started learning.
It breaks down all the sentences at the beginning of Fire Red in a fun way.
It's nice if you already have some basics.
You can also check GameGengo’s other video that recently did a video on Fire Red.
Now some Q&A just in case for the newcommers because I see the same questions all the time, and some incorrect answers.
Is Pokémon easy?
It's Pokémon. When it comes to gameplay, you can beat the game without knowing any Japanese.
A friend showed me emulation for the first time in 99 and I was able to finish Pokemon Gold even though I was a 10 year old who didn't know any japanese or english.
There was a new Pokemon game ? Mind Blown.
And I could play it ? Blown again.
That "mid-game" and final battle ? "Childhood core memories.
However, where you will have a hard time is learning/knowing all the Pokémon names and attacks, which removes the strategy part of the game when fighting.
Modern games have pictures and stats that will help you understand the power and type of the attack, for example.
For the dialogues, the game is aimed at kids, so the grammar is usually simple and sentences are short.
There's a lot of vocabulary related to Pokémon games though: Gyms, badges, battles, trainers, raising Pokémon, and so on.
So even though the sentences are easy, you'll be using vocabulary that's not that common in other games or anime.
If you play more than one Pokémon game, it will become easier each time.
NPCs are also mostly tutorial and info dumps. You're a silent protagonist, so not a lot of dialogues going on between characters, which are usually easier to understand. I haven't played any games beyond black though, and I think that's changed in newer versions.
Overall, Pokémon is on the easy side, but not necessarily the first game that you should try, as it's often described.
Do they have Kanji ?
Be aware that old games, due to technical limitations, are in kana only.
You may think it's easier — it's not. Trust me.
I learned most of Fire Red, went to Let's Go since it's the same game, and… couldn't read the words since they're in kanji. So playing games in Kana is not an intermediary step to kanji.
If you're a beginner, skip the older versions.
Anything before Black 1 on DS is kana only, including all Gen 2 versions, sadly.
The Switch games have kanji.
Check the first link to have details on all of them.
Which Game Should I Play?
The easiest is Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, but it's a different gameplay. DX on switch was a good enough game and great to learn with Furigana.
So my recommendation would bet Let's Go.
However, like always, you should play the one you want regardless of difficulty.
The fun factor is more important than the easy factor.
It makes you want to play more.
That's it, any questions let me know.
Hope it helps.
by Jo-Mako