Pokémon fan project gives us the chubby Pikachu we deserve

A fan project has given us a taste of what a 3D Pokémon game might look like if the series tried to mimic its original 2D art style.

Pokémon’s art style has changed a lot over the years, but obviously plenty of us still have a fondness for the original 2D art from character designer Ken Sugimori. His art style around the time of the original Pokémon games was incredibly distinctive, opting for very angular looks, and played with light in creative ways through a watercolour look. And now a fan has translated that 2D style into a 3D one, giving us a look into an alternate reality.

The project comes from fan artist pokeyugami, showing off a short video on Twitter of their take on a 3D Pokémon game. It’s pretty obvious that the video is mimicking Sugimori’s art style, one that looks ridiculously good in 3D. So much so that it’s almost upsetting there isn’t a game in this classic art style.

While the video itself is only short, we do get treated to the classic chubby Pikachu that everyone loves and misses munching on an oran berry. There’s a Caterpie and a Weedle wandering around too. And a bug catcher waiting to challenge you to a Pokémon battle, though due to the video being in Japanese it’s unclear what he says. It’s likely just pulled from the original games, though.

While the artstyle might not be as eye-catching, a couple of new Pokémon games are obviously in the works, Violet and Scarlet. Not much is known about this latest pair of Pokémon games, other than the fact it will be the first fully open world Pokémon game, it has a Mediterranean setting, and what the three starters look like.

Spanish fans have spotted some things in that initial trailer that resemble familiar iconography from the country, but we really haven’t seen that much of the game yet.