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Pikachu Stars as Detective in 'Top Secret' Game
posted on by Lynzee Loveridge
NHK's Professional Shigoto no Ryūgi (Professional Work Style) program featuring Pokémon producer and CEO of The Pokémon Company Tsunekazu Ishihara revealed on Monday that the "top secret" Pikachu game stars the mascot as a detective.
Ishihara revealed that the large-scale project began development this past summer and should be complete in two years. Players will solve mysteries using logic and the help of their detective partner Pikachu. Pikachu's new role as a detective also means he will gain a new ability: speech. This will be the first time the Pokemon has spoke outside of his characteristic "pika pika" response. A few of Pikachu's lines were shown in NHK's program such as "..Oh, they're just beautiful girls" and "If this keeps up, we'll have a bag made from Pikachu...”
The game's staff were initially wary of making changes to Pikachu's established persona but decided to move forward with the project. Previously revealed shots from the game included images of facial motion capture software used to map Pikachu's facial expressions and a hand holding a magnifying glass above Pikachu on a Nintendo 3DS screen.
[Via Siliconera]
Update: While this is the first time that Pikachu speaks in the game franchise, Pikachu did get a speaking voice in the Pokémon Fushigi no Dungeon: Magnagate to Mugendai Meikyū promotional anime videos. Thanks, Fennekin
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