CREDIT: NINTENDO
Using Pokémon GO, people everywhere can look for wild Pokémon using the GPS in their phone.

It takes a lot for something to become timeless, but there is no denying that Nintendo’s Pokémon franchise is fast approaching that highly sought after status, with over 20 game titles and millions of worldwide players.

After blasting into the public consciousness in the ’90s, the franchise faded somewhat in the early ’00s as all but the most ardent fans continued to support the games and anime.

Key innovations have raised the core series back to the lofty heights they occupied in the days of the Game Boy Color. Reviewers are reporting the most recent series of the anime to be among the best aired yet; the franchise has found a second wind.

With an aging core fan base and an ever-increasing number of young people discovering the titles, the series could easily take a breather and coast on recent success for another couple of years.

Fortunately for Pokémon fans everywhere, Nintendo and the Pokémon Company are doing no such thing, dropping several big announcements at various press conferences over the last few months.

The first big announcement was the upcoming Wii U port of Pokken Tournament, a Pokémon-starring fighting game made by the minds behind the famous Tekken series. Releasing in Japanese arcades in July, a console port always seemed inevitable, but for it to be arriving so soon was a pleasant shock for all those interested.

By all accounts the game is a great arcade fighter and porting such a system to work on a console is something Nintendo developers can do with their eyes closed, yet some concerns linger around the title.

The primary issue is the size of the character roster. Having 10 Pokémon to use is fine for a stationary cabinet, but no successful console fighter could get away with such a sparse lineup when re-playability is such a huge factor. The addition of a Luchador Pikachu is cute and all, but reskinning a character who is already in the game is not the best way to get the cynical fans excited for what’s to come.

All of this pales in comparison to the big announcement Nintendo had awaiting fans on Sept. 10 however, as Pokémon GO was announced, fulfilling the dreams of Pokémon fans everywhere.

The concept is deceptively simple, an app on your phone triggers based on GPS points, which indicate where a wild Pokémon is as you walk about wherever you happen to be in the real world.

The idea of an always connected, virtual reality Pokémon game is the sort of thing 10-year-old me and my friends would talk about late into the night, as we traded via cable. The game will be free for everyone, though will presumably support inapp purchases, and includes an optional Bluetooth accessory to add to the experience.

With a release date of 2016, fans will eagerly be awaiting every scrap of information available, as things like Pokémon availability and any location limitations are still unknown.