Since the release of the very first Pokemon games in the 1990s, each new entry in the series has been met with a great deal of enthusiasm from fans. However, the same can not be said for the upcoming Switch-exclusive games Pokemon Sword and Shield, which have generated significant backlash due to certain design decisions that developer Game Freak has made about the games (mainly the lack of a national Pokedex). However, one disgruntled Pokemon Sword and Shield fan may be taking their disappointment with the games a little too far.
Someone known as "C.R." has created an official petition to the White House asking President Trump and Congress to ban Pokemon Sword and Shield from release in the United States. The petition has literally one signature at the time of this writing, but if it somehow manages to amass 100,000 signatures within 30 days, it will force the White House to issue an official response.
While it's fine that some fans have expressed their disappointment at the direction of Pokemon Sword and Shield, creating a petition to ban the games is a little bit absurd. Even more absurd is that this petition wasn't made on Change.org, but rather the official White House petition site. Considering this, it's likely that the petition to ban Pokemon Sword and Shield was made as a joke, though we can't actually confirm that at the time of this writing.
Here is the official statement on why Pokemon Sword and Shield should be banned, as seen on the petition itself:
"We, the people of the United States of America strive for quality goods and entertainment. We, the People of the United States want what is best for our children. We, the people of the United States want what is best in our stores.
President Trump and Congress, the newest Pokemon games by Game Freak and Nintendo are negatively impacting the market with questionable decisions. We believe if the sales of the games were to stop, it will wake up Game Freak and we'll get quality back. This will set a bad standard in the markets if these were to get sold. We, as both Pokemon fans but more importantly, American Citizens believe this is violating our Market rights and need something done about this."
It's unclear if this petition to ban Pokemon Sword and Shield will take off in any serious capacity. In the past, weird video game petitions have blown up, like the petition to add Shaggy to Mortal Kombat 11. However, it's safe to say that despite the controversial design decisions that have been made about the games, there's still millions of people that plan on buying Sword and Shield on launch day, and so they aren't likely to sign a petition to ban the games.
Pokemon Sword and Shield launch on November 15, exclusively for the Nintendo Switch.