The Pokemon franchise in a socialist Japan

[Alexniko]

I'm big fan of the Pokemon franchise since I was 8 years old. In my humble opinion, the Pokemon games and animes are one of the best examples of how japanese culture has influenced all of the world. Recently, a question has come to my mind: How would the Pokemon franchise have developed in a socialist Japan?

The Japanese Communist Party is one of the most powerfull non-governing communist parties in the world. It gets between 7% and 12% in parliamentary elections and is very important in the japanese labour movement.

So lets say, with a POD after 1996 (the year the first Pokemon games, pokemon red and blue/green, were released) Japan becomes a socialist republic (something between the early 20s USSR and modern-day Cuba). How could this have happened? Say, Japan is hit by a series of economic and pollitical crises way worse than in OTL, the working class developes class consciousnes and Japan becomes socialist (either via revolution or the anti-monopolist strategy).

How would this affect the pokemon franchise? Depending on the POD, how different would it be, and would it still be popular all over the world?

 

[Arkenfolm]

The JCP for at least the past few decades is not actually a communist party but instead just the left-wing of Japanese political opinion and not too far off from equivalent left-wing groups in Europe or how the nowadays JCP isn't too far off from American politicians like Bernie Sanders. Historically they've been disliked by other Japanese communist groups as well as some Western communist groups.

This is pretty much ASB. Although 90s Japan was a mess economically it's highly doubtful they'd have collapsed enough for the JCP to supplant other parties. If that happened, the economic issues in Asia would've been far worse than OTL and the US would've been more involved (especially if China makes a move, or DPRK does something during the "Arduous March") and the 90s would be marked by said global chaos--be it Bush, Clinton, Perot, or whoever, the era would be marked by economic chaos and former world leaders struggling to find a place in things.

 

[Alexniko]

The JCP for at least the past few decades is not actually a communist party but instead just the left-wing of Japanese political opinion and not too far off from equivalent left-wing groups in Europe or how the nowadays JCP isn't too far off from American politicians like Bernie Sanders. Historically they've been disliked by other Japanese communist groups as well as some Western communist groups.

This is pretty much ASB. Although 90s Japan was a mess economically it's highly doubtful they'd have collapsed enough for the JCP to supplant other parties. If that happened, the economic issues in Asia would've been far worse than OTL and the US would've been more involved (especially if China makes a move, or DPRK does something during the "Arduous March") and the 90s would be marked by said global chaos--be it Bush, Clinton, Perot, or whoever, the era would be marked by economic chaos and former world leaders struggling to find a place in things.

I wouldn't say that the CPJ is not a communist party anymore. It is a member of the International meeting of communist and workers Parties, and has a traditional communist platform (like the abolition of capitalism and its replacement by socialism, anti-militarism and the withdrawal of american forces, a society wide planed economy, etc.). It also invokes on marxism-leninism. From what I know, the only thing that makes it different from most other communist parties, is that it allmost exclusively focuses on the anti-monopolist strategy.

On how likely it is that Japan goes socialist in the 90s: Well, its not likely (but not impossible either). However the POD can also be later or even in the future, it just has to be post 1996.

 

[Callmesalticidae]

Assuming that nothing is done within Japan that hinders the Pokémon franchise (ie Game Freak is dissolved for one reason or another), then I expect Pokémon’s worldwide popularity to not be affected that much.

Kids want a game with cute monsters in them and aren’t going to care enough about Japan to buy a different game from some other country because of this or that policy.

 

[Arkenfolm]

I wouldn't say that the CPJ is not a communist party anymore. It is a member of the International meeting of communist and workers Parties, and has a traditional communist platform (like the abolition of capitalism and its replacement by socialism, anti-militarism and the withdrawal of american forces, a society wide planed economy, etc.). It also invokes on marxism-leninism. From what I know, the only thing that makes it different from most other communist parties, is that it allmost exclusively focuses on the anti-monopolist strategy.

On how likely it is that Japan goes socialist in the 90s: Well, its not likely (but not impossible either). However the POD can also be later or even in the future, it just has to be post 1996.

I've read a few articles where JCP politicians say that they're there to support the "protest vote" or otherwise are there to support the opposition to typical Japanese politics. There are JCP politicians right now who claim that they are ambivalent to Marxism or communism. Many Japanese communists have long opposed the JCP (since at one point it was a Stalinist puppet) and other communists (like the Trotskyists who write the World Socialist Website) similarly criticise the JCP on that basis.

 

[Sam R.]

A bunch of JCP diet members are convinced to cross the floor.

International finance dries up.

Government in the diet becomes more difficult.

A physical assault is attempted on the JCP PM by a lone loon. It fails.

Right wing trade unions go on strike and riot. Left wing trade union counter riots occur.

Police or the JSSDF disappear the cabinet.

A lot of trade unionists get free helicopter rides.

Pokémon isn’t picked up by the west for heavy marketing or television production.

20 years of neo-liberal austerity begin which make some aspects of 1946-1966 look desirable in retrospect. No not those bits that happened to women.

 

[Alexniko]

I've read a few articles where JCP politicians say that they're there to support the "protest vote" or otherwise are there to support the opposition to typical Japanese politics. There are JCP politicians right now who claim that they are ambivalent to Marxism or communism. Many Japanese communists have long opposed the JCP (since at one point it was a Stalinist puppet) and other communists (like the Trotskyists who write the World Socialist Website) similarly criticise the JCP on that basis.

Hm, I've never heard of that. Do you have a source for it? And to the trotskysts criticizing the JPC: Trotskyists critisize most of the existing communist parties (except for the small trotzkyst ones of course).

Assuming that nothing is done within Japan that hinders the Pokémon franchise (ie Game Freak is dissolved for one reason or another), then I expect Pokémon’s worldwide popularity to not be affected that much.

Kids want a game with cute monsters in them and aren’t going to care enough about Japan to buy a different game from some other country because of this or that policy.

In my opinion, Game Freak would most likely be nationalized and the inner structure of the corporation would change in some ways. Maybe the designers would have more to say. It's also possible that the games and the anime would become a bit more pollitical, however thats more speculative.

Anyway, I think that there's no way the japanese state would dissolve Game Freak and the Pokemon franchise. Video games are fun and it would actually benefit the state in many ways: Presuming that the US and EU immediately put economic sanctions on socialist Japan and make the Yen unconvertable into Dollars and Euros, the sale of Video games would be an important source of foreign currency for the country. The games would also improve the countries international reputation ("Yeah those damn commies, but at least they make good video games").

 

[SealTheRealDeal]

How would this affect the pokemon franchise?

Capital flight hollows out Japan's zombie economy and Game Freak and Nintendo relocate to Taiwan. From 2016 on all pokemon games are freemium gacha games.