Official ‘Pokémon’ forums launch to flood of posts about sex and forklift certification

There are now official Pokémon forums for the global community of players to come together over their favourite things about the series – however, the website appears to have been inundated with controversial content.

Recently, The Pokémon Company revealed the forums as the place to interact with fellow fans and debate battle tactics, where to locate the best versions of various Pokémon, sharing thoughts on the latest news about the series, and their passion for the games and the anime as a whole. Unfortunately and unsurprisingly, the forums were swiftly swamped with content that was completely unsuitable for the young audience that Pokémon is aiming at.

Examples of the egregious posts ranged from outlandish questions about whether or not specific Pokémon would be forklift-certified to suggestive themes like “tickle tormenting” certain characters and physical attraction to Pokémon. The moderation of these forums appeared to struggle to maintain control of the website as threads remained active to receive replies and hundreds of views, as stated by Video Games Chronicle.

Highlights from the Pokemon Forums
Good ideas, Pokemon Company pic.twitter.com/BcFcckyCiU

— Goobomber (@Goobomber) July 5, 2023

pokemon forums are wild pic.twitter.com/wsYv1UgnFV

— skyguys (@skyguysZ) July 5, 2023

The Pokémon Company’s strategy to curtail this content was to shut down the forums temporarily and dole out bans to those perceived to have been breaking the rules. Those rules require posters to “contribute to the community in a positive way” and ensure that the forums are an “inviting, fun, and safe community.”

It is clear on the stance that “no foul language or inappropriate themes” are allowed as “Pokémon is for everyone,” and so players have a responsibility on “keeping content clean, inclusive, and for all ages.”

In other gaming news, Thirsty Suitors is inbound in November, offering an adventure in skateboarding, familial cooking, and battling exes that have gotten too big for their boots. NME‘s hands-off preview noted that the game shows a lot of promise and will imaginably impress fans of Persona and Scott Pilgrim.