Fans of Pokemon Sword and Shield have taken their discontent with the state of the game into the political realm. A Pokemon Sword and Shield petition has been created at the We The People website, seeking the help of President Donald Trump and the U.S. Congress in halting sales of the game entirely.
The petition popped up online just this morning and warranted several incredulous responses from prominent figures in the gaming Twittersphere like Daniel Ahmad and Ryan Brown. In it, the petitioner — listed simply as “C.R.” — implores the President of the United States and former reality television star to stop Nintendo from selling the game. At all.
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Here’s what the text of the Pokemon Sword and Shield We The People petition says:
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.
The “We The People” petition site was first introduced by President Barack Obama as part of his efforts to increase transparency and give more power to the people. A petition which receives more than 100,000 signatures in the allotted time period (one month, in this case) will get a response from the White House on the matter.
However, the guarantee of a response does not equal a guarantee of action. Famously, a (hopefully joking) petition requested that the Obama administration build a Death Star, citing job creation as one of the many reasons to take on the project. The response from the White House was, understandably, not in favor of such an undertaking.
“The Administration shares your desire for job creation and a strong national defense, but a Death Star isn’t on the horizon,” the official White House response read, also noting, “The Administration does not support blowing up planets.”
If this petition is ultimately successful, it’s unlikely that any action could be taken anyway. Stopping sales of a legal product in this fashion would likely fall afoul of the first amendment in the U.S. Constitution which guarantees freedom of speech and freedom of expression (among other things).
The Pokemon Sword and Shield petition might be a joke or it might be a serious undertaking from irate fans. Either way, it’s a good indicator that despite generally good reviews, a number of fans are still rather upset with the state of the latest Pokemon game.
