A Pokémon fan game?
In a lot of ways, it is actually nuts that I am writing this. I am currently developing my own Pokémon Emerald-based fan game dubbed Pokémon Wild Emblem!
01 — An Old Dream Nearly Abandoned
I remember playing Pokémon Prism way back when it was in alpha and thinking to myself, "fuck man, Koolboyman is a genius", longing to create something similar. I suppose I've always been sort of stuck in this analysis paralysis phase where I could never get the idea implemented. I'd mess around with Porymap and hex editors for a while and hit a wall reading Game Boy development documentation, lurking forums and just imagining what it would be like to make a fan game. Well, after reading through the Pokémon Emerald Disassembly project (thank you, Pret!), I finally built up the courage to do this thing.
02 — The Tools
An awesome colleague of mine (thanks, Adam!) introduced me to an MCP utility called Serena that has enabled me to use Claude Opus 4.5 in ways I could have never imagined. In my setup, Serena works as a "local" assistant that can access my local files (and, with the right tools wired in, the internet too). Where it shines is in the management of context and planning; Claude Opus 4.5 will use the MCP tool to make more efficient use of my tokens and help me keep costs down.
03 — Rapid-fire Dreams
With my current project plan and toolset, I think that I will be able to get a playable demo of the game in a few months. I'm stoked about my workflow and how it isn't really impeding my creativity at all. In fact, it feels a ton like it's helping me get unstuck and get the ideas out of my head and into the world. I know that there's a ton of criticism about AI in the gaming industry, but I think it's a powerful tool for creativity and collaboration. I'm excited to see where this project goes and to share it with the world.