Highlights

  • Sujimon battles in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth mimic the mechanics of Pokemon battles, with a rock-paper-scissors element and the ability to hit multiple targets.
  • The potential Gen 5 remakes in the Pokemon series could incorporate Triple and Rotation Battles from the original Gen 5 games, with an overhaul based on Sujimon battle mechanics.
  • Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth provides a template for improved battle mechanics in Gen 5 remakes, combining Triple and Rotation Battles into one battle type and allowing for more strategic flexibility.

While the Sujimon League side mission in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is clearly a parody of the Pokemon series, it's surprisingly complex for being secondary to the game's main plot. The mechanics of Sujimon battles follow a similar rock-paper-scissors-like elemental type-trumping system, but battles are 3v3 and Sujimon can hit multiple targets depending on their position, which can be changed once per turn. These mechanics make Sujimon battles in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth the perfect inspiration for potential Pokemon Gen 5 remakes to draw from.

The future of the Pokemon series has been heavily speculated on following several leaks and rumors that point towards a new game set in the Gen 5 region of Unova. While there hasn't been any direct confirmation that Pokemon fans can expect a new game set in the Unova Region in the near future, a remake of Gen 5's Pokemon Black and White seems inevitable given the franchise's past pattern of remakes. A Gen 5 remake could bring back Triple and Rotation Battles originally introduced in Gen 5, with an overhauled system based on Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth's Sujimon battle mechanics.

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Related
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth's Pokemon References Go Beyond Sujimon

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth pokes fun at the Pokemon franchise with its Sujimon, but references to the series don't end with just one mini-game.

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth’s Sujimon Battles Could Inspire the Return of Triple and Rotation Battles in a Pokemon Gen 5 Remake

How Triple and Rotation Battles Function in Pokemon's Gen 5 Games

Following the introduction of Double Battles in Gen 3, Pokemon's Gen 5 games upped the ante by adding two more unique types of battles in Triple and Rotation Battles. In Triple Battles, players send out three critters at a time, with the one in the middle being able to hit all three opponents, while the ones on the edges only being able to hit the opposing mons directly in front of them or in the center. Like Sujimon battles in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Triple Battles allow players to shift one of the monsters on the edge to the center position once per turn.

Rotation Battles allow players to send out three mons at a time, but instead of all three being able to attack once per turn, only the mons in the center can attack and target each other. However, unlike Triple Battles, players can freely rotate the field to change their central critter at any point during their turn. While these two types of battles are similar, they differed enough in the original Gen 5 games to warrant specific trainers who specialized in them, but Gen 5 remakes could combine the two and overhaul their mechanics according to Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth's Sujimon battle mechanics.

How the Sujimon Battle Mechanics Could Inspire Improved Battle Mechanics in Gen 5 Remakes

Triple and Rotation Battles never caught on as much as Double Battles did, and were removed from the series entirely after Gen 6. However, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth's Sujimon battles provide the perfect template for these types of battles to return in a big way in potential Gen 5 remakes. The first step the Pokemon series should take is to combine Triple and Rotation battles into one singular battle type since Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth shows that doing so would make for a much more successful combat system.

This new battle system for a potential Unova Region game should steal the mechanic from Sujimon battles that allow the attacker to hit all adjacent opponents at once, giving battles a more streamlined feel. Additionally, players should be able to swap the positions of their mons once per turn like in Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, only between any position, unlike Triple Battles, which only allows players to swap mons from the edges to the center position. This battle system would allow for the same level of strategy as Triple Battles and Sujimon battles while keeping the flexibility of Rotation Battles.