In another interview conducted by What They Play and written by Philip Kollar, Game director Junichi Masuda and designer Takechi Kawachimaru stated that MMORPG's are not the next evolution for the Pokemon game franchise. This will be a disappointment for many Pokemon fans as the game series could translate amazingly well as a MMORPG. Below are excerpts from the interview.

What They Play: Despite its legions of fans and constant popularity, Nintendo has never messed with the formula by bringing one of the main Pokémon games to a console rather than a handheld. We asked Masuda if there was any chance that we would see the next major Pokémon game on the Wii and whether the series might go fully online, as many fans have expressed a desire for. He seemed skeptical.

Junichi Masuda: "At this point, we're not thinking of going in that direction. Trading is a core concept of Pokémon. So when you're trading, you meet with a friend and decide which one you want and which one they want. I would like to emphasize real-world communication. You don't see each other online." He pointed across the table and then back to him, and the translator laughed before explaining, " It's like right now – we're meeting each other in person and asking questions instead of chatting on the phone."

What They Play: Since they're sticking to handhelds, we asked Masuda if Pokémon Platinum or any future titles in the series would use new features in the DSi, Nintendo's upcoming upgrade to the DS which includes the ability to download extra game content. Unfortunately, Masuda said that Platinum was already far along in development by the time the DSi was revealed, so it was too late to use any of its unique features. He seemed hopeful that they may explore those options in the future, though, showing particular interest in the camera being added to the portable gaming system.

Junichi Masuda: "If we think there's something interesting and fun for the players that we can do with the camera, then we'll definitely consider applying that new technology to the future Pokémon games," he said. "You can take a picture and draw on it, and that's fun, but we have to make it much more fun for the player if we want to put it in our games."

Source: http://www.whattheyplay.com/features/meeting-the-creators-of-pokemon-platinum/