29.3.2011

Having been a fan of the games since I was a kid and first received Pokémon Blue, I've been following the series since its inception here in the States. Previous to the release of Black & White, Gold, Silver, & Crystal were easily my favourites. Although Diamond, Pearl, & Platinum were great games with plenty of new features that supported Wi-Fi and international play anytime and anywhere one had an internet connection (with the DS this isn't always an easy feat), it never quite had the pizazz that Johto had (needless to say I adore HeartGold & SoulSilver). Anyway, this new game has an entire new feel to it. I think that Nintendo realized that a good portion of their fanbase is now my age (18-24 area),so they decided to make the game a little more "mature." The game is obviously still aimed for the whole family, but there is a different feel to the story (there actually is a real one) than ever before. The story has depth, the characters have personality and depth, and the Gym Leaders actually participate in the game rather than just sitting in a big building waiting for a ten year old who got his/her first Pokémon that morning to whoop them. The supporting characters follow you throughout the Unova region as always, but they are much more engaged. They accompany you on side-quests, they fight alongside you against the bad guys, and, of course, they challenge you to battles throughout the game. Pokémon Black & White have also added plenty of new variety to the game. This ranges from the diversity of characters like Professor Juniper who is a woman, Gym Leader Lenora who is African American, & there is a plethora of foreign language speaking citizens of Unova (Spanish, Italian, German, & French [probably the most populous] come to mind).There are several Pokémon that are unprecedented as well in type and appearance. The Pokémon of Unova are very love or hate. There are many that I absolutely adore such as Victini, Serperior, Hydreigon, Excadrill, Krookodile, Zorua, Bisharp, Unfezant, and so on, but there are also some that I don't think ever should have made the cut. They're either just simply hideous or they aren't very appealing. All in all, I really enjoy the new Pokémon. I feel that this can attributed to the fact that Nintendo & Game Freak almost make you like the new Pokémon. If you have not heard, there are no Pokémon from the previous 4 generations in Black & White before you have beaten the Elite Four. This sounds like a miserable breaking away from the Pokémon that we all know and love (Umbreon & Dragonite :D), but it turns out to not be that bad. At first I was extremely skeptical, but I realized that the new 156 Pokémon are more than capable of populated the Unova region. It also gives you a chance to become acquainted with the new Pokémon rather than just resorting back to the ol' tried & true.Enough about the Pokémon and on to the features. This is where Black & White shine above all else. Black & White have incorporated features to utilize Wi-Fi connectivity as well as local communications. As for local, the new feature called the C-Gear allows you to use an infrared connection to connect with another Trainer. This connection allows you to battle, trade, exchange Friend Codes (for online play), and do something called a Feeling Check. The most important aspect of this is that you do not have to run back to the Pokémon Center or anything. You can simply tap the IR portion of the lower screen and have at it. The C-Gear also has a feature called passerby. This feature launches the DS' local wireless communications and searches for other C-Gears in the area. For example, when I am sitting in the library on campus playing, I can see on my C-Gear how many other detectable C-Gears are in the vicinity. When another C-Gear is detected, you can have rather limited correspondence with that detected Trainer, see where in the Unova region that person is located, how long they have played the game, and see how many people are in the Union Room among other small things. Needless to say, this can be a bit of a battery drain, but it is an amazing feature and I love it. Most impressively, the C-Gear stays active when the DS is closed, so other Trainers can detect you while you're just walking around. Wi-Fi connection is also leaps and bounds ahead of previous generations. Black & White finally feature Random battles. These Random battles allow you to connect to the server, pick your preference of battles (Singles, Doubles, Triples, Rotation [awesome!!], and Launcher [I'll get to that later]), and link up with somewhere from anywhere around the globe for a battle. It is something I thought should've been implemented in Generation IV, but it is enjoyed nevertheless. The Global Trading System (GTS) is still around and it is much more accessible as well. It can be accessed from any Pokémon Center in the region. The biggest feature of Wi-Fi is arguably the possible connection to the Global Link. The Global Link is a website created by Nintendo & The Pokémon Company that allows you take part in mini-games and so forth while syncing with your game. The Global Link also gives access to the Dream World. The Dream World is actually a pretty detail intensive subject so I'll just give a brief overview. The Dream World is a place where you can send a Pokémon, we'll use my Snivy for example, and that Pokémon can engage in activities in the Dream World. These activities include befriending Dream World Pokémon, growing Berries, and so on. My Snivy would be able to befriend other Pokémon in the Dream World and these Dream World Pokémon typically have different Abilities than the regular Pokémon. Berries also don't grow in the Unova region, so my Snivy will have to grow them for me in the Dream World. At the time of this writing (March 29), the Dream World is not currently active here in the States. It was set to be launched on the 30th, but, due to the recent catastrophes in Japan, the worldwide release of the Global Link has been postponed (my best wishes to all of those in Japan coping with all of their worries).A few things that I would like to point out about the game that I was displeased with were the lack of Wi-Fi connectivity in the Battle Subway, the lack of a Time Machine-esque feature, & the fact that Pokémon no longer follow their Trainer outside of their Poké Balls. The Battle Subway, in the same vein as the Battle Frontier of past games, allows the Trainer to bring a set amount of Pokémon to battle consecutive Trainers for Battle Points (BP). The Battle Subway features battles for Single and Double Battles. In Pokémon Platinum, one used to be able to connect with a friend via Wi-Fi and create a "Tag Team" for playing in the Battle Frontier. This feature has been removed and I am very dissatisfied by this. I loved this feature, and my brother and I used it very frequently since we live in different states. For those who do not know, Generation II (Pokémon Gold, Silver, & Crystal) offered a feature called the Time Machine. The Time Machine allowed the Trainer to trade from Generation II games back to Generation I games (Pokémon Red, Blue, & Yellow) with the exception of new Pokémon and any Pokémon that know new moves (such as a Beedrill that knows Rage). Since Pokémon Black & White are the first Pokémon games to make a double appearance on the same system as the previous generation, I feel that trade between Black & White and Diamond, Pearl, Platinum, HeartGold, and SoulSilver should be possible. At times I still play HeartGold & SoulSilver, so I would like to be able to trade Pokémon back from my Black Version or White Version for use in Pokémon HeartGold or SoulSilver. It is a little frustrating that I can't do this, but it's one of the reasons that I loved Generation II so much. As for Pokémon not being able to walk around with their Trainer, this is a little self-explanatory. I loved this feature from HeartGold & SoulSilver and I am saddened that it was removed. I would place money on the bet that the third installment of this fifth generation will bring back Wi-Fi connectivity in the Battle Subway as well as having your Pokémon follow you around. Sadly, this will be enough for me to buy the new game and start my adventure all over again for the third time.All in all, this game is very fun to play. It is one of the best Pokémon games and definitely one of my favourite games overall. This game is great for everyone including the casual player and the hardcore gamer. For casual players, Pokémon Black & White offer a very fun environment for one to immerse himself or herself into. For the hardcore gamer, Pokémon offers many metagame opportunities that include competitive battling, intricate breeding systems, and a game that can be played virtually anywhere and at any time. I have only taken the time to highlight a few of my favourite features, but I hope this convinces those who have not yet purchased the game to go ahead and pull the trigger. Good luck in the Unova region! Now back to training my Pokémon...FC = 1721-2533-8212 for those that already have the game. Either send me a message or

10.3.2011

As a third and final year University student I probably should never have bought this, because I will almost inevitably fail my degree as a result. I guess that doesn't say much about my time management, but it must speak volumes about the addictive qualities of the game. No regrets.After having played the Pokémon series for a large chunk of my life, this is the first time I had gone into playing a game in the series almost entirely blind to new features and new Pokémon alike, and I'm really glad that I did so. First impressions of the game were that there is a lot more focus on creating an immersive storyline, though this presumably isn't for everyone - some people would rather just get on with it and do their own thing,however for me and many other avid fans of the series, this adds an interesting new dimension to the game. Your character interacts much more closely with other recurring characters throughout the game, most notably the two friends that you start your journey with. Admittedly the pair have annoyed me on the odd occasion, but for the most part it is an interesting change.There are definitely some exciting new offers as far as the Pokémon themselves are concerned, however at this point in the game (just completed my fourth gym) I have noticed a lack of balance in type offerings compared to in other games - there seems to be an awful lot of dark and ground type Pokémon very early on, for example, whereas usually types such as grass and water would be more readily available. This definitely changes things up a bit from previous games, but more grass and water types (for example) would probably offer a better, more balanced starting point for younger players. Or maybe that's just me looking into things too closely. But either way, the game seems to have become noticeably (but not massively) more challenging seemingly as a result of this, which I do not personally see as a problem.One negative I have noticed, however, is that a few of the new Pokémon offerings do seem a little too similar to their predecessors, such as a flying/normal pigeon Pokémon (a la First generation's pidgey) and the two evolutions, and the predictably naff rodent Pokémon littering the starting area as usual. I understand that there is now literally hundreds of Pokémon so ideas for the creators won't be flowing as readily as they once were, but some of the new generation are a little bit too close, and it just seems a bit lazy.In terms of aesthetics, the game at first doesn't seem like too much of a leap from Diamond, Pearl, Heart Gold and Soul Silver (or basically any of the games released since the transition to the DS), however the differences gradually become more and more obvious, starting with, for example, coming face to face with the characters for the first time as they speak to you through the new video phone, and building up to exploring the world in completely new ways, viewing the whole region from atop of a large bridge and heading into a large city (Castelia) filled with skyscrapers which we must explore in a completely new manner. This is such a long way from where the Pokémon games started out, but these aesthetic changes are visually stunning and exciting.As far as battles are concerned, they are now a great deal more dynamic, and the bottom screen is now a lot tidier than it was for previous DS versions. During the battle, the top screen shifts focus between the two teams depending on who is attacking or receiving damage, and the Pokémon react appropriately in response, flinching or closing their eyes to sleep. I noticed that one disgruntled viewer complained about pixelation on the battle screen, and it is definitely noticable, but this is owing to the fact that when the focus is on your team the view requires the Pokémon to appear larger than the standard sprite size. I'm sure this is something that could have been worked around, but it really isn't a big deal in my eyes and overall the battle screens are a huge step forward.The new games are noticeably more geared towards interacting with other players, and whilst this is great, the details of this take up the entire bottom screen whenever you are not battling, which seems unnecessary and, frankly, ugly in comparison to the sleek attention to detail in every other aspect of the game. Though it is possible to be paired up with players from around the world for battles and trades (though at present random pairings are not yet active, though friend codes can be used), the developers should have considered that this simply isn't for everybody, potentially making this constant presence of online options pretty irritation. For those who are interested in interacting with others, however, there has never been a better time to play Pokémon, with numerous options including integration with the internet browser based Pokémon global link. I have yet to explore any of the online options, however they definitely look exciting and promising.Overall, so far, I am thoroughly enjoying this game. Though it is definitely not without it's flaws (as detailed above, hence 4 out of 5 stars), it is a sufficiently big leap forward to be refreshing, exciting and compelling to the seasoned Pokémon trainer, and a great start to those unfamiliar with the series. There are now so many different bonus features to the game (outside of the storyline) that there will be something to capture the attention of virtually everyone, offering new ways to explore.

6.5.2011

Pokemon Black and White are typical of their predecessors. You begin your journey within the quiet tranquillity of Nuvema Town and soon enough in Pokemon style you and your protagonist disturb the peace by having your first battles with your two friends Cheren and Bianca. The pair soon become your rivals throughout the rest of the game, which is a slightly different approach as previous iterations of Pokemon games feature only one rival. But before the battle you must choose a Pokemon and, as per usual, you are given the choice of three. There is the grass snake Pokemon Snivy, the fire pig Pokemon Tepig or the sea otter Pokemon Oshawott. I started with a Tepig simply because it looked cool.Bianca will choose the Pokemon that will be weakest against your chosen type; Cheren will choose the Pokemon that is strongest against your type, but despite type advantages you should have no problem beating your friends.Pokemon Black and White Gameplay. Soon after the battle with Cheren and Bianca you're sent to the local Pokemon Professor's Lab to thank her for the Pokemon she gave you. Professor Juniper happens to be the first female Professor of the Pokemon franchise, make of that what you will. At the lab she will task you and your friends with the very important job of traversing Unova and cataloging every Pokemon. You are also advised to collect all the Gym Badges of Unova. There are 8 to collect with each Gym specialising in a specific type so it is advisable to train a variety of types for your Pokemon Party. Once all 8 badges are yours you continue on to the Elite Four and the Champion of the Pokemon League, defeat them and you can claim the title of Pokemon Master. Your travels around Unova are not unhindered however; there is always a troublesome team to make your life difficult. Team Plasma are a villainous team whose goal is to free Pokemon from the humans of Unova. Like Team Rocket of old, who I miss dearly, Team Plasma and their wicked antics will pop up throughout the main story.There are a few differences between the two games one being two different areas. As suggested by the name, Pokemon Black plays host to Black City and features many characters and tasks that do not appear in the other game. Black City's population changes with time, leading to the alteration of its appearance. When you visit the city for the first time the population is determined by the number of days it took you to reach it. In addition to the visual changes, the city's market will sell items to the player at inflated prices, dependent on which Trainers are in the city. The items are rare, with most being either evolutionary stones or valuable items. At maximum population, Black City is a sprawling metropolis with many large buildings and skyscrapers. With a smaller population there are fewer buildings that are smaller in size. To juxtapose Black, Pokemon White houses White Forest. Unlike Black City, White Forest has a variety of wild Pokémon as well as characters and tasks that are not available in Pokemon Black. Just like Black City however, the appearance of White Forest is reliant on the number of people currently liPokemon Black and White Reviewving there. When you first enter the forest the total number of residents is, again, determined by the number of days it took you to reach it. In addition to visual changes, some wild Pokémon will only appear with a certain resident. When White Forest is full it contains large trees, several water surfaces and many patches of tall grass, all there being filled with Pokemon to aid you with your Pokedex. At times when there are few people in the forest the trees are smaller, there are fewer or no water surfaces and patches of tall grass are sparse. As to be expected with two different Pokemon games of the same generation, there are also several Pokemon that are exclusive to each version.Probably one of the most interesting differences is the presence of two new battle types. They come in the form of Rotation Battles, my personal favourite, and Triple Battles. Triple Battles are simple, if you can imagine the Double Battles from some of the previous games and simply add two more Pokemon onto the screen you've got a Triple Battle. A Rotation Battle on the other hand is a little bit more complicated, but not too much. Essentially you have three Pokemon each on the field placed on a turn table. You may switch between those Pokemon at any time without losing a turn; some very interesting can be developed during these battles. If Triple Battles tickle your fancy you'll want Pokemon White, if you're after Rotation Battles you'll want Pokemon Black.To summarise, Pokemon Black and White are two very solid and enjoyable games. Their graphical boost is welcomed and it is clear that Game Freak have pulled out all the stops. They provide Pokemon Black and White with some impressive, but arguable unnecessary, 3D aspects. The main example of this comes in the form of Castelia City. Game Freak included new graphics on the Pokemon themselves too. This may mean little to some but I was very impressed by the fact that the Pokemon now look asleep when they fall victim to Hypnosis, etc. They now even have their individual animations during battle. They are of a calibre to satisfy the oldest of Pokemon fans and to attract a new gamers to the pokemon franchise, all in all, very good.

31.3.2011

This review relates to both Pokemon Black and Pokemon White.This revamp of the game was definately worth waiting for. Overall I love it. It sticks with the familiar adventure format of previous generations which is comforting. You're a young trainer enlisted by Professor Juniper to help her research Pokemon by filling in a Pokedex. You have 2 friends (rather than 1 like in the most recent previous generations) who are also compiling a Pokedex who you meet with frequently throughout your journey. You chose one starter Pokemon, either Fire, Water, or Grass type, and gradually travel through the Unova region battling gym leaders and striving to become the Champion.Compared to previous generations,Black and White has a slightly higher level of graphics which is great. The cities and buildings feel more 3-dimensional with added effects such as zooming in on buildings and the camera panning and rotating as you walk. There are some nice additions to the game play too. TMs can be used and reused, an aspect I like but perhaps makes the game slightly easier than previous versions. There are also fewer HMs which is a plus for me. You can have double battles in the wild and also triple trainer battles. There is also a new type of battle called rotation battles which doesn't come up all that frequently but is an interesting addition. There are also a number of additions incorporating WiFi such as new ways to battle and trade but for me personally this is not an aspect of the game that I have explored. In any case these are optional extras and are not incorportated into the main adventure.This games eliminates aspects from previous generations which I personally think is an improvement - your mum doesn't call you all the time and other trainers aren't always asking for your number. The best part of the game by far, for me at least, is the new region and the new pokemon. When you're playing the game for the first time it's so interesting for every pokemon you come across to be new and it also adds a level of challenge to the game, not knowing what type the pokemon is and what it's strengths and weaknesses are when going into battle. The new region is also great to explore and has some fun new aspects such as the bustling city with high-rises and city workers.The only dissapointment for me has been with the graphics. The creators have obviously tried to up the level of the graphics in line with the new DSi and DSiXL capabilities and with some aspects, such as those mentioned above, it works great. However, they could have done a lot more with the graphics, and some of what they have done, doesn't really work. In line with this one of the biggest annoyances for me when playing the game is with the graphics in the battles. During battles in Black and White the Pokemon aren't static, they move slightly - a fixed movement that they repeat - and the camera moves around them - it zooms in when they are hit etc. For me this makes the battle too 'busy' and actually makes it just a little annoying. Also the quality of the graphics in general in the battles, seem to me, just not very good. When you throw a pokeball into battle the pokemon emerges halfway up the screen in the distance slightly, in great quality. Then the camera 'zooms in' and the pokemon is then at the front of the screen towards the left (as with previous generations) but the image is heavily pixelated, because it's zoomed in. The quality is significantly worse than in previous games, which I find, confusing to say the least, when the creators have clearly put so much effort into bringing this generation 'up to date' with the graphics.With that aside, I do love this game and am looking forward to giving it a second go. For anyone who has played and enjoyed pokemon in past, particularly earlier generations, this is a great game to come back to the series with. It's very hard not to enjoy this game.

6.3.2011

A couple of years ago I broke my Pokemon cherry and played Pokemon Pearl, and then after losing my DS and the game, Pokemon Platinum - after never really understanding why the Pokemon franchise was such a successful one I found myself hooked and for a few weeks my life had to adapt around the time I was dedicating to the game! And now I couldn't resist having a bash with the latest Pokemon game...If you aren't familiar with the Pokemon games then this game is the latest in a series of games which involve travelling around a fantasy region called Unova and battling strange monsters called Pokemon. You can capture wild Pokemon and train them up, a big part of the game is seeing how may you can collect and serious gamers try to catch them all.Many of the Pokemon require very specific conditions to appear and capture, so it isn't just a case of wandering round and hoping every type will fall into your lap. Newbies may find it all a bit daunting as the game is massive, but as you advance through and talk to the other characters - they explain things on a very simple level to point you in the right direction.The genius of the game isn't the epic scope, it's all down to strategy. Your success is determined by your choices when you create your 'team' of Pokemon and decide which one to use in battle and when. Even though I've clocked up a lot of Pokemon hours through the Platinum game, I'm still getting to grips with which types are weak or strong against other types, but after a while you do start to be more strategic in your choices rather than just opting for the cutest ones!Where Pokemon Platinum was a tweaked version of Pearl/Diamond, this is a completely new game and it looks incredible. As you walk around various settings and when you have battles, the angle of view changes so that you can see all the action - this small feature makes a massive difference and helps you to become fully immersed in the game. The actually battles themselves feel much slicker now, in Platinum it could become a little laborious if you were travelling through a region and doing battle after battle without encountering something new as you were constantly watching the same few routines of animation, but now there's much more visual variety.There's a lot of additional activities you can do to, from sub-plot and and side games to a vast array of online stuff too. This has always been the case with the last few Pokemon titles and here much is familiar but plenty has changed too. You may never use the online side of Pokemon gaming, but if you do then it opens up even more options and adds to the play value of the title.In a nutshell: When I first started playing Pokemon I thought it was a silly game for kids. And yes - it is a bit childish at times, but it's really drawn me in and there have been times when I've sat down to quickly level up my little Pokemon army, explore a cave, or check how many items I've collected - and before I realise it two hours have passed! This is an engaging title which combines the look and turn-based-battle gameplay of an RPG, and the forward thinking of chess. I can fully understand why some people obsess over the Pokemon games and make it their mission to do everything possible in the game. With a massive array of items to collect, moves to learn, and Pokemon to catch and personalise - you can have thousands of people playing the same game and yet each player would get a very individual experience from it. This is a beautiful game to play with more animations and more detail to the environments you explore.The Pokemon world is a big one and there's a lot to learn - but it's a world worth visiting and when you do, you might end up spending a lot of time there. Black and White is reassuringly familiar, but also refreshingly different too.

7.4.2011

Now, I have been playing Pokemon since the original Gameboy days of Red and Blue and have bought every title in the series. I was of course, very excited to hear that another version was due to be released on the Nintendo DS, and I bought it on the day of release without hesitation.I was not disappointed.The Good;The gameplay has not changed at all, which is brilliant for avid fans - the basics are still there - catch, train, level up your pokemon and then battle with them. I found that a lot of the pokemon in this new generation were actually very powerful - you learn stronger moves at a much lower level. The new starter three Pokemon are pretty well balanced, and I love their designs (except for Oshawott's final evolution - which looks a bit silly ) The graphics have improved, yet still are stylised like the original games. The Pokemon also 'move' and breathe during battles when they are not attacking - ie. they are not just still sprites. I quite like the design of the new Pokemon too - Masuda intended this generation to look very futuristic, and I think he succeeded. The reason why he wanted to do this is because there are already 2 generations of pokemon on the Nintendo DS and he wanted to give fans something new. The bad guys - Team Plasma - are cool and have a funky new futuristic look about them. Another great new feature is the C-Gear, a wireless aplication that takes up the bottom touch screen and allows easier connectivity between two players with two copies of the game and their own DS's. I found some it's functions very fun and very unique and different from any other Pokemon games.Oh and finally - once you have beaten the Elite 4, there is SO much to do afterwards! You can finally use a Fishing Rod, catch all the other 493 Pokemon from the older generations, and eventually import Pokemon from the other games ( HeartGold, SoulSilver, Diamond, Pearl and Platinum ) to fully complete your national dex. This is no easy task, and will take months of gameplay. If you're gonna give filling the National Dex a go, this game will have hours and hours of gamplay for you.Now for the bad;These are only minor things - firstly, the touch screen. The C-gear is great, but I don't see why it is always there. You should be able to switch it off and ALSO get rid of it to have the regular menu there, like in HeartGold and SoulSilver. I think the menus were the best in those games. There is also no L=A setting in the 'Options' menu - ie you can no longer assign the L button to also act as A, which really annoyed me. I have always set that function up since it was introduced back in the Ruby and Sapphire generation.Also - you cannot import any of your old Pokemon till right near the end of the main storyline!! So that means you have to use the new pokemon. I think this is good, but being a veteran at Pokemon gaming, I was slightly disappointed that I couldn't trade over some eggs that I had prepaired on the my Pearl cartridge. But yeah - I understand why it's there.The main story - ie. beating the Elite 4, defeating Plasma and the Gym leaders - is quite easy. I beat them all first time round, but only because I have a lot of experience and know how to train efficiently and build a well-balanced team. This may be different for newcomers to the game, though.Anyway - as you can see, the pros outway the cons by far. Pokemon Black and Pokemon White are both utterly fantastic games, and offer so many hours of gameplay. Even starting a new game with a different starter Pokemon will change the entire experience for you. If you are new to the Pokemon game series, the game tells you everything you need to know about the basics as you go along through the game. Now get out there and start on that Pokedex!

5.3.2011

I'll start by saying the only Pokemon games I have completed, are Red, Blue and Yellow, and I played those on a Gameboy Pocket. That was a good decade or so ago, so I can't, and won't, compare these new instalments to anything more recent than Crystal (which I never finished). With that said, let's get rolling...In short, I'm dead impressed with Black. The idea seems to have been a reboot of the games and an attempt to bring back fans of the old games who have now grown up. If that was indeed the case then it worked on me! The basic mechanics of the game haven't changed, you still get your Grass/Fire/Water starter choice,you still slowly trudge between towns battling Gym leaders and you still fight a lot of eager trainers along the way who apparently spend their lives in one spot just waiting for you to pass so you can battle them.However, there are a number of upgrades from the original game, like Pokemon being able to hold items - I understand this was an addition in one of the later generations for GBA - which is useful (i.e. Pokemon can heal themselves, cure Sleep themselves etc), and also things like multi-Pokemon battles, where the other team may have two or even three Pokemon, and the first two or three of your team come out all at once. This is a nice nod to the traditional JRPG with turn-based combat for multiple party members and makes for interesting fights. Another nice touch is that you only see the new Pokemon until you finish the main story. This means that rather than panicking "What's this Pidove thing, can I find a Pidgey instead?!" you're left with no choice but to read the Pokedex entries, look at the move descriptions and basically learn how to play the game all over again. Speaking as someone who's coming back to the series after 10 years, that's a fantastic idea.When starting the game, you pick a Male or Female character - again, I understand this was a choice added in the later games, but it's nice to see here - and are introduced to your childhood friends. In an interesting twist to the usual "this other kid is your rival and he picked the Pokemon strong against yours" rigmarole, the other kids are your friends (although you still have to battle them). The boy takes the Pokemon strong against yours, the girl takes the one that's weak, so at least you know you're going to beat ONE of them. You encounter them occasionally along your trip. Also, the Pokemon Prof isn't Oak anymore, it's a lady called Juniper. Hooray, a female Professor! The game starts off as standard from there, with you wandering around pretty linear paths catching Pokemon.It's a great feeling to get into a battle and genuinely not know what you're going to see. The music starts, the screen slides across (the new battle graphics are great by the way; the Pokemon sprites are animated) and you come face to face with... what's that? What type is it? I must catch it! It really brings back the excitement from all those years ago. Not a Rattata in sight.I've seen some other reviews that criticise how "simple" the game is. It hasn't got a Pokegear, there's no Pokemon breeding, etc etc. What I will say is: That's PERFECT. This game is to bring people back to the series who got sick of all the breeding and move tutoring and phone calls from Mum all the time, and just goes back to the basics: You and your Pokemon against the world.Speaking as a fan of the original, vanilla games: it can't get much better than this.

22.3.2013

I bought this last summer, and strangely I could not get into it at first. I just thought "hmm, this isn't pearl!" and put it away, and then one day last month I picked it up again, determined to give it another chance. I was shocked at how much I soon started to like it. I shall list the bad things first though, just some little things that I didn't like about this game.1. The new pokemon. I just.. MISS the old ones, it broke my heart a little that a pidgey didnt pop out at me. The pokemon also seemed more darker, for some reason, and stranger! But I did fall in love with a few.2. The graphics in battles - sadly, everything looked very pixalated and rather lazy in battles,especially your pokemon who is fighting.3. The story - the main characters two best friends got a tad annoying, and rather repetitive!4. Its darker - not the story line really (well, a little bit) but the colours. Everything felt very... blue and purple, darker, edgier. which is fine I guess, but It made me feel like this was more of a adult game than a kids one. But pokemon is all about satisfying your inner child, isn't it? The scenery you walked around was beautiful, and so were the changing seasons. But everything felt less cheerful somehow!5. It was slightly harder, in that you have to rely on stats a lot, instead of you instincts like earlier games. I miss those days!The good however, is that you really do become attached to the little pokemon just like you did in all the other games. I am currently playing soul silver and WISH this game had adopted the "pokemon following you as you walk" concept, as you really felt that you were less alone in the big world on your ds screen.Another thing i would like to say is, the bad guys confused me slightly, and got me thinking... their main point was to free pokemon from their trainers, as they were "used" and "mistreated". I may be the only one to think this, but arent they sort of right? Isn't battling your pokemon, forcing them to do moves and attacks, and battling them until one or the other is either "poisoned, paralyzed, confused or have fainted!" kind of like dog fighting..? Growing up, I always saw pokemon as animals. They may not be like animals we have here, but they are very similar. Snakes here can poison, attack, bite, and the ekans in the pokemon world can do just the same. Yet if we caged our animals and forced them to fight to get stronger, fight each other for our OWN gains, and fight until they actually became injured, we would be arrested. I know pokemon is a fictional game, but many kids play this. And I thought the baddies had a good idea in this game, which confused me all the more and made me feel almost guilty for trying to stop them taking over!Anyway, rant over. I will always be a huge fan of pokemon (I am a 20 year old female, and I still adore it after a few years not playing them at all) but I think you should explain clearly to your kids (who may get confused with the dog pokemon in this game, they are basically jack russels with not much special powers!) that it is not okay to battle your pets in the garden like you do on your DS!

5.5.2011

It's my first review, so I'm warning it may or may not contain SPOILERS:I have to say I was seriously impressed with this new Pokemon game. I've been playing them since Gameboy Colour, and the last generation before Black & White just didn't seem to have much in the way of improvements or changes than the generation directly before it...but with Black, there was so many good new changes, improvements, additions, and a really good story that it seemed to bring back a "new-ness" the same way the Advanced generation seemed to. Black still has the same Pokemon-catching/battling system as before, but they've added unique battle modes like Triple Battles,and online battles against people from around the world.One thing that was a huge improvement in my opinion was the way they revamped the TM/HM system. For all the "collector" types out there that like not just catching and keeping 1 of every Pokemon, but also want to always save a TM just in case you use it and then want/need it later - they've fixed that. Any TM you get, you can use over and over, just like an HM. Now the only difference is that HMs are still permanent, but TMs aren't, so you could (in theory) teach a move to a Pokemon just for a battle, then get rid of it when a new move comes in, and even give it back the same move later....Or teach several Pokemon the same move. Also, when it comes to HMs, it's great that for the most part, for most of the story you no longer have to always keep a couple extra Pokemon with you just to keep some who know a certain HM-move, or use up a slot on one of your main Pokemon's moves with an HM you may not like, because now (from what I've seen in the first 20 hours of the game so far) most of the HMs are used for kind of extra areas to get extra items, etc. - kind of like a side-quest or something.So when it comes to going through the story, aside from the initial use of your first HM, you pretty much aren't forced to use any for at least a good chunk of the game unless you want to. Another thing is, is that the moves themselves have all been powered up quite a bit from what I can see, and the Types seem more balanced against each other now. (I know someone is probably going to disagree with me on that one, but it's "More" balanced, I'm not saying they weren't balanced before) This game feels like the player needs a bit more strategy to win, at least at the beginning, compared to the older games. Now back to the HM thing, because they aren't as important (dare I say, lol) the game seems much more progressive in a line, instead of going back and forth from places the older games in particular were known for. (Not saying you won't go back at all, but see for yourself :P) And on a final note, the fact that it moves forward like that seems to be because of an almost constant story-line, which I'm actually quite impressed about.All in all, they stayed true to the core ideas, but aside from that - everything was an improvement! There's a lot more that they changed and added, and I'm still figuring out some of them! but these were my most favourite features. Hope someone finds this useful. :)

1.4.2011

Story***5-10Most RPGs are about the story but pokemon isn't for most people its the thing standing in your way that you must complete so you can begin training pokemon to fight other trainers. This story is all about friendship in the worst way possible. Instead of a rival you have two friends who get through the story along side you. Most of the time out of sight they do aid you at points by giving you items or joining you in a double battle. Occasionally they do battle you like a standard pokemon rival would. Throughout the game every character in the game is talking to you about friendship and morals. The antagonist of the story is the king of team plasma N who overall is joke compared to team rocket.He does give you some tough battles later in the game but his shallow moral sense is a bit annoying at times especially since he is a big part of the story. Luckily the story isn't very long I got to the elite four and beat the game in 3 days with pokemon level 46-52. There are a few things you can do after you beat the elite four but for the most part when you beat them the first time the game is over.Gameplay/Usability***8-10The gameplay is the same as most games minus the use of the touch screen outside of battle. The touch screen was well used in the past as the do all for items and pokemon stat checking as well as pc use. In this game the touch screen is taken up mostly by some thing called the C-Gear which is mostly used for entralink and xtransceiver and game sync. All features that aren't even usable yet. The most useful feature at this point is the ability to easily battle people locally through inferred contact which eliminates the need to exchange friend codes but only for someone in the same room as you. For the most part I feel the bottom screen is wasted on the C-Gear you can still access things through the touch screen but you have to press X to pull of the menu that should be there automatically while the c-gear should have been a background item. Also pulling up this menu which should have been there all along causes you to close the dowsing mchn which is very annoying. You can pin items to a quick launch menu with the Y button. but it doesn't make up for the c-gear wasting space, or at least until more of the features become active, its a waste of space and battery life. Every thing else is fine and quite usable.Fun***9-10Even with the usability issue I have with the game this generation of pokemon is pretty great I had a lot of fun playing through it and learning the new pokemon.Graphics***7-10Some RPG's go all out with graphics pokemon is not one of them. There was a graphical jump when the games first came out on the ds but there haven't really been any changes since.ClosingIn closing if you like pokemon you will buy this game anyway and don't really need a review for it. If you would like to get back into pokemon now is a good time to start since the game is based on only the new pokemon until you beat the elite four for the first time.Overall Score(not an average)***8-10

15.4.2011

This is a very nice breath of fresh air into the staling Pokemon franchise. I picked it up on release, and am still playing it now, which shows it has some good longevity. The thing that people may not realize on first glance is how much further this one goes than all the rest, as far as connectivity and interaction with other players goes.First off is the ingame trading system. It is now much more user friendly, and more fun to use than ever before, but still no option to trade more than one Pokemon at a time, which is shame, after so many releases. Using wireless locally, or the built in Wi-Fi connection to connect to an internet access point, you can trade with friends directly,or over the internet anywhere in the world! This has been a great function so far, and have made quite a number of contacts in this way.Second is the far more daunting Dream World, which has only recently gone live in Europe. At first this system seems complicated, and very confusing, but after a little time getting my DS to connect to my wireless internet at home, I was asked if I wanted to put one of my Pokemon to sleep. At first I thought this sounded quite disturbing, but it turns out it means it wants you to but a Pokemon to bed, so you can play out it's dreams. Still a little confused, I pressed on. The game gave me a code, and an internet site to visit, where I was asked to make an account and enter the code. The game then linked up to the official Pokemon Global Link site, and found my sleeping Musharna waiting to dream! This then opened up a huge array of minigames, covering mini dungeon crawls, building towers of ice cream, and spot the difference, as well as what seems to be thousands more. While doing these games, you meet Pokemon not catchable in your version of the game, and if you perform well enough, they befriend you and, once you wake your Pokemon back up, on the DS cart, the friends you meet, both people and Pokemon, will then appear to be able to join you in game, and in the Pokemons case, be caught, and even having some unique moves only found in the Dream World! You have access to this Dream World with one Pokemon every day, for one hour per 24 hour period, which I hope is lowered at some point, as I can't wait to send my Celebi in for more fun!There is also the Entra-link which allows you to bridge into other players games and wander about in special areas, within their world, and even take up residence! This will also encourage previously uncatchable Pokemon to appear in your game too, to allow you to further continue your catching of them all!All in all I would say this is by far the best incarnation of the franchise, and the first time I have actually bought both releases to play them both and collect them all! Well worth the money, and definately one to force your friends to buy too.Side note: If you have issues setting up your wireless connection, Nintendo's support site has a very simple and clear guide that helps you every step of the way.

26.5.2011

Pokemon is back with a brand new adventure and a slew of new of these pocket monsters. As a whole, Pokemon Black and White are a great new addition to the Pokemon franchise that bring refreshing changes to the series.The adventure begins in the land of Unova, where you are to choose from three starter Pokemon: Snivy (Grass Type), Oshowott (Water Type), and Tepig (Fire Type). You traverse the land fighting Gym Leaders that give you badges that allow you to progress in the game to ultimately fight against the Elite Four. You meet and collect Pokemon throughout the game and level them up to gain new abilities and strengths.Although the series is not known to deviating far from its known formula,

1.4.2013

This game to me was ultimately fun to play but it was frustrating as it was an almost identical story line to its predecessors. There were great aspects however.The reasons why I believe that this game has been rated a 4 out of a possible 5 is stated below:The story:Just like the other Pokemon games, you choose a Pokemon and defeat the leaders of several gyms, then go on to the poke league championship to attempt to defeat the elite four. I will be honest, the story line was reasonable but I would like to see a twist in the Pokemon saga. However I did enjoy locating the legendary Pokemon and learning more about the mysterious trainer 'N',

13.4.2012

I'll be honest, it took me quite a while to get into this game. I've been playing since Red/Blue/Yellow and have since purchased every single generation game since. My main problem with this game was it seemed a little too "happy-time, campy, everyone is just the best of friends!" After playing through Heartgold in which your rival is a less than pleasant individual that you just want to pummel, your two new rivals in this game are almost sickening in their "fun time friendship" attitude. I wanted to pummel them just because they annoyed me.On another perspective that put me off was the lack of special attack EVs that are available at the beginning of the game. Now,

21.3.2011

I buy at least one game from every generation, and this one didn't top Heart Gold for me.The good:World graphics were amazingI really liked Team Plasma and N, they didn't strike me as 1 dimensional like the rest of Pokemon villains.The touch screen was barely used (Personal preference, I don't like using it)HMs are not relied on at all, so you don't even have to teach them to your main pokemon.The elite 4 -> the last boss battle, was...stunning, honestly.The text is on fast speed from the start! Gasp!Reshiram and Zekrom are both great looking.The pokemon move in combat.The difficulty went up a little bit, but I was still never in danger of dying,

Pokémon: Black Version (DS) - Reviews

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