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Publisher:
Nintendo
Developer:
Game Freak
Release Date:
04-Mar-2011
Platform(s):
DS
Genre:
Real Time Strategy
Age Rating:
Team Plasma, a group who seek to liberate Pokémon from human oppression
Pokémon has always been a childhood favourite of mine and my friends and I would always play the Pokémon games in my house, but as time went on the games started to become more dialogue heavy and had less focus on the epic Pokémon battles. It was still fun to walk around as your own character and mingle with the crowd but when you had to sit through ten minutes of professor Juniper asking “Is this your name?” or “This is a Pokéball, you use it to......” it just got annoying. Don’t get me wrong I’m sure some true Pokémon fans could sit through it all day in awe at it, but for as for me, it’s not my cup of tea.
In Pokémon White Version, you play as a novice Pokémon trainer, who you name according to your personal preference, and go off into a world of pokémon battles, epic quests and more storylines then you can throw a pokéball at. At the start of the game your player has too chose between three Pokémon, Snivy, Tepig and Oshwatt as their starter Pokémon as a gift from Professor Juniper. You’re also joined by two other Pokémon trainers, whom you meet at the start, Cheren and Bianca. As usual, the games primary goal is to obtain the eight gym badges of Unova and ultimately challenge the Elite four of the Unova Region, and the Pokémon League Champion, to beat the game.
The graphics have improved immensely since the previous games; in Pokémon White Version the chat dialogue box has changed from a standard box to a speech bubble that appears over the characters head, allowing more than one character to shovel more glorious text onto your screen. Another improved feature is the music, when you’re just strolling through the streets of striaton city your ears are blessed to hear the relaxing sounds composed by Junichi Masuda. The mood changes when you encounter wild Pokémon or you battle a gym leader, the music changes from being a soft and relaxing symphony to an up-beat and motivating tune which urges you to win the battle even though you may not stand a chance.
In addition to the main storyline, you will also have to defeat the games’ main antagonist. Every time you face off against a member of “Team Plasma” you get a really cool cut-scene displaying Team Plasma logo which sets the scene for the upcoming poke battle. The Pokémon battles themselves are exciting and rather addictive, with the addition of battle items and up to four attacks per Pokémon you’re definitely not stuck for choice.
There are two new battle mechanics in White: Triple Battles and Rotation Battles. In Triple Battles, both teams must send out three Pokémon at once. Another related feature are the Combination Moves; the starter Pokémon from any game can be taught one of the three moves that can be used in combination with each other to produce more powerful attacks.
As a lasting tradition in Pokémon if you venture through grass you are bound to get ambushed by a wild Pokémon and the transition into the battle was quite a shock as it came up unexpectedly, Pokémon white version however has taken this old problem and fine tuned it to perfection as the transition into battle is not only smoother but also, aided by the music, quite a welcoming event. Another battle mechanic is found in the wild, where differently coloured and styled tall grass will enable Double Battles against wild Pokémon.
In addition to the standard battling and Gym challenges, the player can compete in Pokémon Musicals, a side-game similar to the Pokémon Contests of previous games; the Battle Subway similar to the Battle Towers and Battle Frontiers of previous games; and on the Royal Unova, a cruise ship that the player can ride daily and fight various trainers aboard.
Overall I must say for diehard fans of the Pokémon series this game is a must have. With the improved graphics and awesome music, intense battles and a gripping storyline, this Pokémon game is definitely worth the purchase.
In Short: A great Pokémon game with an awesome soundtrack, intense poke battles and gripping storyline.