So Pokemon X and Y came out last weekend. Short review: Its pretty swell. But we all knew that was how it was going to go down. I didn't expect to get the game when I did, but I did last Sunday, and I feel I've played enough to at least give my first thoughts. So here's a special mid-week update. I'm nowhere near in the position to review this game yet, as I haven't beaten it, and I want to talk about the other games first. But I might as well try to use this blog as an actual blog, and talk about the beginning of Pokemon X.
First of all, the graphics. Pokemon is finally switching to full polygons, and its a great looking game. The camera zooms out and changes position at certain points giving a sense of scale to many areas, and just shows how good this game looks. Battles are now fully in 3d, much like Pokemon Stadium, and though the battles are sort of slower than in Black and White (A problem that was just inherited by making battles full 3d) battles are still quick and good looking, though when it comes to Pokemon with fast fluttering wings, there are minor cases with slowdown.
In terms of gameplay, the core of this game is like any other Pokemon game. Go from town to town, battle trainers, catch Pokemon, gain Experience, best the towns Gym Leader, repeat. But there have been some changes. The first one you'll notice is with gaining experience. Particularly once you catch your first Pokemon and notice your starter leveling up. Yes, catching Pokemon now grants you Experience, a change which very welcome, because now your killing two birds with one stone. And on the topic of experience, there's the Exp Share. Have this baby equipped, and all Pokemon in your party will gain a share of the experience. This makes grinding for levels the easiest in the series, but this leads to the problem of difficulty. I'm about 6 hours in, and there was about only two points where I was about to lose. All other times though, I was well over leveled and took down everything in my way with no difficulty. And at many points, you'll find characters that, instead of fighting you, will act as a Pokemon Center and heal you. So as of now, I will say that this game is probably the easiest in the series.
The plot is also a lot thinner. You just moved, and the professor of this region sends you and your four friends Pokemon and asks you to find the secret of Mega Evolution. You just so happen to beat Gyms along the way, and it wasn't until about 4 hours in when I found this games big bads: Team Flare, who want nothing more than to get rich and look fabulous. There's probably more to them that I haven't seen, but that's what its like in the beginning.
As for other changes in gameplay, there's Mega Evolution. Using this in battle will change your Pokemons types for a few turns and make them much stronger. For example, a Chirazard is a Flying Fire type. After a Mega Evolution, it turns into that Fire Dragon type that we all asked for Christmas. These are really good for getting you out of a pinch, but you won't get this until after the third gym, you can only use it once per battle, and only a select few can use it, so keep that in mind.
A big thing about this game is that it encourages more interaction between other human players. If your in the vicinity of a player, the options to trade or battle is instantly available. You no longer have to go to Pokemon centers to do this, and by the first hour, I had already lost my first battle against my friend and preformed my first trade before I had even stepped foot in a Pokemon center. Your also able to make short ten second videos about yourself that other players will see, and in order to separate yourself from the other ten million players, character customization has finally been introduced. In the beginning, you'll get a choice between three basic templates, and you'll later be able to purchase clothes in order to make your unique character. Its pretty neat.
Overall, this is a solid game so far. Looks great, plays great, and its a blast to play. I would recommend this game, and I look forward to seeing how the rest of this plays out. Expect a full review sometime in this lifetime.
Did I mention you could sit on benches now?
The Silent Protagonist applauds anyone who has caught them all in this game. You are very dedicated and deserve to get paid.
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