A Thundershockingly Good Comeback
I don’t care what anyone says, guy’s my age (that’s 23 years young) are the real target audience for Pokémon RPGs. Each installment brings with it a powerful sense of nostalgia and addictiveness. With its redesigned approach to training Pokémon, brand new storyline, revamped graphics and new fairy-types, Pokémon X/Y is a significant step up from it’s predecessors. The big, bright screen of the 3DS XL is perfect for this, showcasing the game’s new found beauty. Bird’s eye character view has been binned finally and battles are now a lot more creatively animated.
Naturally, choosing which version to buy required coordination with my friends so I could make the essential trades needed to fill up my Pokédex. I know, we’re pretty cool. Nevertheless, X/Y has a number of new ways to help players catch ‘em all, so don’t worry if your friends are too busy being boring adults to play Pokémon. Consequently, I decided on Pokémon X and set off on my adventure through the new Kalos region with Froakie, having Googled it and seen it evolves into a freakin’ ninja.
Image credit: Bulbagarden
Some classic favourites, including the mandatory forest venture laden with bug-type Pokémon, are available almost immediately after saying goodbye to your mum. I was lucky enough to encounter a Pikachu without too much legwork and to my surprise was holding a Light Ball. (Light Ball’s double the power of Pikachu’s electric-type moves). I haven’t been able to box the cute lil’ guy since and have nurtured him into a lvl 100 killing machine, albeit without a particularly beneficial nature.
He can’t take a beating but that’s okay because I love him.
Too easy?
Exp. Share has changed and it’s noticeable. It used to work by letting one of your team hold it and they would gain half the experience from battle. Now, every Pokémon in your party gains experience after battle! This means, you can assemble a pretty fearsome squad pretty quickly. Usually, the early gyms present quite a challenge, however this time around it was a relative breeze. So the new exp. share is great for levelling up but make things a bit too easy.
Super Duper!
My Pikachu is stronger than the average Pikachu. This is because we spent lots of time playing giant balloon football together. Let me back up a second. In previous generations, EV training a Pokémon would require meticulous planning and tedious battling with specific enemies. While the sophistication of the Effort Value system is still strong in Pokémon X/Y, players now have a lot more control over their Pokémon’s base stats. Which is great news for building your murder squad.
Credit: Nintendo Blast
Even better yet, you can actually play with your Pokémon and interact with them like a real pet, via Pokémon-Amie. Dream come true. The more you play with them, the more affectionate they become, and more importantly, you can unlock cool enhancements such as increased critical hit ratios. Interestingly, each Pokémon has a small spot where they dislike being touched. A twisted and disturbing game in itself! It’s up to you how you interpret it…
My Togekiss loves being tickled under the chin.
Mega Evolution
A clever addition to this generation is Mega Evolution which allows players to transform certain Pokémon…well, mega. The most ridiculous looking (i.e. most awesome) is definitely Mega Pinsir. Seriously, check it out. And the great thing is that even though you can only Mega Evolve during battle, you can also attack in the same turn.
Abra had no spoons, Kadabra had one spoon, Alakazam had two spoons so it only makes sense that Mega Alakazam has FIVE SPOONS! (Even if it slightly resembles Adventure Time’s Lemongrab). Alakazam has always been a favourite for me and it seems its appearance has aged aptly during this time too.
Credit: Tomycase
It isn’t just the appearance that changes, it can also change their abilities, types and stats. This means choosing which of your team to Mega evolve during battle is a fun exercise in battle strategy.
Online features
Online capabilities are becoming increasingly more inventive in games as time goes by. This is especially true of Pokémon X/Y and is helped, in part, by advances in the 3DS wireless connectivity. Trading, battling, communicating, and sharing online is now a doddle offering every opportunity to cultivate your dream team. But most importantly - no more do we have to wade through the bureaucracy of the Pokémon Center in order to trade or battle!
My favourite feature is the Wonder Trade. Drop a Pokémon into the cloud, get a random one back. Random can be rubbish if you get a Weedle back, but the chances of getting lucky aren’t so slim you shouldn’t bother. It’s all about being generous with what you deposit and sharing rare catches with the world, for something great in return.
Credit: Gearnuke
Wikias
A final point - there are a couple of great Wiki pages which you have probably encountered if you have ever googled anything about Pokémon: Serebii.net and Bulbapedia. These are my go to online strategy guides. Great to look at and contain absolutely everything you need.
Summary
I leave you with some parting thoughts. What does the inside of a Pokéball look like? Has a Pokémon ever been killed in battle? And does the Day Care Centre make Ditto feel cheap or lucky?
Credit: funnyjunk
GOOD: Wonder trade, feels completely new yet maintains a powerful nostalgia
BAD: Not a whole lot to do post-game and too easy (unless I’m just really good)
SCORE: 9.5 out of 10
