Pokemon White & Black

Yeah Pokemon has my soul. I'm still getting Black.

OK, I felt desperate and decided to try White on my emulator, and it was a nice surprice, it even made me change my avi , I wrote a little preview for it, hope you enjoy it:

First impressions: Pokemon white. by TC

I consider myself a pokemon fan since red/blue, which have always
been my favorites; the reason: they were unique back then. Since
then we've seen maybe far too many pokemon versions; yet pokemon
have kept the attention of the ones who learned to love the simple
yet addictive gameplay, and enjoy collecting the hundreds of
creatures version after version. After Diamond/Pearl being barely
OK, HG/SS were a nice treat, but, let’s face it, they were just
remakes. After being able to play the Japanese version of the all
new pokemon white for quite a few hours, I feel glad to say that,
this time, we may see the real change of generation that fans have
been asking for.

The core gameplay is intact, after all Nintendo knows that if it is
not broken you shouldn't fix it, but the game feel fresh since the
moment you turn it on.

First of all, it has a hole new story that seems to be deeper and
more RPGish than your average pokemon story, from the gorgeously
drawn introduction shown just after the newly animated Game Freak
logo, to the new strange events that are unfold while you travel,
even if you don’t understand Japanese at all, if you have played
all pokemon generations, you can tell something is definitely
unusual. This also creates some gameplay changes, like the apparent
inclusion of two rivals (perhaps three???) instead of one. The Gyms
also have little twists, including facing puzzles or riddles,
together with the usual trainers, in order to fight the Gym
leader.

Now, you all now about the new pokemon, some I disliked, but some
are quite charming (like koromori ), so I wouldn't say they did
a bad job. It features 155 new pokemon, that’s a lot, and that’s
common for a new version; but this time unlike the other versions,
you will only find these pokemon in wild, yep, no pikachus roaming
around, So you could say the pokedex is filled like in blue/red,
there is, of course, the promise of means for being able to get old
generation pokemon after some point, but you can simply choose to
complete the Isshu region pokedex alone.

The game also promises a big variety of gizmos to help you out,
like the C-Gear that stays on your lower screen, like the poketch
on D/P. It seems to use all DS's possible connection capabilities
(including infrared ),and features lotsa multiplayer options and a
tag mode, since it was all in Japanese, I had to use the internet
to figure it out, here:
http://www.serebii.net/blackwhite/cgear.shtml
of course didn't dare to try it on my emulator.

For the technical section, All I have to say is that it surpasses
both past DS versions by far. Graphics are great, the look of the
towns and routes is beautiful, and there's a far more mobile camera,
even during battles, that gives live to the game. Music is great as
usual, some old tunes got remixed and the new tunes are pretty
nice. Sounds are the usual, but they all fit nicely, so no
complains.

The moment I picked this game I felt this may became my new
favorite on the series, it just feel fresh, it actually has some
changes, some pokemon are well designed, and it features a real
story that I can't wait to understand. I have high expectations for
the NA version, it's gonna be a day one purchase for me, and I
really hope they leave our version as unchanged as possible.

Thanks for your impressions, TC.

Awesome~ Thanks for the spoiler-free preview. Nintendo and Game Freak has my $40 now. I might get it on launch day if I have a working DS by then.

Thanks for the preview TC!
I've been hearing lots of good things in general, but now that I've got someone's actual experience with it, I'm excited again. Looks like I'll have to hurry up with SoulSilver. xD

Without spoiling anything, I must say that White Forest is quite a let down. Maybe I'm missing the point, but it's nothing more than a way of getting a few older Pokemon. It hardly even looks like a forest, lol. Black has plenty of old Pokemon anyway and Black City sounds waaayyy cooler in concept. xD I've heard you can buy exclusive items and stuff there, which would be a step up from this to be honest. Definitely getting Black for the English release, yikes.

Finally finished it earlier this month and I must say it is definitely the best game in the series. It has debunk the throne from Silver/Crystal! xD

soaring_wings wrote:Finally finished it earlier this month and I must say it is definitely the best game in the series. It has debunk the throne from Silver/Crystal! xD

Whoa, congratulations! Is it really that good?

...I should get it during the summer.

Yeah I think it is. It's got a stronger story element this time around, the cities and locals have a lot of personality, and all new pokemon only until you beat the game. I really liked that they did that because it felt like a whole new game instead of an upgrade and since I went in practically blind (only knew about a handful of the new pokemon), it really felt like I was discovering a whole new land. It also made it more trial and error because I didn't know types at all (some I could deduce but sometimes the secondary type threw me in for a loop). Another thing I really liked about Gen 5 is that post-game isn't just one new area but that old areas open up more, so there is much more to do and find. And the moving pokemon portraits really add a nice touch. I have to say, Game Freak and Nintendo put a lot of effort into this game.

The only disappointment is Black City/White Forest and that's because people disappear if you don't talk to them daily and for me, who took her time completing the game, when I got there, it was empty. Thankfully I can get everyone back by linking via wireless play with my brother, but it's probably a hassle for everyone else and I think this was a rather poor design choice on the part of Game Freak and Nintendo. But it is just a little blemish on an otherwise great game.