Pokemon has been a very big part of my life since… well ever. So naturally anytime a new title comes out I’m pretty much like:
That being said..
Pokepark 2 was no exception. I played the first one and was pretty entertained by the user interface and the mini games that were a huge part of the first installment.
Which is why I think this release was such a soft one. The game had been dubbed childish and way too simple, that playing as Pikachu and seeing the variety of Pokemon throughout the game was the only weight that carried it.
Believe it or not, the Pokemon company listened. There are a ton of changes and additions in this new installment, including a whole new generation of Pokemon from the Black/White series. The assortment of minigames has been chiseled down to 4 games that can be played in multiplayer mode as well. You can now explore as 4 different starters each possessing unique and crucial skills and abilities. The storyline has been greatly improved and manages to seamlessly include Zekrom and Reshiram along with the elemental Tornadus, Landrus and Thunderus. With an emphasis on storyline its easy to get lost and forget about all the new Pokemon that you befriend along the way. Not in this game, this time around they also added battle tournaments in which you can select “helpers” to assist your team in tournaments. This was pretty awesome.
The whole gist of the game is straight forward, story is set up, drama unfolds, meet and befriend crucial allies, have fun doing it. Several times I have read people dismiss this as a childrens game, but i beg to differ. The storyline is kinda dark and has its own unique twists. Some of the battles are freaking hard along with some of your missions.
That being said, if you need a little time killer in between your Mass Effects and Street Fighter X Tekken, this is a nice change of pace. Besides, you can never have too many Chu’s.