Gotham
2017
I've been playing Rivals since the days of the Alpha on Steam, and it's been a joy to follow along with every new patch and character release. It's the best Smash alternative by far, and showed that the platform fighting genre was real and could be used for some very interesting mechanics. However, due its Smash similarities, it's limited in scope and reach, but I truly do wish more people gave this game a chance.
2017
The new characters were fun, but it didn't stand out enough in the realm of fighting games to stay relevant past the first year.
2015
A Pokemon fighting game is such a genius concept - it sucks this was relegated to a dying Wii U, or it likely would've been more successful and memorable. I was always a big fan of the core fighting mechanics and I remember the online being really good. The single-player story and VA is pitiful, however.
One of the strangest Pokemon spin-offs. It's alright, if a bit tedious to complete. PokePark 2 makes this one irrelevant, but it was enjoyable when it came out.
PokePark is a forgotten Wii gem. Beneath the weirdly dark story and unique world design is a solid mini-game collection, similar to the first entry. The multiple playable characters make this one just a straight-up improvement.
2013
Most of my thoughts are in my X entry. I played Y many years later as a nuzlocke and also had a lot of fun. It wasn't very challenging however, which I expected.
2013
Pokemon series junk food. The laughable difficulty makes you feel like you're on a power trip the whole time, and it's great. Excellent Pokemon variety makes repeated playthroughs a lot of fun. I also really like Kalos' design a lot. The OST is great as always.
Another stellar DS Pokemon entry, with an interesting (but not perfect) story and very solid world design. I like all the new Pokemon, but the decision to limit the players to just them harms main story teambuilding, and makes repeated playthroughs fairly boring.
2021
The gameplay loop is genuinely addicting. Getting a group of COMPETENT teammates together and playing ranked is a lot of fun. Solo-queue is infuriating
2017
I'm still confused about this game's purpose. The story was changed for the worst, but the new fights and encounters make this entry more fun than the original to replay. Rainbow Rocket is an EXTREMELY cool concept. A strange end to the 3DS era of Pokemon.
2019
Lacks the normal polish the previous Pokemon games had in their world design and animations. It's also really easy, with the exception of the Leon fight. I liked its new ideas and Galar in general, I just wish it had more dev time to flesh out its story. You can really tell they rushed near the end, especially when an entire scene plays out off-screen and all you're treated to is a dialogue box and a piece of art.
2016
I completed Pokemon Sun with only a Popplio. There are two other required catches; a random mon to enter Po Town, and the Box legendary. There were some challenging fights (Totem Lurantis and Guzma), but otherwise it was fairly simple. I had a lot of fun creating strategies for the run as well.
I wrote most of my actual thoughts about Gen 7 under my Moon journal entry.
I wrote most of my actual thoughts about Gen 7 under my Moon journal entry.
Pokemon HGSS is the reason why Pokemon fans are never satisfied with any of the recent releases. This game has the most content of any entry in the series BY FAR. Two regions, plenty of optional side-quests and extra battles, Battle Frontier, a huge in-game PokeDex, Pokeathlon... the list goes on. The balancing in Johto is a little off post-gym 4, and the wild encounters aren't the best, but these are honestly very minor complaints in the grand scheme of things.
I love Pokemon HGSS the most out of any game in the series, because to me, it nails what makes Pokemon so special. The region design feels very "alive" with plenty of unique, but realistic biomes to explore. The plot isn't anything too crazy, no type of world-ending stakes- just you and your team exploring the legends of Johto and stopping a local crime group. It's a very casual adventure, which makes it timeless.
I gave BW2 a higher score because it's a somehow EVEN MORE polished than HGSS. On a good day however, HGSS could easily regain the title of Best Pokemon game.
I love Pokemon HGSS the most out of any game in the series, because to me, it nails what makes Pokemon so special. The region design feels very "alive" with plenty of unique, but realistic biomes to explore. The plot isn't anything too crazy, no type of world-ending stakes- just you and your team exploring the legends of Johto and stopping a local crime group. It's a very casual adventure, which makes it timeless.
I gave BW2 a higher score because it's a somehow EVEN MORE polished than HGSS. On a good day however, HGSS could easily regain the title of Best Pokemon game.
Ugh.
This is the cheapest the series has ever felt. The graphics lack the normal Game Freak/Nintendo polish, and the multitude of glitches on the initial version is frankly inexcusable. However, at its core, Shining Pearl is still a fun game - Sinnoh is always a joy to explore, and the late-game fights were genuinely pretty challenging. I wish that some elements of Platinum were included.
This is the cheapest the series has ever felt. The graphics lack the normal Game Freak/Nintendo polish, and the multitude of glitches on the initial version is frankly inexcusable. However, at its core, Shining Pearl is still a fun game - Sinnoh is always a joy to explore, and the late-game fights were genuinely pretty challenging. I wish that some elements of Platinum were included.
2011
An underrated 3DS launch-year title. I loved Pokemon Rumble on the Wii, so I was very excited for this game as well. There's a large difficulty spike near the end of the campaign that I was never able to beat.