Pokemon
is a phenomenon that still hasn't run its course.
I can't say that it's a bad game because it isn't,
but games such as Ruby and Sapphire, and now Pokemon
Emerald, hide behind an already established gameplay
formula taking advantage of its popularity and offering
nothing more than window dressing to rapid fans. Hey,
there's a sucker born every minute. But having said
that, I still enjoyed my time with Pokemon Emerald.
Aside
from some new characters, new areas, abilities and
mini-games this RPG fighting game hasn't changed much
since it was created. As with any series that builds
on its original premise it runs the risk of alienating
newbies by becoming too deep in an effort to continue
challenging hardcore fans. Pokemon Emerald is still
a deep game but it's been streamlined in such a way
that makes it accessible to beginners. If you're a
teenager you might find some of the commentary very
immature. Pokemon can be enjoyed by anyone but it
is geared towards younger kids.
At
the onset of the game you can choose to play as a
boy or a girl. Your destiny is to follow in your father's
footsteps to become a legendary Pokemon collector/trainer/fighter
- in other words a Pokemon Master. These little monsters
will take on other monsters in battles in a rock/paper/scissors
style of combat - only much more entertaining and
diverse. There are tons of Pokemons each with different
moves and affinities such as water, fire, electricity
which can be use against other Pokemon or used against
your Pokemon. The idea is to collect as many of them
as you can to keep yourself covered for all situations.
Pokemons
can be earned, won and found. By training them you
will increase their powers. Winning bouts will earn
you experience points which can eventually make your
Pokemon so strong that it will even change its appearance
and name. You can then use the wireless adapter to
fight it out with other players' creations and even
trade Pokemons with friends.
In
this version you will obviously encounter plenty of
fights but there are enough diversions to satisfy
anyone suffering from attention deficit disorder.
You can gamble, enter a beauty pageant, breed Pokemon
and play some mini-games. The carrot is dangled on
the proverbial stick to motivate you to continue fighting
and leveling-up your little pocket monsters.
The
game is vibrant but there's little noticeable difference
compared to the Ruby and Sapphire version. The worlds
are large and varied and the music is well crafted
to reflect a whimsical mood. It's an improvement on
the series, however slight.
Only you know how badly you want this game and if
you could really care less about it one way or the
other, I would suggest "the other."
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