3 posts tagged “pokemon”
That's right, Erin. You're gonna have to start asking, "Let me see your ur Pokemans," each time you see me, because my copy of Pokemon Diamond has arrived.
Of course, my response will be totally like that gray cat on the right. Except way more snarky. Way.
But if any of you non-Erin people have Pokemon Diamond/Pearl, then I guess I'll show you my Pokemans. (My friend code is 0902 9257 8247; leave yours in a comment.)
But you have to promise not to show them to Erin. And you can't let Bilbo snuffle them either. (Even if he is way cuter than Pikachu.)
L recently observed that her and I have more or less swapped the standard gaming stereotypes. She likes first-person shooters (like Halo) and "adult" RPGs (like Oblivion, Jade Empire, KOTOR) more than I do, which are traditionally thought of as "male" games. On the other hand, I prefer cutesy, simpler "E" rated titles (like Pokemon) far more than she does.
In that vein, I recently picked up a new game so sugar-coated and sickeningly cute that Ernie and L couldn't help but make cooing noises when I showed it to them. I'm talking about Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales, which has all the trappings of a real winner for me:
- Minigames? Check!
- Microgames? Check!
- Trading Card Game? Check!
- Final Fantasy themed? Check!
- A splash of humor and plot? Check!
In related news, I gave in further to my weakness for cute, addictive games and placed an order for the brand spankin' new Pokemon Diamond. (Ernie's already insisted that she'll disown me for as long as the game's in my DS.) I haven't played a true Pokemon game since Pokemon Blue, so I'm already anticipating that 350+ of the poke-critters will be completely unfamiliar. At least I might finally be able to keep up with the kids at work!
So who cares if I'm not playing a bunch of traditionally macho games? I'm secure enough in my masculinity to love the cutesy games and not be ashamed. (Besides, my wife kicks my ass at any of the shooters, so I've got to have at least one niche, right?)
This ain't your old-school Pokemon video game -- there aren't any humans enslaving the Pokemon forcing them to perform Quick Attacks or the like. Rather, you get to play as a Pokemon, which is a helluva lot more awesome than commanding the critters to do your bidding (unless your into that sort of thing).
The replayability of this game might be it's best features, with an endless selection of random quests and dungeons to explore. It's one of those rare games that's easy to pick up, but difficult to master -- the tweaks they made to the original battle system makes this game far more interesting.
Sure, it's a strictly "E" rated game, so you won't find anything objectionable; Grand Theft Auto it ain't. But so far, about five hours into the game, the plot has kept me engaged and wondering what will happen next. You can't say that about every Pokemon game, nor every RPG for that matter.
Though I picked it up on a whim and not expecting a whole lot, PMD:BRT has definitely gotten my seal of approval. In fact, it's overall a more polished game than Contact, much to my surprise. Call me juvenile if you like, but I'm going to stick with kick ass cute critters. But for the love of Squibblequick, keep the Pikachus away.
