GameSpot editors' review
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CNET editors' rating:
stars
Very good
Detailed editors' rating
- Reviewed on: 05/04/2005
- Released on: 04/30/2005
- Originally published on GameSpot: Pokemon Emerald (GBA) Review
Through the 10 or so proper Pokémon games that Nintendo has released for the Game Boy, then the Game Boy Color, and now the Game Boy Advance, the crux of the series has remained unshakable. A preteen hero goes out into the world, complete with parental blessings, to become the world's number one trainer of a bizarre, varied, and mysterious race of creatures called Pokémon. Along the way, our hero has some funky adventures. Essentially a singular director's cut version of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, Pokémon Emerald will feel especially familiar, and as such, it will likely hold greater appeal to the uninitiated or those who have been on Pokémon hiatus.
Collecting and fighting: These are the things a Pokémon game is made of.
After starting off as either a young girl or boy recently transplanted to a new town, you quickly ditch your homemaker mother to follow in the footsteps of your dad, who is already a celebrated Pokémon master. After being gifted your first Pokémon by local man-of-science Professor Birch, you'll head into the world to fight and capture wild Pokémon, as well as test your might against other up-and-coming trainers. Furthermore, you'll rank up your own standing as a trainer by traveling to different towns and besting the head trainer at the local Pokémon gym. You'll eventually get mixed up in some unsavory business with Team Aqua and Team Magma, two nefarious groups of Pokémon trainers, in addition to going on various adventures and side quests that you'll have to take on as you train and collect your Pokémon. The writing isn't quite as clever as Nintendo's own Advance Wars series, but it still pops and generally avoids the kind of condescending tone that makes most kids games unplayable by people outside the designated age bracket.
Pokémon are a pretty weird, inexplicable bunch of creatures. Their origins, even within the game's reality, are purposefully vague, and despite their wildly varied appearances and abilities, all Pokémon have a few basic characteristics in common. Most importantly, all Pokémon love to fight other Pokémon, whether it's in a head-to-head spar or a two-on-two match. As they fight, they gain experience and learn new moves. And occasionally, a Pokémon will evolve into a sleeker, more aggressive version of itself, taking on a new name in the process. The Pokémon series has always been expertly keyed in to the obsessive-compulsive traits of gamers, so most of the game revolves around fighting with and capturing different Pokémon.
To be clear, your character never actually fights; instead, you'll send out your own Pokémon to broker victory for you. You can carry up to six different Pokémon with you, and each can have up to four different moves, which can be offensive or defensive and can range from straightforward melee attacks to projectile attacks to even crazy psychic blasts. Despite the limited number of moves, the different alignment of each Pokémon helps inject some extra strategy into the combat. Every Pokémon is categorized by type, such as fire, electric, poison, psychic, and so on. For every type of Pokémon, there's another type whose attack is extremely effective against it, creating a nice rock-paper-scissors dynamic. This is a good reason to "catch 'em all."
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