Toronto Thumbs

Super Effective
Pokémon HeartGold

Snubbed by some grown-ups; fervently lauded by others; a religion to children the world over: this is Pokémon. After years of skillfully avoiding anything to do with this franchise, I have failed to escape the clutches of these little creatures. That’s right folks; with their latest installment, Pokémon HeartGold, the Pokémon have caught me!

The game starts you off in Johto, where you live with your mom next to a lab dedicated to Pokémon research. You are summoned over to the lab by Professor Elm and are given the choice between 3 starter Pokémon. From this point the adventure begins in earnest as you struggle to become the greatest Pokémon trainer in the Johto and Kanto regions.

You make your way through the game, fighting and capturing wild Pokémon; participating in matches with complete strangers; dueling with the skilled Gym Leaders; dealing with Team Rocket (bad guys). Eventually you will get the chance to duel your nemesis, Red, in what can only be a grueling final match.

The graphics and sound for the game are awesome. Although I have not played other games from this series, I have seen screencaps and footage, so I know that the visuals have been tweaked. The bright colours and over-the-top creatures really add to idea that this is a franchise for kids; looking closer, though, reveals a startling amount of detail. Another nice touch is the usage of the internal clock to affect the game (some creatures are only available at certain times of the day).

Becoming oriented with the control scheme won’t take more than ten minutes, and everything is well laid out. Most of your interaction with the game outside of dueling and walking around is done by rifling through your backpack. Your Pokédex (Pokémon encyclopedia), Pokégear, power-ups and more are located in the backpack which is a touch (or button) away. I think Game Freak did a great job with the interface! Even the Pokéwalker’s control scheme is simple and fun to use!

The Pokéwalker is a clever device. One of the largest complains I hear about Pokémon is the fact that kids just sit around and play it. The Pokéwalker is the perfect remedy for this, as it awards you for actually walking around in real life! You upload a Pokémon of your choosing to the Pokéwalker, choose a setting, and off you go! For every step you take from then on, your Pokémon generates “watts”.  These can be spent to catch other Pokémon; to find items; to discover: all in the Pokéwalker itself! The little device (which can be placed in your pocket or mounted to a belt clip) has a few buttons but allows a fair bit of control for something so simple. You will find yourself fiddling with the Pokémon all day, using watts to find items and hunt other Pokémon. You can even find a friend with a Pokéwalker and sync up to get a gift! Once you download your Pokémon from the pedometer, they will gain presents, experience, and unlock new levels.

As my first experience with the franchise (other than seeing tons of print ads and commercials), I really enjoyed it. I’m sure some people reading this will kindly ask me to have my head examined, but I speak the truth. Even though I found the game fun, though, I doubt that I would play it for a long time. It is a little too repetitive for me.

However, that should not dissuade you from picking this up if you are a fan (or even if you are not). There is plenty of playability in this game and I am confident that it will pass the test for newbies and veterans alike! Simple yet wicked graphics, a decent soundtrack, great controls and wireless broadband/local wireless multiplayer goodness will have you madly collecting as many Pokémon as you can!

Pokémon HeartGold and Pokémon SoulSilver are available for the Nintendo DS line.

Posted in DS, DSi, Pokémon, Reviews |