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!
Pokémon HeartGold Version and Pokémon SoulSilver Version will be available in North America March 14. But given the retailer-encouraged consumer disposition towards pre-ordering things, Pokémon fans who just can’t wait (but will have to, anyway) can start pre-ordering either or both these titles and receive a neat little Pokémon figurine in the process.
Kaiyodo, a company known for making tiny plastic figures, is manufacturing the little toys. As with most Pokémon games, most gamers will have to decide between one game or the other, hoping a friend will buy the corresponding title so that trading can occur and everyone’s Pokédexes can be full. With this pre-order, gamers will get one of two figures depending one which title is preferred.
Today I find myself sitting down to pen this review for a third time, having scrapped my first two drafts since I already mentioned much of what I wanted to say in Episode 2 of this season’s Toronto Thumbs Podcast.
If you haven’t listened to it, here’s a brief overview in one sentence: Pokémon Platinum may be targeted at a youth audience but the game has so much depth in it that even adults can appreciate it. This general idea was prefaced with Adam and I reminiscing about the first Game Boy Pokémon titles, and how much we were into them despite being well outside of the core demographic of the series.
Pokémon Snap allows you to send photos to friends.
Today’s Virtual Console update marks the first time a significant gameplay change has been made to a game. Pokémon Snap (N64, 1000 points) allows users to not only snap photos of Pokémon as in the original, but also allows them to post the pictures to their Wii Message Board and send them to Wii friends. Pretty cool addition! Pokémon Snap in itself is a decent game but not recommended unless you really, really love Pokémon. Rounding out today’s releases are Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins (NES, 500 points) and BASEBALL STARS 2 (NEO-GEO, 900 points).
Later today the Wii Shop Channel will be adding the Gifting feature. This will allow you to give Virtual Console games, as gifts, to others on your Wii address book. It’s a neat little feature that avoids you having to see your friends ever again! This might even be considered a bonus, depending on who you keep as friends.
Teletoon.com has three great gaming-related contests running right now, and the prizes are somewhat out there. For their Pokémon Diamond Version and Pearl Version contest (link removed - contest is over), the grand prize consists of four DS Lites, four Wi-Fi USB dongles, four Nintendo DS Headsets, and four copies each of Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl.
The Mario Galaxy Zero Gravity contest’s grand prize is a “Zero Gravity Gaming Party” where the winner and seven of his/her friends will get together in a movie theatre for a Super Mario Galaxy battle. The winner will also receive a Wii and one copy of Super Mario Galaxy.
Lastly, the Petz2 Invade Your Space contest has a grand prize of a bedroom makeover, including a flat screen TV, Nintendo DS, a DVD player, and copies of all the new Petz titles for DS.
The contests are only open to residents of Canada. Get entering, and good luck!
