Pokemon Rumble

When Pokemon Rumble launched last Monday, I was quite excited to download it as soon as possible. After all, I had already had some hands-on time with it, and was pleased with what I saw. Unfortunately, a myriad of problems with my internet connection prevented me from downloading the game for a few days. However, in the end, I finally got what I had been waiting for.

For those of you that haven't heard of the game, here's the scoop: Pokemon Rumble is one of many spin-offs of the main Pokemon series. In the game, you control a clockwork "toy" Pokemon, travelling through six different levels and capturing new Pokemon with the use of one or two attacks, attached to the "1" and "2" buttons. Because of the fact that all of the Pokemon are toys, they cannot level up, and remain at the same "Power Level" you catch them at, permanently.

I rather enjoyed the simple interface of the game. The D-Pad is used for navigation, and the "1" and "2" buttons are used for attacks – and that's all you need to know. This is why the game has the potential to be another great addition in the Wii's line of party game hits; the gameplay is so simple to learn. Another addition to its party potential is the fact that players can drop in and out during gameplay.

Repetition could become a problem for some player. In my opinion, the fact that each of the levels were the same (albeit with different Pokemon) for each "rank" was severely disappointing, but I was actually amazed at how the simple button-mashing gameplay seemed fresh all throughout. The music, however, became quite frustrating as the battle music played almost all of the time.

Surprisingly, the graphics are quite beautiful, especially for a Wii game (let alone a WiiWare game), and everything is complemented quite nicely. The clockwork Pokemon models, recycled from the previous WiiWare Pokemon game Pokemon Ranch, look right at home.

I don't really have many problems with the rest of the gameplay mechanics. The "Battle Royale", in which you battle waves and waves of Pokemon, works quite well, and the system of catching Pokemon (randomly when fought) isn't bad. Learning new attacks for your Pokemon can sometimes be discouraging, because you do not choose the attacks; they are picked randomly.

One of my favorite aspects of the game is the number of Pokemon concepts that made their way into this spin-off. Type advantages play a huge role, and the old Pokemon calls from the original games make a strange comeback (remember all the old indistinguishable "growls"?). You start the game with only Pokemon from Kanto, which provides a refreshing change from the newer games; however, once that aspect of the game is complete, you move onto the Sinnoh region Pokemon. It is currently unknown if the missing generations will ever appear.

Likes:

• Simple gameplay mechanics
• Complementing and light-hearted graphics
• Allows for players to drop in and out during gameplay

Dislikes:

• No online multiplayer
• Getting new attacks can be annoying
• Same levels repeated

 

Level 42 Review Score

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Pokemon Rumble

A new Pokémon game is on it’s way to WiiWare this coming Monday, and though it won’t be making as big a splash as, say, Diamond or Pearl, for die-hard Pokémon fans, this is definitely not something you’ll want to miss. The biggest element to the game seems to be the multi-player mode, which allows players to jump in and out of the game during play, as well as providing both competitive and co-operative aspects of play.

One of the first things you’ll notice playing the game is the incredible simple interface. A central hub area allows players to choose their Pokémon (curiously, only Pokémon from the first and fourth generations of the series have been seen), as well as giving them access to several dungeon levels. These dungeons aren’t too difficult to traverse, and are mostly linear; you won’t have to worry about getting lost. Pokémon are controlled using the D-Pad to move, and the “1″ and “2″ buttons to attack. When you first start out, you only have one attack, but as you collect coins and battle more Pokémon, new attacks can be learned; however, each Pokémon can only have two attacks, unlike the set of four which have become a staple in the main series.