Pokémon Platinum Review

If you completely missed the Pokémon craze the basic premise is simple but becomes much more complicated if you wish to truly become a Pokémon Master (I also have to ask where you were in the late 90’s/early 00’s?). In a world where humans and creatures known as Pokémon live side by side, almost as equals, you begin journey to become a Pokémon master. The resident town professor is kind enough to give you a Pokémon to call your own. All he asks in return is that you complete a Pokédex, an encyclopedia of all the Pokémon that you come across during your journey. Along the way you’ll train your Pokémon to make them stronger, teach them new moves and in some cases even evolve them. Wild Pokémon will confront you and can either be fought to gain experience or caught to become part of your collection in the quest to ‘catch ‘em all’. Pokémon are monsters that fight one another using a variety of attacks based on their type. Using a turn based battle system you command your Pokémon to use a move, change Pokémon, use an item or flee the battle which is then followed by your opponents move. Nowadays there are a whole heap of different Pokémon types that adds a greater element of strategy when deciding who to send out into battle. Fire, for example, will be very effective against grass type Pokémon but will struggle against the water based creatures. In the main towns a Pokémon Gym leader will truly test your abilities as a Pokémon Trainer. Generally the leader of each gym will focus on a certain type of Pokémon. You may wish to do the same or have a team consisting of different categories to be prepared for what ever you may come across.

In each generation of Pokémon titles two editions of the same game are released and then, around two years later, a remake of that game completes the trio. Essentially the same game is released three times on one platform. This has happened every generation thus far (currently the 4th). Pokémon Platinum is based on Pokémon Diamond & Pearl as Yellow was based on Red & Blue, Crystal was based on Gold & Silver and Emerald was based on Ruby & Sapphire. If you already spent over 40 hours in Diamond & Pearl two years ago it’s hard to straight out recommend this to you again. While there have been some changes, including a new storyline, you’ll be fighting the same battles with almost the same Pokémon, talking to the same people and visiting the same locations. On one hand why should you pay $70 to do this all again? On the other a majority of gamers who enjoy playing Pokémon games won’t care. If you’re a fan then the gameplay is so addictive that you’ll be more than happy to do it all over again.

The biggest addition to Pokémon Platinum is the new storyline that focuses around the Pokémon Giratina, which appears in its Origin Forme while in the new Distortion World. Nintendo promised a whole new world to explore in one of their advertising campaigns. What they meant was that Sinnoh has become colder to suit the new story. Most of the game is played in the same area as Diamond & Pearl; however, you will spend a little time in Distortion World. This new dimension changes the environment and attempts to make everything appear more 3D than other parts of the game. To suit the new story, all of the characters have new sets of clothing for the colder climate which is a nice touch.

Fans of the Battle Frontier in Pokémon Emerald will be happy to know that it has made a return in Pokémon Platinum. Players can go to the Battle Frontier and try out a range of different battle scenarios. These include; Battle Arcade, which introduces a random item to battles that will advantage/disadvantage the player each turn. Battle Castle sees players fight against multiple groups of Pokémon without regaining any HP. Battle Factory requires you to battle using rented Pokémon. It is similar to Pokémon Stadium in that you can fight with Pokémon that you haven't trained yourself. The winner is able to trade his or her Pokémon for that of their opponents at the end of the battle. Battle Hall challenges you to fight against a line-up of trainers with limited Pokémon of your own, and Battle Tower is similar to Battle Castle except it allows the regaining of HP.

Multiplayer has seen some major advancements since the 2007 games were released. The most interesting is the battle recorder that allows you to save any of your Pokémon battles and then share them with other trainers online. This type of thing has been around in console online games for awhile now but it’s the first time I’ve seen it done on the DS. The Wi-Fi Plaza is a new online Pokémon Platinum only area, unlike the other online features which are all compatible with Diamond & Pearl, that allows up to 20 players to complete a series of mini-games. Beyond that all of the same Wi-Fi modes return, allowing for battling and trading locally or online. The Global Trading System has been updated to include email support. Once your email address has been validated you’ll be emailed when a trade is complete. While it’s nothing revolutionary it’s a nice touch and is much more convenient than having to constantly check back.

Visually Pokémon Platinum, like Diamond & Pearl, is disappointing without actually being bad. While there are some 3D elements to the background, such as trees and buildings, it’s still too close to the presentation on the GBA. The character models and Pokémon battle scenes are still presented in 2D and for such core components these really should have made the next step into 3D by now. While it’s not a bad game to look at, titles such as The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass prove that the DS is capable of much more than this.

The audio is in the same boat as the visuals. The screechy sounds of the Pokémon have been lifted directly from the GBA. The tunes are decent, but most have been reused from Diamond & Pearl. Many of them are enjoyable to listen to; although, if you’ve played one of the predecessors recently then some may begin to grow old prematurely. The few new tracks are a little better than the older ones but one can’t help but feel that it would have been nice to have some more new music.

The Final Verdict

If you’ve already spent the time completing Pokémon Diamond & Pearl then it’s hard to straight out recommend this. At the same time I can’t advise you not to consider Pokémon Platinum if you’re a fan of the series. It’s got a few new features here and there but more importantly the gameplay is extremely addictive. The Pokémon series is essentially exactly the same now as it was when it launched 13 years ago, and the formula has certainly stood the test of time. If you haven’t played any of the Pokémon games on DS then Pokémon Platinum is well worth a look and the best out of the 3 currently on the system. The Pokémon games are fun for any age (note that a lot of reading is required) including big kids who love their DS. It’s one of the best RPG’s out there, and will have the serious and the casual RPG gamer hooked. If you’ve got a DS and are yet to play a Pokémon game do yourself a favour and give at least one of them a go. If you’ve already played Pokémon Diamond & Pearl and are willing to put another 40+ hours into a similar game then Pokémon Platinum will not disappoint.

Gameplay

9.5/10

The gameplay has hardly changed since Pokémon Red & Blue were released and it may be the only series to get away with doing that and still sell millions. It has done so for a reason as the Pokémon formula provides one of the best RPG’s available.

Graphics

6.5/10

It’s not a bad game to look at but the main features such as characters and Pokémon battles are still presented as they were on the GBA in 2D. Some backgrounds have moved into 3D as they were in Diamond & Pearl but by now I was hoping more of the game would have followed suit.

Sound

7.0/10

Some of the Pokémon sound effects have been lifted straight from the GBA. The tunes are enjoyable but too many are repeated from the past two games. A few more new tracks would have been nice.

Value

10/10

Once you’ve spent 40-50 hours completing the single player there’s still the multiplayer, trading, training and the Battle Frontier. There’s also a good chance that 6 months down the track you may want to do it all again focusing on a different team of Pokémon.

Overall

9.0/10