25 Days of Pokémon: Top 5 Endgame Events

Capping off my month’s worth of ‘top five’ lists focusing on the Pokémon series, this list covers five of my very favorite moments or chain of events from late in their respective games. Some are only accessible after completing the main game, while others are incorporated as part of the plot late in the core experience. Honorable mentions go to the Unova Battle Subway and the Delta Episode from the recently released Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. This has been a fun and very different approach to my ’25 Days of Christmas’ special, and I’d certainly consider doing something similar in future years with some of my other favorite video game franchises, like Metal Gear, Metroid, or even some more Legend of Zelda (even though it is one of the most frequently represented series on this blog).

#5) Revisiting the Kanto gyms in Gold and Silver / Heart Gold and Soul Silver – The generation II titles and their DS remakes will always hold a special place for me, as the first proper Pokémon games that I played on the Gameboy Color, as well as the games that got me back into Pokémon just a few short years ago. While the Elite Four and battle against Lance was a properly climactic conclusion to the Johto storyline, discovering how much more lay beyond the borders in Kanto blew my mind as a kid. In reality, this retread of the Kanto region is a trimmed down, fast-paced romp compared to both its original Red/Blue incarnation, as well as the entirety of the Gold/Silver storyline, but it was still tons of fun to go up against the likes of Brock, Lt. Surge, Erica, Misty, and all the other classic gym leaders.

#4) The Distortion World in Platinum – As Cyrus sees his plan to summon the legendary Giratina revealed, the game transports you both to an alien realm, one that appropriately reflects Giratina’s representation of anti-matter. Waterfalls flow from one impossible floating cliff to another, stalks of unnatural plants appear and disappear, and the game requires you to adopt a mindset more common to a series like The Legend of Zelda to solve a few puzzles in order to progress to the final showdown with Giratina. This drastic jolt from intense end-of-the-world scenario to mystical realm of impossibility was one of the moments in Platinum that really made me appreciate the game’s bold and stranger direction than most of its predecessors, even if this approach had not panned out quite as effectively in earlier legs of my adventures through the Sinnoh region.

#3) The Pokémon World Tournament in Black 2 and White 2 – This tournament effectively served as a love letter to Pokémon fans. It allowed players to hone their skills and perfect their strategies while taking on gym leaders and league champions from all the previous regions in a bracket tournament, and even offered up the more highly-specialized tournaments demanding players only use Pokémon that fit a specific typing. Of the plethora of post-game offerings in the generation V sequels, the Pokémon World Tournament was the most intense, the most robust, and constantly offered plenty of opportunities for fun and learning with each successive battle.

#2) The League Champion Battle against Iris in Black 2 and White 2 – While Black and White’s league champion battle was interrupted due to the arrival of Team Plasma, the sequel games do it up properly as one of the most fitting endgame challenges, but also one of the most enjoyable battles in any Pokémon game to date. Iris is so bubbly and excited to see what you’ve made of yourself as a trainer after the remnants of Team Plasma disbanded, and it’s both a breath of fresh air following the darker implications of the main story, and a perfect endpoint for that same journey. This battle against Iris and her team of Pokémon had me on the edge of my seat for all of the right reasons.

#1) The Elite Four in Black and White – This team technically also accounts for the Elite Four present in Black 2 and White 2, but my first time challenging them was truly something special. The Elite Four have always served as the endgame gauntlet-style challenge in the Pokémon titles, forcing players to bring their very best team members and strategies, and carefully planning each move as they attempt to forge a path toward the league champion. And yet, some of these have proved too easy a feat, as was the case in X and Y as well as the recent Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. Others still have had such a sudden leap in the scaling of the opponents Pokémon, as was the case in Platinum. The Elite Four of the Unova region present Pokémon that are at a level that is simply perfect for that endgame climax, offering up a high degree of challenge, but one that is certainly possible to overcome, given proper planning and flexibility in the heat of battle. The typings of the Pokémon in the possession of each member of the Elite Four still stands as my favorite combination, with Dark, Ghost, Psychic and Fighting taking the stage in wonderfully-rendered arenas that provide each of the four characters with their own unique arenas that reflect their personalities and provide players a brief look into who they are as individuals. Grimsley’s candleit lounge, Shauntal’s gloomy study, Marshall’s chain-link-surrounded fighting ring, and Caitlin’s lavish bedroom – Black and White breaks from the tradition of trekking down a single linear hallway, allowing you to tackle these in whichever order

Anime review: Pokémon the Movie: White – Victini and Zekrom

Continuing their adventures through the Unova region, Ash, Iris, and Cilan find themselves headed to a small secluded town, nestled in a mountainous area of the country. They plan to participate in a small, one-on-one and single-elimination tournament, but Ash decides to take a quick detour along the way in order to help a couple of Deerling that are dangerously close to the edge of a narrow cliff. Unfortunately this noble deed similarly puts him in danger, though he is able to jump to safety thanks to the psychic powers of the legendary Pokémon Victini. While Ash is wholly unaware of Victini’s influence over his finding his route back to his friends, word of Victini residing in the area is common folklore among the local people.

In actuality, Victini is restricted to that town and the immediately surrounding area due to powerful pillars of energy that were put in place long ago by a king who led his people away from a desert land. The king put the pillars and a giant tower fortress at the top of the mountain so as to seal the Dragon Force, a powerful energy stream that saps the life of plants and Pokémon in turn, as it winds its way across the countryside. While Victini shared a special bond with the king, utilizing the legendary Pokémon’s psychic powers in moving his people to a better homeland and stopping the destructive flow of the Dragon Force took all the energy the king had, and thus he passed away before he could set Victini free from this unintentional prison.

As Ash trumps his competition, one girl finds his winning streak suspicious, and inquires if his Pokémon had some help from Victini. Wholly unaware of the fact that this was true, Ash denies even seeing Victini, but Cilan’s home-baked treats are just the ticket for luring the psychic Pokémon out from hiding. As Ash and friends talk to the girl and her mother, they reveal that they are the same people that the king once led to safety, and that a young man named Damon wants to attempt a return to their home country.

The story then cuts to the tale that served as the origin for N’s ideals and the introduction for Reshiram and Zekrom in the video games – that being the tale of the two sons of yet another king of the Unova region. One son was known as the hero of ideals, and the other known as the hero of truth. Each partnered with one of the legendary dragon Pokémon, and were well-loved by their subjects, but eventually their rivalry turned to animosity, and in their attempts to overpower one another, Reshiram and Zekrom’s power whittled away so greatly that they were forced to slumber as white and black orbs respectively. In the present day, it is revealed that Damon has discovered Reshiram’s white orb and reawakened the legendary Pokémon to aid in his plans to return to the old homeland.

Pokémon: White – Victini and Zekrom does well in handling some of its smaller details. There are deliberate ties to the video game lore, in order to make the story of the film feel less alienated. The Pokémon typings also seem to play somewhat more of an important role this time around, as Pokémon display weaknesses to Pokémon they would logically have a disadvantage against in combat. However, in terms of the stand-alone story, the film does not make many solid connections. The backstory of the king details how Victini was used as a conduit to power the floating fortress, and so Damon’s desire to recreate this scenario makes sense given the legendary Pokémon’s immense power. However, there is no real justification given for why Damon feels it is necessary to make a return pilgrimage to the desert from which they arrived. Life in the mountain town seems quite pleasant, and Damon never explains why he feels a return is necessary – not even such a shallow explanation as ‘it’s where we started, and it’s where we belong’.

The floating fortress evokes distinct memories of the airship designed to capture the legendary birds and lure out Lugia in the second theatrical Pokémon movie. Except, in this film, Damon already has Reshiram at his side. There is no real reason for any of Damon’s grand scheme, nor is there much explored about his character. He appears to be something of a history buff, and is apparently quite well-liked by the locals, but it is unclear if he is following some delusional interpretation of the texts he is so engrossed in, or if he is simply attempting this journey home just for the heck of it.

The Pokémon battles are spaced out quite a bit, as there is some extra time needed to explain the multiple (though loosely connected) historical tales. While Ash and Pikachu playing with Victini is cute and fun for a brief while, each bout of downtime this film settles into is obnoxiously longer than need be. The last twenty-five minutes or so of the film certainly display more exciting sessions of Pokémon battles and the eventual appearance of Zekrom clashing with Reshiram, but it’s a matter of the film playing its best hand after a consistently mundane presentation. Young viewers may ignore the significant plot holes, but anyone who appreciated the extra storytelling depth presented in the generation V video game counterparts will find no such complexity here.

My rating: 5 (out of 10)

25 Days of Pokémon - Top 5 Pokémon Games

For this year’s twenty-five days of Christmas special, I’ll be focusing on the Pokémon series, albeit in a different manner than in years past. Instead of making one giant list of my favorite Pokémon or what have you, I’ve opted to make five separate ‘top five’ lists, each highlighting a different aspect of the series. Each will be posted roughly a week apart from one another, between now and December 24th. Today marks the second list, which details my five very favorite titles in the Pokémon series.

#5) Platinum – Generation IV is heralded as many as one of the weaker offerings of the main series of Pokémon games, due to its lack of new Pokémon, few of which are generally considered worthwhile team members, while others are obtainable only through a convoluted process. Still, I certainly found Team Galactic’s intent to tamper with time and space to serve their own needs entertaining, trumped only by Cyrus’ detached and selfish vision for the world. Platinum offers a completed package, with a bit of extra content not included in the original release of Diamond and Pearl, and between its Distortion World puzzle segment and expansive gyms, is still a fun Pokémon title, even if its reliance on event-distributed items and battery-sapping online components means it does not live up to the quality of some of its brethren.

#4) X and Y – The sixth generation games offered up plenty of new and different features that made the connection between player and Pokémon more immersive. These titles also fell victim to considerably easier playthroughs, thanks to the new experience share system that distributed exp. to all team members, even when wild Pokémon were caught. Even if large portions of routes were bypassed here and there, it was not uncommon to find the endgame Elite Four and Champion battles to be a cakewalk. Mega Evolutions proved a tad underwhelming, save for their use in the competitive scene, though the new Pokémon native to the Kalos region offered wonderful typings and movesets, by and large. X and Y did a great deal to advance the Pokémon formula players had become so familiar with, while being perhaps lighter on post-game content than what series veterans were accustomed to.

#3) Black 2 and White 2 – Two years after Ghetsis’ defeat, Team Plasma is back at it in the Unova region, and the influx of Pokémon from other regions during wild encounters makes for a vastly different play experience, despite running on the same setup as its Black and White predecessors. While it would have been easy for Black 2 and White 2 to simply ride on the coattails of the previous monochromatic titles, the team behind these two sequels decided to up the ante, offering brand new areas to explore, even greater ease of access to newcomers and veterans alike with regards to acquiring TMs and training Pokémon for specialized roles, and did away with the need for HMs in the main storyline almost entirely. There’s a lot to do and see in B2 and W2, from NPC trades, to post-game quests, to the test-your-might tournament that allowed trainers to challenge gym leaders and champions from all five major regions of the Pokémon world.

#2) Heart Gold and Soul Silver – The games that properly reintroduced me to Pokémon, these remakes of the generation II titles carry all the sense of fun and adventure in the Johto region over to a significantly easier-to-navigate menu and faster-paced battles. What Red and Blue laid out in ground work, Gold and Silver nigh on perfected for their heyday, and HG and SS do a masterful job of paying tribute to the Gameboy classics, making routes more distinctly identifiable, updating the soundtrack and splashing plenty of color on the screen, and implementing the generation IV online and wireless trade and battle components in a manner even more so seamless than Diamond, Pearl, or Platinum did beforehand. Few regions will ever stand up to the intelligent layout of Johto, or the solid offering of Pokémon encountered therein, and there’s no more enjoyable way to embark on this journey again than through these DS remakes.

#1) Black and White – One of the few Pokémon games to actually present a decently compelling set of ideals for its villainous team to rally behind, the ‘free-Pokémon-from-their-masters’ cries of Team Plasma put you, the player, in a role that will be continuously questioned over the course of this bold new set of Pokémon titles. Generation V effectively barred players from using any non-Unova Pokémon until the postgame content, forcing creative team building strategies not unlike the days of Red and Blue on the Gameboy, but with overall better-balanced Pokémon to choose from, and highly creative and practical typing and moveset combinations to boot. What I found in Black and White was the most engrossing plot of the series, coupled with the most intelligent, creative, and strategic gameplay of any of the generations, bar none. Black 2 and White 2 did exceptionally well at building off of Black and White’s duality of getting back to the basics while simultaneously breaking into bold new territory, but at the end of the day, Black and White did it first, and did it best.

Top 5 Legendary Pokémon

As I mentioned in my journal postings for Pokémon Soul Silver, that was the first core title in the franchise that I had played since the original release of Generation II on the Gameboy Color. Since then, my obsession with the Pokémon games has only grown. I’ve made it my goal to play at least one game from every generation, and Platinum is the next one I intend to tackle as a sort of bridge until the release of X and Y (I’m still not certain as to whether I want to pick up X or Y at this point). Among my most memorable moments in the games have been the intense battles with legendary Pokémon, as well as subsequent attempts to catch them. In order to prevent this list from becoming lopsided toward one generation or another, I will be selecting a single legendary Pokémon from each of the current five generations of games, labeling it as my favorite of Generation I, II, III, IV, and V repectively.

Generation I (Red, Blue, and Yellow) – Mewtwo: There were only a few legendaries available in the first Pokémon games, due primarily to the limited roster of 151 slots. While Zapdos, Articuno, and Moltres were all cool in their own right, Mewtwo was my favorite of the bunch. I’ve always had a soft spot for Psychic type Pokémon, but my appreciation for Mewtwo was not immediate upon my first seeing him in any of the games. Rather, it developed over several years as I witnessed his origin in the first Pokémon movie, as well as the side games that the whole concept of Mewtwo being among the smartest and most capable of Pokémon eventually culminated in me genuinely liking it – not just as a potential team member within the games, but as a character within the anime. He may not be my favorite legendary of all time, but there is something unique about Mewtwo’s presentation that practically sets him in his own category, distinct from all other legendary Pokémon.

Generation II (Gold, Silver, and Crystal) – Raikou: My love for Raikou originates from his being the underdog (no pun intended) of Johto’s legendary trio. As a kid, everyone I knew was a fan of either Entei or Suicune – Entei because it was a beastly looking fire-type, and Suicune because it was an elegant looking water-type as well as the version mascot for Crystal. Hardly anyone I knew cared much to bother tracking down Raikou, but he was the one I sought out first and foremost. I really enjoy using Raikou in battle, as his defense is significantly better than most electric types like Magneton or Ampharos. At the same time, Raikou does not feel terribly overpowered – rather, his effectiveness in battle seems to fall somewhere between other legendaries and the rest of the Pokémon of the Johto region.

Generation III (Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald) – Deoxys: My reaction toward the Generation III legendaries was a bit mixed from the outset, admittedly. I found the Regi trio to be decently interesting from a conceptual standpoint, but the routine of three legendary Pokémon who were very aesthetically similar had largely worn off its charm by the time Ruby and Sapphire came around. Groudon, Kyogre, and Rayquaza weren’t bad by any means, but to this day I have never considered any of them particularly outstanding. Deoxys, on the other hand, was a fresh new idea – a single Pokémon that had four different forms. Granted, you couldn’t have Deoxys changing between Normal, Attack, Defense, and Speed on the fly, but that was more or less the point – it granted players some freedom in planning their strategies while also holding them accountable for setting Deoxys to one of the four aforementioned states.

Generation IV (Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum) – Giratina: Ghost Pokémon have become something of my specialty over the past year or so, and I really wish Game Freak would add another Ghost-type to the current pool of legendaries. That said, Giratina is possibly the single most intimidating legendary Pokémon based on looks alone, and has a very curious dual-typing: Ghost and Dragon. Holding dominion over antimatter, Giratina is certainly a force to be reckoned with.

Generation V (Black, White, Black 2, and White 2) – Genesect: This one was a really close call with Zekrom, who I used for the majority of the White version post-game. However, Genesect was one of my core team members during my playthrough of Black 2. A dual Bug and Steel type, Genesect has a little extra defense and a highly adaptable moveset. Each time I play a Pokémon game, I try to have at least one jack-of-all-trades member on my team, and (alongside Lucario) Genesect performed that role masterfully in Black 2.

Top 10 Games of the Seventh Generation Consoles - #5: Pokémon Black and Pokémon White

Over the years, Game Freak has done quite a bit of experimenting with the Pokémon series, between the core entries and the side games/spinoffs. While still a six-member party RPG game, the inclusion of dual types and special abilities provided a new dynamic to strategies players would adopt. However, the Generation IV titles Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum were less well-received by many in the Pokémon community following their release, due to a number of factors including a lack of balance in the representation of the then-seventeen types, as well as some new evolutions of pre-existing Pokémon that some fans considered entirely unnecessary.

Thus, the Generation V games known as Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version saw Game Freak perform a sort of balancing act between the new and the old. The fundamentals of the game were retained, and many familiar tasks were streamlined to better utilize the DS’ hardware. Trading was no longer handled through the Pokémon Centers – rather any player could access the ‘trade’ and ‘battle’ options on a whim via the handheld’s lower screen and interact accordingly with a friend/opponent nearby. The simple act of combining the Pokémon Center and PokéMart into a single building proved to be a giant time-saver.

Meanwhile, the one-hundred and fifty Pokémon players could catch in Black and White were all new, with access to Pokémon from previous generations being restricted (outside of trading) until the sizeable post-game section. The types were carefully chosen to create a near-perfect balance. Though some generation V Pokémon were perhaps more ideal to certain players than others, the fully evolved form of each Pokémon had a practical use and could serve to complement a party well. The Elite Four put up a solid challenge, and the concept of having the antagonistic Team Plasma’s desire be the liberation of Pokémon from their owners/partners made for a strikingly original and entertaining spin on an old classic - one that was mildly more thought-provoking than the plans laid out by previous baddies who wished to drown/dry up the world or mess with the time-space continuum. Everything Game Freak implemented in Black and White, they did so with good reason, and the games stand out as what I would consider to be among the best in the series as a result. There’s a decent degree of challenge, though the game allows for a great range of freedom with selecting party members and strategies. Above all else, Pokémon Black and White are just plain fun to play.

Top 5 Video Games of 2012

As with my previous top five game of the year lists, the following games are more a reflection of which titles I had the most fun with or felt were noteworthy for any number of reasons (gameplay, creativity, successfully catering to a certain genre, etc.). While these games do not exactly follow the ratings I ascribed to them, they follow more closely that some of the games I rated in years past, as each of these games earned ratings between 9 and 9.5. Also, any games that I had played in previous years were ineligible for making this list, unless they were a remake (in the case of the Metal Gear Solid: HD Collection, MGS2 and MGS3 were not eligible, but Peace Walker was in the running and came pretty close to earning a spot this list).

#5 – Super Mario 3D Land: I’m generally partial to 3D Mario games over the side-scrolling entries, probably because Super Mario 64 was one of my first outings with Nintendo’s leading mascot. Super Mario 3D Land presents a hybrid of these two gameplay styles. None of the stages are particularly long, but they all feel fully-realized and present plenty of variation in aesthetic style and obstacles/enemies. The boss fights are perhaps the only lackluster part of the experience, but the airship stages leading up to each are exciting enough. The post-game is incredibly expansive – effectively, the number of stages is doubled, and said bonus stages are rather intense. The use of 3D allows for greater depth perception throughout, while also making a few key stages very cinematic in delivery.

#4 – Final Fantasy IV: Though I never played Final Fantasy IV in its original SNES release (known stateside as Final Fantasy II), I felt right at home the moment I started my journey with Cecil, Kain, Rosa, and company. Final Fantasy IV takes advantage of the DS to present a cleaner vision of the game. The soundtrack has been gorgeously reorchestrated, while the characters are portrayed as semi-chibi. The boss fights are impressively rendered and some of the obstacles require unorthodox means to overcome them - this is a large part of why I enjoyed FFIV so much; it retains the 1990s-era degree of challenge. The cast is easily my favorite from any of the Final Fantasy titles I have played to date, the battle system is perfect, and the whole experience feels genuinely rewarding.

#3 – Resident Evil Revelations: It’s rare that a handheld sidestory will stack up to a major release in terms of quality, but Resident Evil Revelations is, in my opinion, the best RE title since Resident Evil 4. The cruise ship setting is sufficiently creepy, while the enemy designs draw from sea creatures and round out the horror side of the experience. The game plays like the more action-heavy entries in the series, but ammo is not nearly as abundant as it is in either RE5 or RE6, forcing you to be tactical and conservative when fighting enemies. Resident Evil Revelations blurs the lines between handheld and console games, offering up what is one of the most impressive experiences on the 3DS to date.

#2 – Pokémon Black and White: Much like with Heart Gold and Soul Silver, I love the way that Nintendo has made the Pokémon games more user-friendly over time. Each of the new types available has its own particular use, with some being highly-specialized and others being fairly rounded, but the element of strategy is still as prominent as ever. I really appreciated the fact that the game required practically no time grinding so that I could keep chugging along through the story (which, I might add, is the best I've found in the entire series). The gym battles certainly dish out a better challenge in Black 2 and White 2, but the Elite Four battles are among the most intense and exciting portions of the games. Though Nintendo and Game Freak's decision to make direct sequels ended up having beautiful results, Pokémon Black and White gain a marginal advantage over Black 2 and White 2.

#1 – No More Heroes: Though I fell in love with No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle back in 2010, I actually did not play the original No More Heroes in proper until this year. While there are a few differences in the way the two play, I consider them equal in quality – though the second has better pacing and does not require Travis to complete side jobs to progress to each new ranking fight, the fights and characters themselves tended to be more memorable in the first game. Travis’ development from socially awkward otaku who wants to be number one to his eventual understanding of the gravity of what being an assassin can mean is something that gradually unfolds, and is wonderfully scripted instead of being explicitly stated to players. The gameplay is a perfect balance of traditional joystick and buttons with motion controls, the soundtrack is phenomenal, and No More Heroes is easily one of the best games to come out for any of this generation’s consoles.

Top five video games and anime of 2012 - Spring contenders

As has become a tradition over the past few years, I will once again be doing a recap at the end of this year of all the anime I've watched and all the video games I've played in 2012. As June is now under way, I feel that I have a strong indication of which titles from those two categories have a good chance of being labeled by me as the five best by the end of the year. The anime and video game titles listed below are not guaranteed to make into the top five of either category, as there are still others I have yet to experience during the remainder of the year. But I do feel that they presently have a good chance at making the cut.

- Video games -

Super Mario 3D Land - In all honestly, this was the most fun I've had with a Mario game since Super Mario 64. That said, I've always been partial to the free-roam Mario games versus the side-scrolling platformers. The way Nintendo has utilized the 3D hardware with this game is fantastic, and despite the fact that the boss fights are a bit redundant, smart level design and impressive replay value make up for it.

Pokémon Black and White - I think it's safe to say that this game is in the top five for certain. I jumped back on board the Pokémon bandwagon with Soul Silver version, and White version proved a fantastic follow-up. There is as much emphasis on strategy as there is on freedom f choosing your team members, and the game presents a great balance of challenge and fun. Though the gym leader battles seem to become easier as the game progresses, the Elite Four battles are epic. The story is rather well-scripted, and Unova feels more alive and teeming with activity than the regions from previous games.

Resident Evil Revelations - Another game that is almost certain to make it to the top five, Resident Evil Revelations is the best Resident Evil title I've played since RE4. It brings back classic horror elements of the older games by placing Jill Valentine and company onboard a cruise ship infested with a new type of zombie. The ocean life theme is a great new direction for the series to take, as creatures that resemble coral, fish, and crabs are as cool to look at as they are terrifying to encounter. Raid Mode presents a fresh new spin on Mercenaries-style gameplay, and the whole package presents what it easily one of the best handheld gaming experiences I have had to date.

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker - I am not considering the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection in its entirety as eligible for the top five, due in part to the fact that I have previously played MGS2 and MGS3. Peace Walker, on the other hand, is an entirely new beast to me, as I never owned a PSP. Frankly, it is half the reason I purchased the HD Collection, and I find the freedom allowed in its gameplay intriguing. Certainly Peace Walker is not as pretty to look at as either of the two other games, but it is a very full and satisfying experience from beginning to end, and serves as a fitting sequel to the events of Snake Eater.

- Anime -

Darker Than Black: Gemini of the Meteor - It's might not be as good as the original Darker Than Black, but it's a damn good follow-up just the same. Gemini of the Meteor provides a fresh perspective on the relationship between humans and contractors by presenting the story from the point of view of Suou Pavlichenko, a young girl living in Russia. Hei is still important to the story, but take a back seat for the first half of Gemini of the Meteor. It still carries the vibe of the original Darker Than Black, but some of the subject matter and the soundtrack allow Gemini of the Meteor to identify itself as something that is equally similar and different. The staff put some careful thought into this series instead of churning out a crappy, rushed sequel.

Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam - One of my biggest goals with regards to choosing anime to watch in 2012 was picking out many of the classics I missed out on back in the day. Zeta Gundam is essentially the Empire Strikes Back of the original Gundam storyline. As an anime from the 80s, it is not as clean as more modern series. There is plenty of cheesy dialogue and teenage angst. But what it accomplished for its time is truly impressive. The older Gundam series are the primary reason mecha anime is so popular today. Zeta Gundam's story is very well planned, the animation gets better with each episode, and all in all its just plain fun classic sci-fi.

Akira - Another classic, one viewing of Akira made it clear just how much of an impression this film left on the sci-fi anime genre. It's a dark and wonderful look into both the fantastical futuristic city and the practical relationships humans share. The hand-drawn animation is downright gorgeous for its time, and the soundtrack isn't far behind. Trying to explain Akira to someone does not do the film justice. It is something that must be experience to be fully understood.

Cowboy Bebop - This series manages to balance a great storyline with a very distinct musical and artistic style. The end result is one of the most entertaining and just plain fun series from the mid to late 1990s. Spike, Jet, Faye, and Ed play off one another wonderfully, with each presenting a distinctly different personality. The show places emphasis on creating a new subgenre of the sci-fi anime, but just as often succeeds at delivering a very genuine and human story. The show has lots of funny scenes, plenty of action, and even a few sad moments that round out the whole viewing experience.

DS review: Pokémon Black and White

The fifth generation of Pokémon games will likely be the last on the standard DS handhelds as Nintendo moves into new territory with the 3DS. The series has seen a number of aesthetic changes over the years, as well and new additions to the Pokémon roster with each new generation. As evidenced through fan response to the previous generation four titles of Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum, these new Pokémon can sometimes prove a mixed bag, with some not as welcomed with open arms. The generation five games of Pokémon Black and White seek to do two things for the franchise - break new ground with game design and return to some of the basics when it comes to the Pokémon players have access to.

The starters are very well balanced, and are in keeping with the traditional choices of water-type, grass-type, and fire-type. However, assuming you seek out a specific individual early on in the game, you will get one of three monkey-like Pokémon, each of which is also attributed with the water, grass, and fire themes. Whether you receive Panpour, Pansage, or Pansear is dependent on the starter you choose at the game's outset, and can prove a valuable team member early on in combating your two rivals, as well as the first couple of gym leaders.

From there, the remaining one hundred and fifty newcomers feel largely like new spins on old, tried and true formulas. Zebstrika is essentially an electric-type equivalent to Rapidash, favoring speed and special attack stats over defense. Darmanitan, on the other hand, is a heavy hitter fire-type who can take quite a beating, and who can learn a number of fire-type and a few fighting-type moves, a handful of which can allow him to deliver massive damage to enemies in exchange for lowered speed stat or slight loss in health.

Dual-types see perhaps the largest shift, as nearly every one has been designed with a specific strategy in mind. Chandelure can combat both brethren ghost-types with moves like Hex and Night Shade, and can use fire-type attacks to dispatch grass-types and other wild Pokémon who are only affected by traditional physical moves. The three legendaries have been designed with a strategic approach in mind as well, since Zekrom, Reshiram, and Kyurem all have a commonality as dragon-types, but diverge as electric, fire, and ice dual-types respectively. Some of these dual formulas, like steel/grass, flying/rock, and fighting/steel might seem a bit odd at first, but each serves its own purpose. There are very few Pokémon in the roster that are downright weak.

The process of leveling up moves at a much quicker pace this time around. There are a consistently high number of trainers on any given route between the cities, and the sidequests in different towns will sometimes require you to face off against characters before fully aiding them. Double battles occur on a regular basis in the wild, assuming you are walking in the dark-colored tall grass. Early access to an experience share and a wide variety of evolutionary stones only help to increase the pace.

Each gym leader is only allotted three Pokémon, and will generally reserve their single powerhouse Pokémon for last. This is one part of the experience that feels unbalanced. The first few gyms progress at a consistent rate, but the couple that follow throw off the rhythm. Elesa and Clay both have Pokémon that tend to spam a singular, over-powered move, and this leg of the journey can prove frustrating. Past that point, though, the gym leader battles become less and less challenging to the point where they are practically a joke. Thankfully, the variety of Pokémon in the possession of the Elite Four, as well as the significant challenge they present, largely makes up for the shortcomings on the part of the gym leaders.

There's actually a decent story to Black and White, courtesy in large part to the actions of Team Plasma. Unlike previous groups, Team Plasma's vision is to steal people's Pokémon away from them in order to create a world where all the Pokémon are free. It brings into play the question of just what it means to be a Pokémon trainer and whether or not the Pokémon in your party (or anyone else's, for that matter) actually want to be partnered with humans.

Two childhood friends act as rivals, one of whom aspires to be as strong as the regional champion, the other one being a somewhat clumsy and naive girl whose journey as a Pokémon trainer goes against her father's wishes. Cheren (the former) ends up being less rounded out and subsequently less believable a character than Bianca (the latter). Pitting you against two rivals, as well as Team Plasma's ironically potential noble cause presents what is perhaps the most memorable story in the entire Pokémon series. The narrative may not be quite as rich or complicated as the likes of a Final Fantasy title, but it's engaging nonetheless.

New to Pokémon Black and White are triple battles and rotation battles. While these are nowhere near as frequent as standard one-on-one scuffles, they certainly add another layer of complexity to the battle system. With triple battles, planning your team's setup is often crucial, as only the Pokémon in the center is able to attack any one of the three opponents - the two on either side are only able to attack the Pokémon directly in front of them as well as the one immediately next to that one. Rotation battles also see three Pokémon pitted against another team of three, but attack one at a time. Both Black and White version are host to houses in one of the towns visited late in the main game that allow players to visit once per day and challenge the residents to these new battles.

Outside of the main story, the game presents plenty of distractions. In Nimbasa City, there is both a theater where Pokémon can take part in a musical performance to earn rewards, and the Battle Subway which operates similar to the Battle Frontier from Diamond/Pearl and Heart Gold/Soul Silver. Depending on which version you have purchased, you can access either Black City or White forest post-game. Pokémon not native to Unova can be found in these regions, and their level of development is dependent on your actions throughout your journey.

Upon completing the main story, new areas are accessed and allow you to face off against trainers with Pokémon from other regions that are at significant higher levels than those previously encountered. The post-game area that is unlocked in Black and White is nowhere near as sizeable as the Kanto region in Heart Gold/Soul Silver's post-game. But Black/White does encourage players to revisit new sections of familiar terrain in order to track down rare items and the game's elusive legendary Pokémon.

Without a doubt, Pokémon Black and White has what is easily the most groundbreaking soundtrack in the series to date. It's also the best by far, with battle themes that pay homage to its Red and Blue roots and some downright epic battle themes (Reshiram and Zekrom's theme is one such standout number). Graphically, the game looks pretty good, considering it is an RPG with a top-down perspective. The 3D models that grace some of the cutscenes may look a bit angular and rough at times, but are also pushing the hardware of the DS pretty far. Calls on the X-Transceiver phone display characters in the style of the anime. As a whole, environments are incredibly colorful. The urban areas are teeming with activity while the many forests and routes have weather that changes seasons every so often, and this can allow for access to new areas. In battle, each Pokémon is animated, both when standing still and while attacking. The opponent's Pokémon in the distance look quite good, though your own team members that are displayed in the foreground look heavily pixelated.

In short, both Pokémon Black version and White version are beautifully realized entries into the series. Pokémon games have long been revered as some of the best on any of Nintendo's handhelds. With the variety of Pokémon available, exciting areas to explore, and creative gameplay elements, the fifth generation serves a prime example. Its primary concern is a strategic approach that is as engaging as it is enjoyable. Each of the Pokémon available for capture is a worthwhile grab, though every player is going to have his or her preferences. And that's what makes the Pokémon games - Black and White in particular - so well received; the freedom to approach battles with a multitude of strategies.

My rating: 9.25 (out of 10)

Pokémon Black and White 2 details emerge

Some news regarding Pokémon Black version 2 and White version 2 has finally surfaced. The game will still take place in the Unova region, but is set two years after the events of Black and White. Players will once again be able to choose from either a male or female trainer, who is a separate character from the lead protagonist of Black/White. New areas will be visited, as well as new gym battles. There will also be a new rival character, though no word on if they will have any ties to Team Plasma. Finally, there will be 300 Pokémon that can be registered in the Unova Pokédex, which basically implies that Black version 2 and White version 2 will be debuting 150 new Pokémon, assuming all the Pokémon from Black and White return. As stated when the sequels were first announced, Pokémon Black version 2 and White version 2 will see a stateside release this Fall.

Game Forecast: Summer 2012

There are really only two major retail releases that I am concerned with for this coming Fall. In case my recent posting of their trailers did not provide enough of an indication, those two games are Bioshock Infinite and Resident Evil 6. With the semester wrapping up soon, I have only a few more weeks until I have significantly more free time to focus on gaming and reviews, and I felt this was a good time to provide a forecast of what I am planning to tackle this summer.

The anime aspect of my blog will be a bit more free-form. I only have a few films that I feel a desperate need to view before the end of the year, along with the remainder of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. But I have spent a fair amount of time lately picking up some older video games that I missed out on back in their heyday. As I have made mention of numerous times before, my experience with the core Final Fantasy games is rather limited, and I am going to do my best to remedy that. I am currently in possession of Final Fantasy V, FFVI, FFVII, FFX, and the DS remake of FFIV. FFIV takes precedence over the others simply because of how long overdue the review is, but FFX is second on the list. From there, I can't rightly say at the moment. I've heard great things about FFVI, but I feel like I have a duty as a gamer to play through FFVII. FFV is of little concern right now, and is under the category of "I'll get to it when I get to it".

As I am currently powering my way through Resident Evil Revelations, Pokémon White version will be the next handheld title I plan to focus on. I'm more than halfway through the game, and I feel like I can finish the main game much quicker than FFIV's story. Beyond that, I also picked up a copy of the Gamecube exclusive Resident Evil Zero, which I will play along with some of the Final Fantasy games as a means to break of the monotony and prevent RPG overload. I love RPG games, don't get me wrong. But after a while, it can get to be a tad annoying. I also have The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks to get to at some point.

There are a few other games that I am considering purchasing for the summer as well, though I certainly would not start on any of these until I had broken off a sizeable chunk of the pile I've already amassed. Those titles under consideration are: BlazBlue Continuum Shift II (3DS), Silent Hill: Shattered Memories (Wii), and Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary (Xbox 360). Also, I have every intention of purchasing Transformers: Fall of Cybertron, though I do not know if I will actually pick it up on the August 28th release date or if I will wait until it has already been out for a while and save myself a few bucks.

So there you go; the outlook for my summer games. Even if I do not manage to complete every game listed before Bioshock Infinite and Resident Evil 6 arrive, the only games coming out after them that I'm particularly interested in are Pokémon Black and White 2 and Halo 4, games that I honestly know very little about in comparison to all of the aforementioned.

Top 5 Ugliest Pokémon

Everyone has their favorite Pokémon. For some, it is the starter they've been training since they began their journey on Red or Blue version. Others prefer the Legendaries, with a sense of accomplishment in having caught them. And it's not always the move set or attributes that draws players to a specific Pokémon. Sometimes it's as simple as the way a Pokémon looks. Pikachu, Chikorita, and Totodile are just plain cute. Entei, Mewtwo, and Zekrom come across as intimidating due to their awesome designs. But there are some Pokémon, however few and far between, that are downright ugly.

#5 - Pinsir: I always viewed Pinsir as something of an alternative to Scizor. Whereas Scizor was sleek, shiny green, and had his blades attached to his arms, Pinsir was stout, a solid brown, and had pincers sprouting from the top of his skull. Pinsir looks like an insect version of Mr. Potato Head, and apparently somebody decided to put his body parts in the wrong spots. His mouth is also rather eerie - no living thing should have teeth that grow horizontal like a rib cage.

#4 - Lickilicky: There are a few Pokémon over the years that have been treated to an unnecessary next stage of evolution. Lickitung is one such Pokémon. He was certainly odd when compared to the rest of Gen I, but I always felt he stood fine on his own. It was a bit challenging to ascribe a particular theme to him, and apparently Nintendo felt the same way. So what did they decide to do? Inflate him until he was barely recognizable. Lickilicky might want to give Wilford Brimley a call.

#3 - Loudred: Loudred is part of an evolutionary line whose theme is sound. So the fact that his mouth makes up the majority of his face, and subsequently the majority of his body, is kind of a fun play on that concept. But he's certainly not the prettiest Pokémon in the tall grass. His teeth appear infantile, his ears like speakers, and as a whole he looks like an ugly alien toddler.

#2 - Jynx: I've never really been sure of what to make of Jynx. She kind of creeped me when I was a kid, the only Pokémon I thought I was scary-looking without really needing to be. Yes, Gengar is certainly a creepy looking Gen I Pokémon, but that's deliberate - he's a ghost. I think Jynx was supposed to resemble an opera singer (a bit odd, since Jigglypuff was the one frequently singing in the anime). But the small eyes and the giant lips lead her to resemble some sort of bizarre mock-up of a human - like a caricature. A really creepy caricature. Or a demonic transvestite. Take your pick.

#1 - Garbodor: I know some people rip on the Gen IV and V designs because the physical appearances of many of those Pokémon look very far-removed from the original one-hundred and fifty. To be honest, I like the way most of the newcomers to Black and White look. But dang, Garbodor is hideous. I mean, he is meant to look like a bunch of garbage, and to that end I feel the artists did a wonderful job in maintaining a consistent evolutionary theme. This pile of trash evolves from the weird sort-cute, sorta-awkward-to-look-at Trubbish. But I can't imagine there are many people who look at Garbodor without thinking he's ugly in just about every sense of the word.

Pokémon Black and White sequels announced

It's official - Pokémon Black and White versions will have not one, but two follow up games. Instead of the traditional single sequel that combines the Pokémon and locations available in Black and White versions (which many fans dubbed 'Grey version'), the DS will see two direct sequels in the form of Pokémon Black version 2 and White version 2. It seems the mascots for the games will be the two powered-up forms of Kyurem, with Zekrom-derivative Lightning abilities and Reshiram-derivative Fire abilities respectively. Not much else is known at this point, but I would personally like to see some new locations in Unova, whether they choose to expand the existing world or set the game in an entire area of Unova previously unexplored. I will be very interested to see if the game will allow players to carry over Pokémon from Black and White versions from the outset, or if (as with most merged sequels) the game will ask you to choose a new starter.