Pokémon White journal - entry six

I beat the Elite Four. I think the lineup of Shauntal, Grimsley, Caitlin, and Marshal presents just about the perfect variety of types to combat all the Pokémon you will have had a chance to add to your team by the time you've reached Victory Road. The battles were challenging, but thankfully not so mind-numbing or grueling in its difficulty. I had to rethink my strategy a couple of times, but each member of the Elite Four tends to stick to a similar pattern. The fact that they were limited to two Full Restores a piece helped me out as well.

Team Plasma's castle rising out of the ground was pretty cool, if not a bit melodramatic. It definitely set up well for the final battles with N and Ghetsis. I'm rather surprised that I didn't have to face any Team Plasma grunts on my way up to the top of the castle, but I suppose it makes sense in context. N wanted to see which of us was strongest, so he probably didn't want anyone hindering the climactic moment.

Catching Zekrom was surprisingly easy. I've notice all throughout White version that catching wild Pokémon goes much more smoothly than in Soul Silver (and I bought a ton of Ultra Balls in preparation for catching Zekrom; guess I will just save those for Cobalion, Kyurem, and co. later on). Regardless, Zekrom is among my favorite legendaries of all time. Personally, I think the Black and White legendaries are the best since generation II.

While I have completed the main story in White version, I know there is still plenty of ground to cover - new areas to visit and new trainers to battle. It will probably be a while before I put my full review up of this game. I will say this - White version is one of the most fun DS games I've played to date, and among some of the most polished handheld games I've ever had a chance to experience. With that in mind, I venture onward to seek new adventures in the Unova region...

Pokémon White journal - entry five

With the last few trainers on the routes leading up Opelucid City, it certainly did not take long for Litwick and Elgyem to evolve. Lampent is growing on me by the minute. I just wish his HP wasn't such garbage. Beheeyem, on the other hand... well, to be honest, I'm not really certain if I like him as a psychic type entirely. That's primarily due to the fact that the vast majority of trainers and wild types along Victory Road have barred me from testing out his moves and stats.

I would like to take a moment to pose a question to Nintendo and Game Freak: In what universe is your dragon-themed gym the easiest of the bunch? Apparently in the Unova region that is totally acceptable. I honestly found the trainers that I battled in the gym put up more of a challenge than Iris. At least when facing them I was forced to change Pokémon a few times. With Iris, all I had to do was set Vanillish up as my main Pokémon and her team was down for the count in no time flat. I came into Opelucid City expecting a gym battle on part with Heart Gold/Soul Silver's Claire and left sorely disappointed.

On the bright side, Victory Road presented a more substantial challenge. It wasn't downright grueling and the wild types in abundance did force me to stick with a few key Pokémon throughout the course of my ascent (thank goodness for experience share). I eventually made my way to the epic location of Unova's Elite Four. And while I did manage to take down all of Shauntal's Pokémon, I did not make it past Caitlin's psychic team. And you know what? That's totally fine by me. I'd rather get my butt handed to me once or twice knowing that it's going to give me a better chance in the long run than simply float through the motions.

As I've mentioned before, I do feel like White version is really good at keeping things moving along at a noticeably faster pace than Soul Silver. It's just that this second half of the game has really been dropping the ball with regards to the challenge factor.

If nothing else, I hope there is one thing that you get out of this most recent Pokémon White journal post. And that is that the Elite Four battle theme for Black and White version is downright awesome. Just give it a listen!

Pokémon White journal - entry four

As Team Plasma keeps showing up more and more frequently and have even gotten so far in their aims as to make people question their own choices to catch and raise Pokémon, I think it is safe to say that I am nearing the end of the main story. I am in possession of the dark stone I have agreed to take on N in the event that Alder cannot beat him. I like the way that Alder's involvement in the main story is relatively minimal, but substantial enough that he plays the part of a believable character. He reminds me of Lance in that respect.

I have noticed that last two gyms were rather easy. In Soul Silver version, the challenge level from one gym to the next seemed pretty consistent. But in White version, it's almost backwards. Some of the gym leaders early on proved rather difficult and spammed a handful of attacks over and over. But lately, gym leaders have hardly had enough time to issue out more than one command to any single Pokémon before I beat the snot out of them. White version has proven to be a much faster-paced Pokémon experience than others, and I greatly appreciate that. The inconsistency with the gym battles just seems... odd to me.

I doubt I will be changing my team up much between now and the conclusion of the main game. I do expect to make some adjustments post-game, however. There are a number of Pokémon that I want to import from Soul Silver in order to provide myself some greater variety in the dynamics my team can present. Interestingly enough, though, I am finding that I use Vanillish quite frequently. During my previous Pokémon outings, I rarely ever used ice-types, but due to the other Pokémon types so frequently found in the wild and in the possession of rival trainers, Vanillish is quickly becoming a staple to my team.

I came into possession of another experience share, the two of which are now being held by Litwick and Elgyem. I like Elgyem a lot more than most psychic types, due to the fact that he learns more psychic moves that are both offensive and stat-based. Nearly every one of his moves is a two-in-one package. Similarly, Litwick is proving much more practical for offensive attacks than many ghost types. Even before I purchased White version, I thought Chandelure looked like one of the coolest new Pokémon from generation V. While a large part of my desire to have Chandelure on my team comes from its aesthetic appearance, I think it will be able to provide something new and different to my team.

I am finding that a lot of random people in-game will give me evolution stones for no particular reason. I'm not complaining - some of these are necessary to evolve Pokémon like Lampent into Chandelure. But with a Thunderstone and both the environments necessary to evolve Leafeon and Glaceon readily available in White version, I think I am going to carry my plans to breed every Eevee evolution over from Soul Silver to White version. I already have Umbreon and Vaporeon ready to make the move once the post-game allows for it. And I have a few low-level Eevees ready for evolution.

Pokémon White journal - entry three

Litwicks. Litwicks everywhere (in Celestial Tower).

If there is one thing that I feel has dragged down the Pokémon White experience thus far, it's the gym battles. Not the battles as a whole; rather, the fact that each gym leader has one Pokémon with a somewhat cheap one-hit-kill move that they tend to spam over and over. In the grand scheme of things, it's a minor complaint. But it's also a significant change from gym battles of previous games, and I can't say it's exactly the best choice. It presents a few roadblocks in what is otherwise the smoothest journey through any region of the Pokémon world.

I've come to realize that the types of Pokémon that are in abundance in White version require me to take a much different approach in building my team than Soul Silver did. Frankly, I think that's a good thing, as it forces me to use different combos and attack/defense strategies. I practically never used any ice types in previous gens, but Vanillite is quickly proving to be a valuable member to my team. The other four key members are Samurot, Darmantian, Zebstrika, and Archen. As for the sixth team member, I tend to change it up. I'm planning to test Elgyem's abilities next.

I have noticed an increase in the number of battles on the routes between cities and even in areas like Celestial Tower. It is nice of Nintendo to place a nurse every so often, so that you are not forced to spend all of your money on revives and super potions. Some areas prove quite a long haul, with one battle after another forcing your trek to a slow grind. But the experience points you can rack up in the process is well worth it.

As a side note, while I do find most of the team Plasma grunts to be pushovers, there are a few that have put up a decent fight - at least, better than Team Rocket's goons ever could. Plus, Team Plasma's theme song is awesome - my second favorite of the 'team themes', next to Team Galactic's.

Pokémon White journal - entry two

Volt Switch is really freaking annoying move, especially when Pokémon spam it. I was really looking forward to my gym battle with Elesa, but it turned out to be incredibly obnoxious. Despite the fact that her Emolgas and Zebstrika know four moves each, they only seem capable of using that single one.

I'm getting a little bit tired of Cheren. It's great that the game presents two rivals, both of whom are your childhood friends and have their own narratives. But I really don't feel the need to face him after every gym battle - he never puts up much of a fight anyways, despite his goal to be the champion of the Unova league. Bianca, on the other hand, shows up to battle less frequently, but has a more interesting story. A scenario where a parent was concerned about their child's safety in the wide open world filled with Pokémon is something fresh. It actually gives me a reason to empathize with her.

I do appreciate the fact that the game presents a lot to do, even early on. Also, instead of gradually easing your way into things, the game mixes up trainer battles, gym battles, Team Plasma battles, and sidequests. All of this is tackled in a way that I feel would not be overwhelming to any newcomers to the Pokémon series, but for someone who has blazed similar trails in the past, it's nice to have that element of variety.

Speaking of Team Plasma, I'm really curious to see where N's story will lead. Despite the grunts being pushovers that spout off cheesy dialogue, Team Plasma is perhaps the most complex of any of the villainous organizations in the series. That is due in no small part to the fact that what they are fighting for isn't exactly a bad thing. Rather, it's their tactics that make them bad guys.

I am looking forward to trying out the new triple battles and rotation battles. I've had my fair share of double battles thus far, and I've found them more enjoyable than the few I engaged in throughout Soul Silver, most likely due to the fact that my current team in White Version is much better suited to a team effort.

Pokémon White journal - entry one

As with my journal for Soul Silver, I'm going to be keeping track of my progress with Pokémon White, offering up any opinions about the gameplay, story, and the 150 new Pokémon along the way. I found that last time this journal really helped me to pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses of HG/SS as I powered through it. With White Version, I plan to take it at a slower pace, but hopefully this journal will be just as helpful.

At present, I am almost eight hours into the game. I have spent a small amount of time grinding and revisiting areas to catch wild Pokémon I had previously missed. As a whole, it's been pretty straightforward so far, save for the open areas in Pinwheel Forest. I feel this is a result of the increases in user-friendliness carried over from the Generation IV titles, but at the same time, I'm hoping there are some more wide-open areas later on. It would make sense that, with only three gym badges under my wing, much of the world remains to be explored.

Since Nintendo was offering via download, I have added Victini to my Pokédex at a very early point. However, I have no intention of using said legendary until much later on. I still want the game to have some challenge to it. But while we're on the topic of my team, I chose Oshawott as my starter. In the past, I've leaned toward fire-types, but I wanted to mix things up this time around. Plus, I think Tepig's evolved forms look a tad ugly. The rest of my team has generally included Blitzle, Throh, and Lillipup/Herdier. Until recently, my fire type was Pansear/Simisear, but has since been swapped for Darumaka. And the latest addition, Roggenrola, had filled Tympole's brief position on my team. I'm certain each of the different types will merit use in the upcoming gyms, and I'm fine with swapping them out as need be when the time comes. In storage, I also have Purrloin, Sandile, Woobat, Scraggy, Pidove, and Audino.

I'm already finding that I dislike the grass types in Unova. They apparently all have giga grain and sleep powder, which makes them less of a threat in battle than it does a major annoyance. The rest have presented some interesting battle scenarios, however, due largely to just how flexible many of the Gen V Pokémon are with learning moves that are outside of their type.

So far the gym battles have presented just the right degree of challenge, I feel. It definitely helps that characters in-game actually provide you with some sense of direction this time around. Between gym battles, trainer battles, and even wild battles, it seems like my Pokémon are leveling up at a much faster rate than in previous games. I felt that leveling up was easier in HG/SS than it had been on the Gameboy Color, but White Version has my party progressing at an even faster rate. I suppose it's just as well, though - to my understanding, the legendaries appear at something like level 70 this time around. And I do want Zekrom and Kyurem by the time this is all said and done.