Summary
Gotta catch em all! This phrase is about as iconic as they come. Whether your catching, battling, or just playing around, this iconic game series has been entertaining people for about two decades. Pokémon is one of those games which you played as a kid and many children down the road will play. I remember when I played it as a child, my very first game was Red Version. It was one of my most treasured games. It followed the up and coming trainer Red as he went throughout land he lived in and captured various Pokémon to win. At the end you faced off against the strongest of trainers, called the Elite Four. When you defeated them you finally were able to face off against your long-time rival Blue and win. Over the years many new installments of this series have come out. These being: Gold/Silver Version, Ruby/Emerald/Sapphire Version, Fire Red/Lea f Green, Diamond/Pearl/Platinum Version, and the newest being Sun/Moon Version. Not to long ago I wanted to revisit my youth and play one of these games again.jhj So I picked up the fifth generation installment called Pokémon Black Version. Pokémon Black basically follows the premise of the other games. However, there are some interesting things that they added to the game that make it a little different. What they added was some philosophical point of views on things. This is much different than your standard Pokémon game. Other than that, that is about it. Hopefully, I will be able to shed some light on this game and help you decide whether or not you want to “Catch em all!”
My personal rating system
I have given the game my own personal rating system based on criteria that I deemed was good for the game. The score is 1-4 on my scale. When all my reviews are done, I will give you an overall score and tell you why I gave it that score.
Was the game good? 3 out of 4
I would give Pokémon Black a 3 on the gameplay because it was a good, solid game. As the installments are produced, they usually get upgraded compared to the others. The game did this. From graphics, to moving sprite animations, there was some big improvements. However, it wasn’t a such a big improvement that is was revolutionary. There were still some things which were constant. This being you starting as a young Pokémon trainer, getting a starter, going against team “insert name”, and finally facing off against the Elite Four of the region. Despite this it was a pretty good game and I believe it was worthy of being called a good game.
How did the game compare to others in the series? 2 out of 4
I would give Pokémon Black a 2 when compared to the other series overall. I may have said it was a good game, yes, but in relation to others it really just followed the same pattern and didn’t do anything different. The storyline did do something interesting with philosophy. The game delved into the difference between truths and ideals; it was your choice to decide which one worked out best for everybody, but you really couldn’t change anything literally in the game though because it was all set in stone. Besides that, there wasn’t really anything interesting about the game. It was just your standard Pokémon game
How was the games graphics compared to others in the series? 3 out of 4
Graphics wise, I would dare to say Pokémon Black gets a 3 in graphics department. Even though it was still pixelated, you could tell how much of an improvement the games underwent when this game came out. Moving Pokémon battle sprites was one big jump in terms of graphics. In previous generations, the sprites for Pokémon didn’t move when you used them. In this generation, they actually moved and were somewhat interactive. Overall the graphics looked more aesthetically pleasing than previous games. This is why I am inclined to give it a score of 3. It is not revolutionary in its graphics, but it is much better than games previous.
Is it worth the money?
Pokémon Black is probably not a game you would want to spend your money on unless: you missed this generation and want to play it, like playing Pokémon games, want a specific Pokémon from the games region, or have a lot of money to spend. Realistically most people would probably want the newest game, and Pokémon Black is about six years old and it costs a lot of money because Pokémon is a big thing again. If the game were new it would more than likely get a four on my scale, but since it is quite old, I am only going to give it a two.
Would I recommend it to other people? 3 out of 4
Pokémon Black gets a 3 out of 4 on my scale because basically anybody can play it. Kids, Adults, Teenagers, really anybody can enjoy it if they want to. The games brought me enjoyment as a kid and I still somewhat enjoy them now. The only reason I don’t give it a 4 out of 4 is because most older people will not touch the game because it is viewed as childish. I understand their thoughts on it, but it’s a shame that they are missing out on a good game. Nevertheless, I still recommend it to everybody and I really believe it is a very good game.
RE: Summary
Pokémon Black is a pretty good game. From the improved graphics, to the philosophy, the game does some things that are very admirable. However, it could work on some things as well. It isn’t the most recent of games, so I really don’t know if it is worth the buy now. Compared to other games it does have some improvements; It also has the things that remained the same. To wrap things up, I think it is a good game and I think it is up to you whether you want to spend your money and buy it or not.
Score
Was the game good? | |||
1. The gameplay was very poor. Not a very enjoyable game. | 2. The gameplay was ok. It wasn’t the most exciting game. | 3. The gameplay was good. It was a very good game. | 4. The gameplay was excellent. It was a sterling game with excellent gameplay |
How did the game stack up with its predecessors? | |||
1. The game was a far cry from any of the previous installments in the series. It showed no specific interest. It was basically a carbon copy of the others. | 2. The game had somewhat of an interesting storyline compared to the others in the series. However, it could use some work. | 3. The game had a storyline which deviated from the original. It was much different in how it did things compared to games previous | 4. The game had an excellent storyline. It was much better than any Pokémon game that I have ever played and it was very good. |
How were the games graphics? | |||
1. The graphics were not any better than any other Pokémon game I played. It didn't show any sort of improvement from the games previous. | 2. The graphics were ok for a Pokémon game. There may have been some sort of improvement, but it was very miniscule. It still wasn't very good. | 3. The graphics were pretty good. There was improvement from the games previous and it showed that the creators cared. | 4. The graphics were way different than any other Pokémon game I have played. It was almost mind blowing how good the graphics were. |
Was it worth the money? | |||
1. The game was a total waste of money. There is no absolute reason why anybody in their right mind should ever buy this game. | 2. The game wasn't a total bust. I could have spent my money on something else, but I think it was somewhat of a decent purchase. | 3. I believe my money went to the right place. This game offered things I wanted and it was a wise decision when I bought it. | 4. This game was totally worth every cent I spent on it. There was no other game I should have spent my money on because it was such a s. terling game. |
Would I recommend it to other people | |||
1 The game is not worth anybody’s time. Nobody should buy this game because it is so bad. | 2. The game might not be for everybody, but it can be good if you like it. The game is probably only for people who like this type of game. | 3. This game is very good. I believe that lots of people could enjoy this game. It is one of those games I could enjoy for awhile | 4. This is the best game for everybody. I recommend this to any person who hasn’t been able to play this good game. |
Overall
I would give the game a 7/10 on the rating scale in Gamespot. It is an improvement from previous generations of Pokémon, that is clear. However, it still isn't a big jump from games previous, and it is an older game. Nevertheless, it is a good game and I would recommend it to anybody who likes Pokémon or wants to get into the series.