The pinnacle of pokemon.
visual:the game now has a isometric 3d visual style,at least outside,character sprites and the insides of buildings are still 2 demensional,overall the game looks good and there's no slowdown.
Audio: the music is the best the series has seen,ranging from cheerful to dramatic though it's no katamari in this department.the only complaint is that older pokemon's cries still sound like they did in R&B,and unfortunately it pales to the new ones.
Gameplay:mostly the same,though several modifications were made to the system,though they're fundamental.First,The division of Phsical/Special attack are no longer done by type,but by nature of attack(i.e.waterfall formerly special now physical),making some pokemon more powerful while weakening others.Second,there is now a decently challenging amount of pokemon to collect,(493 in all)and more importantly nearly all are attainable in this version,except,you'll still need GBA cartridges to catch wild pokemon that wouldn't appear othewise,and to collect past starters and legends.There are now several optional quests making it harder to catch some pokemon,and a large section of the gameworld is only open after the main quest is finished.And most importantly,you can now trade your hard earned mosters with others around the world!
Value:the game already has plenty of content by itself,but if you have freinds,a few GBA pokemon games and Pokemon Battle Revolution,you'll be set for months to come.
Overall,the game is fantastic,there's little reason not to at least try it,and it's the best time to introduce yourself to the pokemon world.