No one can deny that Pokemon X and Pokemon Y are the most hyped Pokemon games in years. In fact, many fans have admitted that they have not been so excited for a Pokemon game since the original Red and Blue or Gold and Silver. I actually camped outside of the Nintendo World Store in NYC for it with hundreds of other fans. Who can blame us? Pokemon X and Pokemon Y are the first of the main Pokemon RPGs (Colloseum and XD do not count) to go full 3D. It's also the first to introduce a new type in over a decade and finally have trainer customization. These features are big for Pokemon. You may even say it's revolutionary for the franchise, but is it enough for X & Y to claim the title of best Pokemon games? Find out below.
Pokemon X and Pokemon Y are still Pokemon games, so don't go to your nearest game store expecting something different. The core turn-based gameplay is intact and you explore the region, challenge 8 gym leaders, stop an evil organization, catch the legendary mascot of your game (either Xerneas or Yveltal), and face the Elite Four and become Champion. We've been there; done that, but Pokemon X & Y feel different and fresh.
Like every start of a new generation, new pokemon are introduced. However, the sixth generation introduces the lowest amount of new pokemon. There’s more or less 70 new pokemon, a record low for the franchise. It may be disappointing for some, especially since Black & White introduced 156 new monsters, but the amount of older pokemon available in the game makes up for it. You can catch over 450 pokemon in this game without having to transfer from previous games. It feels great to walk on a route for a second time and encountering pokemon you haven’t seen on your first run.
X & Y are beautiful Pokemon games. Character models are pixely when zoomed in, but the world of Kalos is breath-taking, just like its music. While walking around Kalos, you'll experience some crazy camera angles never before seen in the franchise. For example, the camera goes third-person in the Glittering Cave, literally right behind your character. In Lumiose City, the main hub of the game, the camera pans around in front and in back of the character. The updated graphics and dynamic camera are great, but there are some faults. Frame rate drops and slowdown are obvious in these games, especially in Lumiose City. In fact, this is the main reason why the majority of the game is not in stereoscopic 3D (the 3D that pops out or gives depth when you turn the slider up). Stereoscopic 3D is only present during cutscenes and in single battles, but turning on the 3D will cause the game to slow down or lag a bit. This is one of the very few 3DS games in which I highly recommend to play with 3D off. It's really disappointing, but it's expected. These are the first full 3D games for Game Freak and there's no doubt they will improve their game engine for future Pokemon games.
Finally being able to customize your character’s appearance is a fantastic addition to the series. There’s dozens of clothing to buy and the trainers you see online have their own unique style. You can show off your looks in the PR Studio, which allows you to create 10 second videos of yourself or pokemon, or you can share pictures of your character from photo spots using the SD card.
Another first for Pokemon games is the ability to walk diagonally (GASP!). Yes, practically every game does this but Pokemon only had movement in four directions until now. It is still grid based, but movement in eight directions does bring forth new ways to approach the ice puzzles Pokemon is known for. Speaking of movement, X & Y also introduced a new method of transportation: roller skates. Controlled by the circle pad, these skates are much faster than running and a tad slower than the bike. Riding the bike controls a bit smoother, but the skates provide a nice change of pace. You can learn skate tricks from NPCs and it'll be great if roller skates become a constant feature in future games.
As mentioned before, Pokemon X and Pokemon Y introduced the first type since Gold and Silver. That's 14 years! The Fairy type was created to combat Dragons, which has been considered overpowered for quite some time. Fairy is also super effective against Dark and Fighting. It's weak against Poison and Steel, which gives more usage for those types. It's a welcomed addition to the gameplay and definitely changes things up competitively.
Another addition, arguably just as big as a new type, is Mega Evolution. If I had to describe Mega Evolution in one word, it would be "digivolving." Mega Evolution is a temporary evolution for a selected amount of pokemon. Most mega evolutions boost a pokemon's stats dramatically, but some actually changes their type. Most notably, Charizard becomes Fire/Dragon when mega evolving in Pokemon X. In order to mega evolve, the pokemon needs to be holding their respective mega stone. In battle, you'll see the option to mega evolve on the touch screen. As soon as the battle ends, the pokemon reverts back to its normal self. The game restricts one mega evolution per team, so don't think having a team full of pokemon with mega stones is a good strategy online. Your other five pokemon are better off with items such as Life Orbs, Scarfs, etc. For those who are opposed to mega evolution, I say it's best to get used to them. Expect to see the majority of online players using them.
Online capabilities have been improved. All your friends who are playing Pokemon on your Friend List will appear on the Player Search System, or PSS. You can also see players who are currently online from all over the world. The PSS allows you to trade and battle with anyone at any time. It's a much appreciated improvement to the franchise. You can also voice chat with your friends and send each other O-Powers, which are temporary buffs that can boost a pokemon's Attack, Defense or give you a boost in the amount of money or EXP you gain from battle.
Speaking of EXP, you can now gain EXP from capturing pokemon. It doesn't seem major, but it's useful for leveling up. Actually the game makes leveling up much easier with the new EXP Share. The pokemon in battle gains full EXP and everyone else on your team will receive 50% of that amount. It does make the game easy, but Pokemon was never known for its difficulty.
Pokemon games are also not known for their plot, and as previously mentioned, it goes through the same layout as before. It's pretty predictable, but I did enjoy it more than previous stories, even the one from Black & White. Team Flare looks ridiculous, but their motive is much darker compared to previous evil organizations. The games’ story is heartwarming and revolves around how your bond between pokemon and friends has evolved. The ending is simple, but beautiful.
Game Freak has finally given us an alternate method of EV training our pokemon, called Super Training. Super Training consists of minigames and each one raise your pokemon’s EV. It’s slow at first, but as soon as you unlock additional levels to these minigames, gaining EVs becomes much easier and faster. I went from gaining 12 EVs every few minutes to gaining 12 EVs every 30 seconds. For the more hardcore fans, there’s Friend Safari. At first, it looks extremely bland, but it’s fantastic for those who are into competitive battles. Each friend on your list has a specific type and you catch pokemon of that type. Every pokemon you catch has two perfect IVs. This and the new breeding mechanics are extremely beneficial for training the best pokemon possible.
Another addition is Pokemon-Aime. Aime is a cute feature in which you play and feed your pokemon, similar to Nintendogs, to boost their affection. A higher affection allows pokemon to dodge more attacks, get more critical hits, survive hits, and escape from status effects. It’s completely optional and doesn’t affect online battles.
Pokemon X & Pokemon Y unfortunately suffers from what most Pokemon fans fear of during the start of a new generation: a lacking post-game. Game Freak loves to exclude post-game content in their games just to include them again in the inevitable third game or sequel. There’s no Battle Frontier. Instead, we have the Battle Maison. It’s simple, you can choose which battle style you want (Single, Double, Triple, etc), and you battle people to gain BP. The only difference between the Battle Maison and previous battle facilities is the option to interrupt your streak and being able to come back to where you left off at any time. Only way to lose your streak is to lose the battle. The roaming legendary mechanic returns, but there’s only one per game. The legendary that roams depends on the starter you choose at the beginning of the game. In Lumiose City, there’s a pretty lengthy (2-3 hours) post-game story that many fans of Sinnoh and Unova will enjoy. In Route 7, you may be able to rebattle Kalos Gym Leaders in the Battle Chateau. Aside from these, there’s nothing else to do besides train pokemon, farm berries, get TMs, and find all mega stones available in the game.
The Verdict (or the tl;dr):
I’ve had a lot of fun with X & Y and it will continue to consume hundreds of hours of my life. If I had to score my enjoyment out of a scale of 10, it would be a 9, but my unbiased score is an 8. These games are great, definitely lives up to its hype, but my reasoning of giving it an 8 is based on the fact that there’s still a lot of room for improvement. They’re the best Pokemon games yet, but its faults, such as frame rate issues and lacking post-game, prevents it from being perfect. It’s still the Pokemon that we all know and love with many great additions and a fresh coat of paint. Now keep in mind that giving Pokemon X & Y an 8 now does not mean a previous game that scored higher is superior. Standards have changed and reviewing a previous Pokemon game now will result in lower scores. An 8 is a great score, no matter what anyone says, and future Pokemon games on the 3DS will be even better. I highly recommend Pokemon X and Pokemon Y to anyone, from older fans that stopped playing Pokemon to newcomers that have never touched a Pokemon game.