A great Pokemon game on DS.
Graphics:
The graphics have been vastly improved from the GBA games. Every sprite looks 3-D. The towns and citys are amazing to look at, as they ARE 3-D. The graphics for battles are nice as well. Each pokemon has it's own animation when it comes out of its pokeball and they are pretty sooth, even if some of them don't makke too much sense. The attacks are the most improved thing, by far, though. What was simply a moving red- orange line is now something that really looks like it came from a flamethrower. The coolest move, though, is undoubtedly hyper beam. It's an explosion of vibrant colors that lights up the screen. The final thing I'll talk about is depth. You can finally tell that you're on an elevator or a really high building. Well doen, Nintendo. 9/10
Sound:
Pokemon in this game have good sound effects. A real cool thing is that pokemon that have been here since the beggining have their original sound effects. The music is well done, too, even if it does tend to loop. Each theme is suiting for the area. It's peacful in a town of flowers and exciting in a town that is dedicated to battling. One thing I don't like is that wild pokemon encounters have the same music throughout the game and so do trainer battles. The exceptions to that is legendary encounters and gym leaders/ special battles, respectivley. Another thing that gets me is the beep. It's here in full force, so brace yourself. Other than that, everything is good. 9/10
Controls:
Movement controls fine and so do battles. (I prefer stylus controls during battles.) The only time the controls faulter is in the underdround. You must come to a complete stop in order to turn. It's still good, though. 9/10
Story:
If you've played any pokemon games before, you already know it. You are a pokemon trainer who starts off in a small town and slowly working your way up to the top of the line. Oh, you also battle some evil organization who wants to take over the world. But who plays these games for plot? I'm not even going to score it, it's so unimportant.
Gameplay:
Again, if you have played any of these games before, you know what to expect. But when it's this good, it's hard to complain. You choose a starter pokemon when a professor is attacked. After that, he thanks you and lets you keep the pokemon. From there, you start off on your journey to be the best. You can build your team of six pokemon any way you want. Even though it's probably best to have as many different types as possible in your party. You store unused pokemon in a PC. It is just so much fun to wander around the Sinnoh region. This is one of the few games that really never ends after you beat the main story. If you grow tired of battling, go underground and manage your base, or just explore. That's the beauty of this game. It lets you make the descisions right from the very beggining. You don't have to use your starter pokemon for the rest of the game as soon as you catch other pokemon. Although, they tend to be the best in the party. Oh, and you're going to want a diverse party, because the Elite 4 in this version is tough as nails. I could go on about all the things you can do in the game, but I'll let you discover them for yourself. This is very much the most non- linear game I have ever played. Buy it. 10/10
Many people don't like pokemon because they think it's to kiddy or cheesy. They do have some points, but beleive me when I say that this game is incredible. There is so much freedom in this game, it'll boggle your mind when you really think about it.
My final words to you, the reader, are JUST BUY IT