Viva la Revolucion! — Or Maybe Not: With the word “Revolution” in the title, it’s easy to develop high expectations for the latest iteration of the Pokemon “Colosseum” games. Add the fact that this is the first Pokemon offering for the Wii and the anticipation shoots up even more.
But for anyone with even a remote idea of Colosseum’s previous body of work, you may want to dial down those expectations a little. Gone are the mini-games that graced previous versions. And gone is the RPG quest mode that the last two versions offered.
Instead, what we have here is a bare bones game that’s pretty much limited to battling. That’s not a revolution. That’s a regression.
On the positive side, Battle Revolution features pretty good graphics for a game that doesn’t output in high-definition. Unlike my older PS2 games, I can actually play this on my 63-inch HDTV without losing my lunch from major “jaggies” overload (for non-tech readers, that would be the jagged edges you get in your picture when you output low-resolution video to a high-resolution screen — not a pretty sight).
The ability to pick your trainer’s appearance, along with customized quotes for battles, is also a nice touch. If you ever meet a muscle-bound trainer online named ROIDstwrt (from Rod Stewart, get it? Get it? Um, never mind) who yells “My pecs jiggle with delight!” well, all I can say is that the player who uses him is one handsome fella.
Speaking of online, the ability to battle players online — including those from other countries — is this game’s one saving grace. The game even corrects one of the few flaws in the Nintendo DS Pokemon Diamond/Pearl versions by allowing random online battles. There’s just something about battling a real live person instead of lifeless computer AI that makes battles more enjoyable and extends the playability of this game. Unless you have another trainer’s friend code, though, random online battles are limited to 3-pokemon single battles and 4-pokemon double battles, along with a host of other limitations. These are the kinds of things that can drive a person crazy, especially when one realizes just how much better this game could’ve been and how Nintendo has a history of pulling these kinds of stunts (e.g. forced use of the Game Boy Advance for multiplayer in Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles for the Gamecube. I know Squaresoft made that game but I have a feeling it isn’t fully to blame for that one).
Ultimately, the online battling alone may make this game worth the price of admission for battling purists. But for those looking for more, it might be a good idea to give the game a test ride first before you pump your hard-earned cash into it.
My verdict: 3 cell-phone reception bars out of 5. (OK with a little static, but it could’ve been much better)
Meanwhile, in an alternate dimension…
Cop-out ratings:
Don’t’ have Pokemon Diamond or Pearl
Only like battling and nothing else? 4 bars. (1 bar deducted from lack of more options for random online battles. Other than that, it’s lots of fun, especially when facing a competent player)
Like beating unprepared legendaries with an all-Raticate team? 5 BARS out of 5! (This right here just might be worth the 50-something bucks you spend on this game.)
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