Pokémon Pots Volume III: Console games (Battle Revolution)

As Titus is at Shakespeare’s Othello tonight (I wish I could go), it looks like it’s going to be me posting solo. Well, issue 3/4 of Pokémon Pots is all about console games, so for the GameCube and WII...stuff like that. Sadly, my childhood gaming consisted of my trusty PS1, and when that eventually died I didn’t get another console until a few years ago when my mum brought home a WII, and when my sister was given an XBOX for Christmas last year. That in mind, I have only played one Pokémon console game, and my experience with it is less than expert, so you must excuse me if this is a short post. I will, however, do my best to make it as informative as possible!

The only console Pokémon game I own is Battle Revolution for the WII. I’ve played the GameCube colosseum before at a friend’s house, but that’s about it. All the colosseum-type console games seem to work in the same sort of fashion – you battle your Pokémon and try your best to win each round. The big difference with Battle Revolutions is that you also have the Stadium Mode which has special effects such as randomising the order of you Pokémon or setting level limits (I do quite like the whole level limit thing, I find it a challenge).

In this game there are 11 different colosseums to choose from that can include normal battles or special changes to the arena. Each one has its own Colosseum Leader – sort of like the Elite Four in the main games, but with only one person...maybe not entirely like them. The concept is the same.

The Crystal Colosseum holds 16 person single player battles. It goes through a process of elimination, so those defeated leave the battle and the winners play on until the last two players where the champion of the tournament is revealed.

The Gateway Colosseum is something that I know little about as it requires a pass to enter. I’ve heard it is pretty good from those who have entered it, but I still know very little about the goings on.

The Neon Colosseum uses a wheel to choose the Pokémon that the player and opponent will use to battle (spin, spin, spin the wheel of excitement!). As you progress through the colosseum the number of Pokémon that you are able to rent increases, thus increasing your power.

A few notes about the game

-          The currency of this game is called Poké-Coupons and they can be spent customising your in-game character including their hair colour and face paint (I was so excited about that I had to attempt to type face paint three times).

-          In this game there is no story mode so it’s just battle, battle, battle and be the very best!

-          Pokémon have their own animations for each attack making the battle a little more interesting to watch

-          You can win Pokémon on Battle Revolutions and transfer it to you DS game through the Mystery Gift feature (awesome stuff!)

-          To win these hard to find Pokémon you must achieve certain goals or enter a special code into the game. This enables you to send Pokémon to your DS game that would usually require a cheat to get.

-          Purchase items, TM’s and evolution items

Gameplay

To be honest, I found it to be a little strange. Everything seemed so futuristic that it stopped feeling like the Pokémon games I have always known and loved so well. The controls are really simple and don't take very long to learn, you can pretty much get the jist of it without looking at the manual I found. The graphics are standard Pokémon style - nothing spectacular but still decent. The only problem is that the Pokémon all felt really 3D and I felt it took a little bit of the experience away because, like the surroundings, it all felt way too futuristic. It's rather enjoyable trying to find the hard to get Pokémon for your DS game, but sadly I never got to finish Battle Revolution as it technically belongs to my younger sister /mumble /grumble.

So yeah, that’s all I really know about Colosseum – I don’t to play many of the console versions of Pokémon. Titus is always gone when I need him most /cry. Well, to make up for the poor quality of this post (I tried my hardest, honest) I have some fun little Pokémon videos for you to watch! By the way, what are your thoughts on the colosseum games and have you played any of the other console versions? If so, tell us about it in the comments!

~ Valhalla