Gaming Memoirs

This weekend is special. Not just because it’s a bank holiday and you get 4 reviews instead of one – but because today I’ll be reviewing two games. SORT OF. Introducing the first Pokémon main series game I’d played since Pokémon Yellow – Pokémon Diamond and also, for comparison sake Pokémon Platinum. I’m doing a Pokémon Platinum review because I may as well.

Console: DS
How exciting is this!?: Really exciting. Basically, I hadn’t kept in touch with Pokémon since the first generation so… everything was new to me, with some old memories :)
Main Difference between the versions: Lucian’s Bronzong isn’t level 63. This makes the entire E4 easier.

So, the first game I purchased for the DS (ie not a game my mum got us) was Pokémon Diamond. I asked my sister if she wanted one and she said to go for Diamond. Yeah. It was AWESOME.

Basically, graphics that were in pure colour, you could actually see what the rear end of a Pokémon looked like without getting confused and it was really lovely. Everything was… so much the same, but very much different. Pokémon Centers, PokéMarts… yeah.

In other words, no new gameplay but that was okay because if they’d changed that that would have been off putting for my return to Pokémon. Basically, because I’d skipped a whole bunch of generations and remakes, I wasn’t getting bored and the massive upgrade really delighted me.

Also, this was the first game in which… I could choose my starter! Having only played Yellow before, I’d never had a choice. Choosing a starter always gets me a little because I get confused and actually agonise over it. YEAH. Since playing this, I kind of have a rule: pick the cute one the first time around, the one that’s good/bad for the first couple of gyms the second time around (uh, basically this depends whether I want a challenge or not) and whatever one got left out the third time.

I remember being delighted because the first gym was a rock type, just like in the good old days. And what was even better is it was a cute girl! Until I got to the sixth gym and the smelly old hobo running the gym says something about ‘my son, the first gym leader’. EH?!

I..guess Roark could be a boy but… I’ve always read her (see, it’s impossible for me to refer to Roark as anything else, I’m sure this won’t happen again) with a girl’s voice. And basically I ignore first names in fiction. Has anyone every read Artemis Fowl? Guy with a girl’s name. And earlier in the series we had Tabitha which I’m pretty sure is also a guy with a girl’s name. So to me, Roark is a girl. Sorry, I’m messed up like that.

Anyway. When it came to Platinum, I praise it for the following: more Pokémon selection before you complete your Pokédex (or, it seemed that way to me), a bit more of a plot and Giratina is awesome if really freaky looking and like with Trogdor you will probably wipe the floor with the remains of the Elite Four if it is in your party. I never really found that with Dialga, although Dialga looks cooler. And the Elite Four are much much easier. Of note is Lucian is much much much easier, and he is the only one that counted. I’m not sure if the game should be praised for making something easier because someone whined about it though.

However… the thing that I do not praise Platinum for. LOOKER. He’s… a really pointless character, that is there to hold your hand and tell you were to go. It’s really annoying. I actually enjoy the challenge of figuring out where I’m going and wondering where this new HM will take me next. I literally got stuck in about one section without Looker’s help (the bit in Pastoria where you have to talk to a Galactic Grunt after beating Wake, I kind of ignored the grunt and went on and then ran around for ages because I had no idea what to do. Ahhh…) so I felt he as a character wasn’t helpful. Oh, and the… Distortion World. WHAT THE HELL. WHAT WAS THE NEED. Strange bit with annoying puzzle. WHY. Oh, and my game freezing when I try to surf North from Sunyshore. I think that might just be my game though. OH and Giratina crying when you want to play the game. CREEPY.

Personally, I don’t really consider Platinum that much ‘worth it’ but to the hardcore fan it probably is because of the extra it adds. In fairness, I never bought Platinum, my mum got it for me for Christmas.

Random mention: but this is the first generation where I came across Dark and Steel types so I was a bit ‘?!’ when it came to type advantage. And still kind of am about steel types…

Now, like last time, let’s give you a rundown of my team – generally in any one playthrough I’d have 6 out of:

Evolved Starter
Rapidash
Roserade
Gyaradous Gyradous… Gya… those things Magikarp evolve into that I can’t spell
Big Yippe Quagsire
Dialga
Giratina
Luxray
Floaty Bronzong
Medicham
Haunter/Gengar (depends if I had someone to trade with)
Graveller/Golem (similarly)
Crobat

I always intended to catch Uxie, but the legendaries in this game are much harder to catch than in Yellow. I don’t have the time for that shit.

In my most recent playthrough of Platinum this was my party:

Raphael – A Torterra, he is awesome and hard to kill.
Miles – A Floatzel, which I am currently riding on the back of.
Floaty – A Brozong; me and Jo dubbed Lucian’s Bronzong ‘Floaty’ as it’s a stupid 10-year-old name, so I name all my Bronzor this… Floaty is awesome and hard to kill.
Bugsy – A Scyther, I really like their designs and don’t really want her to evolve.
Motorotom – A Rotom. PALINDROME YEAH. I just love the way Rotom is ‘Motor’ spelt backwards and THEY’RE SO CUTE. Jo and I joke about how Morty probably has a Rotom living in his toaster.
Natan – A Machoke. I’ve never really used one before and they kill things and it’s awesome.

So, what were your favourite bits of Sinnoh?