For the last nearly 20 years, the Pokémon series has entertained millions of gamers through its many main series and side-series games (Which makes me wish for a new Pokémon Stadium game), and like many franchises, it has inspired various expressions of fan love.
Fan art, fan fiction, and even in the case of Pokémon (in fact, any major long-running game series)...fan games.
Yes, fan games. People actually made their very own Pokémon games from scratch, using programs like RPG Maker and the like. I never really thought much of some games, until I stumbled upon a YouTube channel that did a series of videos showing a play-through of one of them: Pokémon Insurgence.
Insurgence's story is quite a bit darker and grimmer than the "Official" Pokémon games, so much so that the creator included the option to play a lighter version of the game's story that tones down certain plot elements.
The game is set in the new region of Torren, a region that is home to several cults, each worshipping a certain legendary Pokémon as a divine being. The cults cause a lot of carnage, and also have been known to use human sacrifices to summon the Legendary Pokémon they worship. I don't want to spoil the story for anyone, but it is quite different from your standard Pokémon game.
It does do a lot of things differently from the official games, including how you are introduced to your player character to even the starter Pokémon.
The gameplay and world is incredible, looking like a game from Pokémon's Gen III-IV era. The world is bright, colorful, and beautiful, which is a nice contrast to the darker story.
The surprising thing about this game? It's a beta. It's unfinished. Yup, as of the date this blog entry was put up, the game's development is not completed. However, so far, it does feel like a complete Pokémon game so far. If it's this fun when unfinished, I can't wait to see the game completed! Download it!
You can download it here: https://www.reddit.com/r/PokemonInsurgence/search?q=flair%3AOlder%2Brelease+OR+flair%3ACurrent%2BRelease&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all
Showing posts with label Pokemon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pokemon. Show all posts
Monday, September 28, 2015
Thursday, October 30, 2014
Adventures in Pokemon Y Part 3: Santalune City
Alright! We're here in Santalune City, the first real city the player visits in Pokémon X/Y. The first place I decide to visit is the local Pokémon Center to check it out. When there, I ran into Tierno. He's here to get his Pokémon healed up. I wonder what he has in his team...
Anyway, he explains what the Center is for, for all the rookie players (Every Pokémon game is someone's first, so it doesn't bother me that much). He also shows that the Centers now have Poké Marts built into them. In previous games, they were separate buildings. I actually like the idea of the Pokémon Center and the Poké Mart being one building. It's much more convenient. You can get your team healed up and stocked up in one place. Very nice.
There was also an area where a Trainer could adjust their outfits. I had noticed that there was a clothing store nearby. Upon entering the clothing store, I found it was a place that sold hats. I have to admit, this is an interesting new feature for the Pokémon games. I have to admit, it's a cool idea. I'm sure that there are players that would like to customize their trainers' outfits, and shops like this are a great idea to help players make their avatars look unique. Now to my understanding, shops have different items available every day. Personally, I'd prefer all the choices available all at once, but I can see how this can be used as incentive to get people to play the game daily, like rewards on some iOS games.
I had decided to make an adjustment to my team. I decided to switch out Chevy (my Fletchling), for Stingerette (my Weedle). Yeah, it means I now have three bug Pokémon on my team, but I want to build up Stingerette's power levels and evolve her into a Beedrill. Route 3 also is a great opportunity to add some more Pokémon to my collection. Route 22 is also nearby, so that'll be nice to see what Pokémon reside there. I've managed to get my hands on a Litleo on Route 22 (Cute little Pokémon. If I didn't have a Fennekin, I'd use one in my regular team) and I got a Pansear in Santalune Forest. With my Fennekin, that means I have THREE Fire-type Pokémon. Viola is a Gym Leader in specializes in Bug-type Pokémon. Fire beats Bug. All I have to do is train them a bit, and she'll go down faster than a building rigged by an expert demolition crew.
The Gym's front door was guarded by a roller skater named Rinka. I had to beat her in order to get inside. When you win, she gives a nice reward: special attachments to your shoes that'll make them into roller skates. As an idea, the roller skates are awesome. They allow you to move real fast, which cuts down on time it takes to get places (at least until you can get a Pokémon to learn Fly). The thing is, it can be hard to control with the stick.
One of the centerpieces of the City, besides the Gym itself, is the Trainers' School. This place is mainly here to explain to players about the various status changes Pokémon can endure in battle, like Paralysis, Poisoned, and Frozen. Now, I have played many a Pokémon main series game. When it comes to status changes, I can remember my Pokémon getting paralyzed, poisoned, or being put to sleep quite a few times, but I didn't encounter them getting burned or frozen that much. And keep in mind, I've battled and captured quite a few Fire and Ice-type Pokémon in my time. I'm guessing those two are rarer inflictions.
As for the Gym itself, it's quite a beautiful little Gym. The first room is essentially an art gallery. Turns out Viola, when she's not making life miserable for rookie Trainers, is a photographer. She hangs up her photos of Bug Pokémon on the walls. I can imagine that in this world, she lets people visit the Gallery, and sells prints and souvenirs in order to bring a little extra income into the Gym.
Well, time to get ready. Gotta train my Pokémon some more, and then...I'll battle Viola for my first badge. Wish me luck!
Pokémon Obtained:
Neptune (Froakie)
Chestnut (Chespin)
Gnaw (Bidoof)
Stingerette (Kakuna) - evolved from Weedle
Spiral (Dunsparce)
Church (Frillish) - Obtained via Wonder Trade
Honedge (Honedge) - Obtained via Wonder Trade
Tula (Azurill)
Spewpa (Mothra) - evolved from Scatterbug
Butterfree (Kojima) - evolved from Metapod
Beedrill (Stingerette) - evolved from Kakuna
Shada (Burmy)
Firemane (Litleo)
Daffy (Psyduck)
Hanzo (Farfetch'd)
Anyway, he explains what the Center is for, for all the rookie players (Every Pokémon game is someone's first, so it doesn't bother me that much). He also shows that the Centers now have Poké Marts built into them. In previous games, they were separate buildings. I actually like the idea of the Pokémon Center and the Poké Mart being one building. It's much more convenient. You can get your team healed up and stocked up in one place. Very nice.
There was also an area where a Trainer could adjust their outfits. I had noticed that there was a clothing store nearby. Upon entering the clothing store, I found it was a place that sold hats. I have to admit, this is an interesting new feature for the Pokémon games. I have to admit, it's a cool idea. I'm sure that there are players that would like to customize their trainers' outfits, and shops like this are a great idea to help players make their avatars look unique. Now to my understanding, shops have different items available every day. Personally, I'd prefer all the choices available all at once, but I can see how this can be used as incentive to get people to play the game daily, like rewards on some iOS games.
I had decided to make an adjustment to my team. I decided to switch out Chevy (my Fletchling), for Stingerette (my Weedle). Yeah, it means I now have three bug Pokémon on my team, but I want to build up Stingerette's power levels and evolve her into a Beedrill. Route 3 also is a great opportunity to add some more Pokémon to my collection. Route 22 is also nearby, so that'll be nice to see what Pokémon reside there. I've managed to get my hands on a Litleo on Route 22 (Cute little Pokémon. If I didn't have a Fennekin, I'd use one in my regular team) and I got a Pansear in Santalune Forest. With my Fennekin, that means I have THREE Fire-type Pokémon. Viola is a Gym Leader in specializes in Bug-type Pokémon. Fire beats Bug. All I have to do is train them a bit, and she'll go down faster than a building rigged by an expert demolition crew.
The Gym's front door was guarded by a roller skater named Rinka. I had to beat her in order to get inside. When you win, she gives a nice reward: special attachments to your shoes that'll make them into roller skates. As an idea, the roller skates are awesome. They allow you to move real fast, which cuts down on time it takes to get places (at least until you can get a Pokémon to learn Fly). The thing is, it can be hard to control with the stick.
One of the centerpieces of the City, besides the Gym itself, is the Trainers' School. This place is mainly here to explain to players about the various status changes Pokémon can endure in battle, like Paralysis, Poisoned, and Frozen. Now, I have played many a Pokémon main series game. When it comes to status changes, I can remember my Pokémon getting paralyzed, poisoned, or being put to sleep quite a few times, but I didn't encounter them getting burned or frozen that much. And keep in mind, I've battled and captured quite a few Fire and Ice-type Pokémon in my time. I'm guessing those two are rarer inflictions.
As for the Gym itself, it's quite a beautiful little Gym. The first room is essentially an art gallery. Turns out Viola, when she's not making life miserable for rookie Trainers, is a photographer. She hangs up her photos of Bug Pokémon on the walls. I can imagine that in this world, she lets people visit the Gallery, and sells prints and souvenirs in order to bring a little extra income into the Gym.
Well, time to get ready. Gotta train my Pokémon some more, and then...I'll battle Viola for my first badge. Wish me luck!
Pokémon Obtained:
Neptune (Froakie)
Chestnut (Chespin)
Gnaw (Bidoof)
Stingerette (Kakuna) - evolved from Weedle
Spiral (Dunsparce)
Church (Frillish) - Obtained via Wonder Trade
Honedge (Honedge) - Obtained via Wonder Trade
Tula (Azurill)
Spewpa (Mothra) - evolved from Scatterbug
Butterfree (Kojima) - evolved from Metapod
Beedrill (Stingerette) - evolved from Kakuna
Shada (Burmy)
Firemane (Litleo)
Daffy (Psyduck)
Hanzo (Farfetch'd)
Friday, May 9, 2014
Pokemon Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby
Well, it's been confirmed.
Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire are going to be released for the Nintendo 3DS/2DS system on November 2014. They are going to be enhanced remakes of the 2003 Game Boy Advance games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire. (For the release years, I'll be using the years they were released in America).
This isn't the first time that games in the Pokémon series have been given the enhanced remake treatment. In 2004, the original two games for the original Game Boy, Pokémon Red and Blue, were given enhanced remakes for the Game Boy Advance in the form of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Versions.
I believe the names "FireRed" and "LeafGreen" were chosen because in Japan, the original two games were known as Pokémon Red and Green.
In 2010, the Game Boy's sequel titles, Pokémon Gold and Silver, were given the enhanced remake treatments for the Nintendo DS as Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver.
The cynical would say that the purpose of the remakes was only to get more money out of gamers. After all, if one owned Gold and Silver already, for example, why on earth would you pay more from essentially the same game released on a newer platform?
Well, I may have an answer for that. Look at the time between the releases. Pokémon Red and Blue were released for the Game Boy in 1996. FireRed and LeafGreen came out in 2004, almost a decade later. Gold and Silver were released in 2000. HeartGold and SoulSilver came out in 2010, ten years afterward. Ruby and Sapphire was released in 2003, so it was about time an enhanced remake of those two games came about. 11 years, a new record.
In the case of the Pokémon series, a whole new generation of Pokémon games can arise between original and remake, bringing about not just new Pokémon, but also new aspects and new features. For example, in Gold and Silver, Pokémon had genders (Well, all the Pokémon did have genders now, not just the Nidorans) and a real-time feature that took advantage of the time of day. For example, some Pokémon could only be caught at night, like Hoot-Hoot, and some events only happened on certain days.
These new features made the sequels more fun, and kept people coming back for more. Every new Gen had new features. Kinda makes you wish the older games had the new features, huh? Well, the enhanced remakes take care of that. The Pokémon remakes were also a great way for new fans to enjoy the older games, and still have the features they were used to. So, enhanced remakes are a good thing to me.
I've been wanting a 2DS for a while now, and now, I definitely will get one for these remakes. I just hope a player of these new remakes can trade with the regular DS Pokémon games. They should be able to, hopefully, as the Pokémon remakes have a history of backwards compatibility.
You know, in a couple years...it'll be the 20th Anniversary of the release of Pokémon Red and Blue, the games that started this whole franchise. New remakes of those two games would be a great way to celebrate it. Maybe Game Freak is working on that.
Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire are going to be released for the Nintendo 3DS/2DS system on November 2014. They are going to be enhanced remakes of the 2003 Game Boy Advance games Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire. (For the release years, I'll be using the years they were released in America).
This isn't the first time that games in the Pokémon series have been given the enhanced remake treatment. In 2004, the original two games for the original Game Boy, Pokémon Red and Blue, were given enhanced remakes for the Game Boy Advance in the form of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Versions.
I believe the names "FireRed" and "LeafGreen" were chosen because in Japan, the original two games were known as Pokémon Red and Green.
In 2010, the Game Boy's sequel titles, Pokémon Gold and Silver, were given the enhanced remake treatments for the Nintendo DS as Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver.
The cynical would say that the purpose of the remakes was only to get more money out of gamers. After all, if one owned Gold and Silver already, for example, why on earth would you pay more from essentially the same game released on a newer platform?
Well, I may have an answer for that. Look at the time between the releases. Pokémon Red and Blue were released for the Game Boy in 1996. FireRed and LeafGreen came out in 2004, almost a decade later. Gold and Silver were released in 2000. HeartGold and SoulSilver came out in 2010, ten years afterward. Ruby and Sapphire was released in 2003, so it was about time an enhanced remake of those two games came about. 11 years, a new record.
In the case of the Pokémon series, a whole new generation of Pokémon games can arise between original and remake, bringing about not just new Pokémon, but also new aspects and new features. For example, in Gold and Silver, Pokémon had genders (Well, all the Pokémon did have genders now, not just the Nidorans) and a real-time feature that took advantage of the time of day. For example, some Pokémon could only be caught at night, like Hoot-Hoot, and some events only happened on certain days.
These new features made the sequels more fun, and kept people coming back for more. Every new Gen had new features. Kinda makes you wish the older games had the new features, huh? Well, the enhanced remakes take care of that. The Pokémon remakes were also a great way for new fans to enjoy the older games, and still have the features they were used to. So, enhanced remakes are a good thing to me.
I've been wanting a 2DS for a while now, and now, I definitely will get one for these remakes. I just hope a player of these new remakes can trade with the regular DS Pokémon games. They should be able to, hopefully, as the Pokémon remakes have a history of backwards compatibility.
You know, in a couple years...it'll be the 20th Anniversary of the release of Pokémon Red and Blue, the games that started this whole franchise. New remakes of those two games would be a great way to celebrate it. Maybe Game Freak is working on that.
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