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The Lowdown
Pros: Enhanced version of an already excellent game, making this the
Pokemon game to own.
Cons: If you already own and beat Pokemon Ruby or Sapphire there isn't
much reason to purchase this.
 Purchase
at Play-Asia
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Nintendo just can't stop milking the Pokemon franchise and people just
can't stop buying the Pokemon Game Boy games. With the millions of
copies of Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire out there in the hands of gamers,
its to no surprise that Nintendo has released an enhanced version of the
two games as a new cart. In many ways Emerald is similar to Pokemon
Yellow and Crystal, meaning you have the same story with some gameplay
enhancements here and there.If you've played either Ruby or Sapphire
you'll be familiar with Team Magma and Team Aqua. Both teams are trying
to awake the elusive Pokemon, Kygore and Groudon. Although instead of
just having to fight one group villains, you'll have to fight both at
the same time. As you race to stop both Teams from reaching their
Pokemon, you'll be exploring the world of Hoenn. Although this is the
same world from the other two games, there are a couple of new locations
to visit. One of the most interesting ones is the brand new Battle Dome.
The new battle dome has you use three of your trained pokemon in a
tournament style battle.
On top of the new battle dome mode Pokemon Emerald will have plenty
of Pokemon battling and fighting for you to do. If you've ever played a
Pokemon game before you pretty much no what to expect. You'll almost
always be battling Pokemon. Its either going to be dueling wild Pokemon
found in the fields or competing in a trainer battle where you get to
take on a couple of Pokemon in a row. In battle you'll be able to select
a Pokemon to attack with, then you can select different attacks that
your creature has learned. The attack system in Pokemon has always been
a complex rock-paper-scissors system where attacks of a certain element
can cause more damage than another. For instance water can extinguish
fire monsters and hand to hand based fighting pokemon have an edge on
rock pokemon. As you battle your Pokemon they gain valuable experience
to make them stronger. More experience leads to higher levels and
eventually new abilities. One of the unique features in the Pokemon
series is that some Pokemon will get the ability to evolve into a
larger, stronger Pokemon. New to the Ruby and Sapphire series were the
two on two battles. This feature has been reworked in Pokemon Emerald
because now trainers can jump in mid battle. This new feature can
completely turn the entire course of the battle around. There are also
new trainer types and new trainer combinations to play with.
A Pokemon game wouldn't be a Pokemon game without being able to catch
different types of Pokemon. You'll see a wider variety of Pokemon in
Emerald than in both Ruby and Sapphire. Favorites like Pikachu, Steelix,
Shelgun, Abra and Noctowl are in the game. The game seamlessly includes
Pokemon from both titles and a couple of rare ones, like Jirachi and of
course Rayquaza. New to the game is the ability to catch a Pokemon
favorite, Mew. Although, this elusive Pokemon have to be caught at
Pokemon center or with a game shark. Also similar to past Pokemon games you can set an in
game clock that operates via the battery in the cartridge. This means
you'll see different sets of Pokemon depending on the time of day you
play the game. The type of events that you can play also differ from
real life day to real life day, giving players lots to do. Pokemon
Emerald is also compatible with all other GBA Pokemon titles so you can
import your invincible Pokemon and keep playing with them.
Once you find all the badges to complete the rather lengthy, 20+ hour
main game you can go back and battle gym leaders again for the first
time. This way you can try to conquer them with Pokemon that you
couldn't have captured up at that point. If you're looking for more
challenges you can use your cell phone to dial up other trainers. This
feature gives you more battles to beat than found in the original
Ruby/Sapphire titles. Perhaps the best feature in the game is the all
new Battle Dome. This area has a bunch of new battle scenerios.
One of them has you pick three pokemon out of six random pokemon. Once
you choose your cute weapons you'll engage in a battle with another
trainer. If you win you can trade one of your Pokemon with one of the
trainer's Pokemon. You can also participate in the Battle Arena, which
is another type of 3 on 3 battle. In this mode you only have three turns
to show off your moves. These new features are a welcome addition and
are something that Poke-perfectionists will like.
Pokemon Emerald has reworked graphics. First of all you'll notice the
new spiffy outfits for the two main characters. To go along with their
new dreads, entire towns have been reworked to add in more details. By
comparison the villages look more alive and the battles have better
animations. When you enter a battle the first pokemon will move around
and even use some of their moves to show that they're ready. Even though, these are only slight details and Pokemon
Emerald doesn't look too much better than any of the other GBA Pokemon
games.
After over ten games you either love or hate the Pokemon series.
While Pokemon Emerald is really designed for people who haven't already
picked up Ruby or Sapphire, gamers will find a decent amount to do in
Emerald. Features like the wireless adapter support, new battle styles
and more 2 on 2 fighting make Pokemon Emerald a better version of a
classic GBA title.
Pokemon Emerald is extremely language heavy. If you can't read
katakana and hiragana the game will be impossible to play through
without the use of a strategy guide.
US Bound?
There is no set release date yet, but were sure it'll be in the US
eventually.
Overall
If you love Pokemon titles, Emerald is another game you'll enjoy.
Although Pokemon Emerald doesn't have enough differences or anything
else radically different to convince those who despise the series to
pick the title up.
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