Pokken Tournament Review

For over 20 years Pokemon has gone through many video game genres that contribute to Nintendo’s multi-billion dollar franchise. From its RPG origins to card games, pinball, puzzle, strategy, art games, and eventually its own mobile game with Pokemon Go! Despite the many titles Pokemon has under its belt, the one genre that fans have been waiting in hopes for is a Pokemon fighting game. Fans thought that happened back in the year 2000 with the Nintendo 64 game, Pokemon Stadium. That is not the case however for while Stadium does focus on combat, its gameplay is very similar to the original Game Boy games but just on television and in 3D. One title that comes close to that desire is Nintendo’s massive crossover fighter Super Smash Bros. where players can fight with characters from each Nintendo franchise such as Mario and Donkey Kong. In regards to Pokemon, Super Smash Bros. has had up to nine playable characters in the entire fighting series so far. Quite an accomplishment as for nearly 18 years fans believed that they would only be able to control Pokemon like Pikachu in Super Smash Bros. But on March 18^th, 2016, Pokemon fans finally have their wish granted in the very first guaranteed Pokemon fighting game available on the Wii U, Pokken Tournament.

Pokken Tournament is Nintendo’s second collaboration with a 3^rd party company after the success of combining their Legend of Zelda franchise with Koei Tecmo’s famous Dynasty Warriors series that gave us Hyrule Warriors. Working with Bandai Namco, the same company that help make the recent entry of the Super Smash Bros. franchise, took Pokemon and combined it with their famous fighting game franchise, Tekken. Rather than making a Tekken game with a Pokemon gimmick to it, Namco actually made Pokken stand out in comparison to their other fighting games.

With the game’s premise there is actually some story involved in the single player campaign. As you work your way through the Ferrum League you’ll encounter a mysterious black Pokemon that goes by the name of Shadow Mewtwo. As you work your way through each coloured league you’ll encounter the powerful Pokemon and get beaten nearly each time, but its expected as it moves the story forward to the final showdown. Pretty generic in its execution but the worst part unfortunately is the awful voice acting by the other characters. You can’t tell if they can’t take their role seriously or are not even trying. Thankfully you can turn off the voices if you just want to read the text. With that said the story is the not the main focus as it is Pokken’s core gameplay that we’re looking at.

In Pokken players can play up to 16 Pokemon with different fighting styles: standard, speed, technical and power. The players fight each other in two fields as they can switch the match around based on the combos they pull. Field phase lets the players move their character around to gain some ground and makes dodging easier. While Duel phase moves the players to the classic 2D fighting platform as the combatants are forced to fight closer. During the match players are allowed to use support Pokemon that does different actions based on the one they choose. Attack does damage to the opponent but cannot land the final blow, disrupt either stops the opponent in their tracks and/or weakens their stats, and enhance helps the player either raise their stats, recover health or boost their synergy gauge. Speaking of the synergy gauge, this is another element that is unique to Pokken. In time players can build up their pokemon’s synergy gauge and when it is full, their stats buff up for a limited time, and when hitting the buttons at the right time players can unleash their pokemon’s burst attack that deals heavy damage. The key to doing so is to know when to perform the move rather than just blindly attacking.

Combining special moves with combos is always a vital way to rank up damage in fighting games, but it is the controls that helps make Pokken a surprising breeze to grasp its gameplay. Rather than making the player perform complicated moves that can be very demanding like in most fighting games, Pokken actually makes their controls simple in the style of Smash Bros. Nearly every move layout is the same way but each performance is unique to each fighter, making it easier for newcomers to get into the game and perform the combos. But later on players will learn that there is more to this game that requires timing and strategy. Another mechanic used in Pokken actually harks back to the original game in terms of strategy and that’s using the rock-paper-scissors formation. For example, in the main Pokemon games players are given a choice of a starter Pokemon that consists of one element each: fire, water and grass. Water douses fire, grass absorbs water and fire burns grass. But rather than the pokemon’s own elements deciding the damage ratio it is the moves they pull off from either normal attacks, counters and throws. Counter deals more damage to opponents that use normal attacks, throws stops the counter by grabbing the opponent, and normal attacks break through the throw to deal heavy damage. Deciding what move you make, you can either out smart your opponent to victory or be careless and cost yourself the match. Showing a lot of depth in a relatively simple mechanic.

With all that said the only downside is that the content can feel small in comparison to other fighting games. But pending on how well Pokken Tournament does in sales, there might be a possibility to see some new DLC content released in the future. Ever since Nintendo entered the DLC market they have shown that they are competent in handling new content for their IP’s. Whereas most companies like Capcom and E.A. would cut content from their games upon release and make players pay for that said content that was already finished just to take more money. Nintendo on the other hand finishes their game first, releases them and THEN make new content. And giving the success of DLC sales with Hyrule Warriors, Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros., Pokken Tournament has untapped potential to be another money maker. While its not known how they can add more content in terms of stages and modes, new fighters are always a plus. The game already has 16 playable characters and with 720 Pokemon to choose from, the possibility is limitless. So we hope to hear some news in the future about updating Pokken’s content.

With the different styles of games that Pokemon plastered its image on to, Pokken Tournament was a gamble that paid off that will make fans happy while be welcoming to those who never played Pokemon before. You don’t really have to know anything about the characters if you only just want to test your skills or play with friends for fun as Pokken welcomes casuals and skilled players. It’s a simple premise with a deep presentation. Pick it up if you’re a fan or try it out if you’re ever curious, as surely Pokken Tournament will be joining among the list of great fighting games.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Review

After the successful re-release of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD (2013) for the Wii U, Nintendo brings another title back from the past with their recent remake, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD. Released back in 2006 for the Gamecube and Wii, Twilight Princess HD follows the same patterns as the last Zelda title as a high definition remake for the Wii U. Updating the graphics so the visuals are smooth and crisp, tweaking the gameplay to make a convenient use of the Wii U’s gamepad and adding a new feature for that makes use of Nintendo’s collectible amiibo figurines. While making little changes to the storyline that fans love about the franchise.

Centuries after the events of Ocarina of Time (1998) and Majora’s Mask (2000), the young hero named Link works on a farm in Ordon Village. Until one day his village is attack by Bulbins as they carry off with the children as Link pursues the monsters. Link is then stopped in his tracks by a wall of Twilight where he is pulled in and the strange realm turns him into a wolf. Waking up imprisoned he is freed by an imp-like Twilight being named Midna who mocks his situation but agrees to help him providing that he obeys her. As they escape, Midna guides Link to Princess Zelda who explains the reason for the phenomenon. Zelda explains that Zant, King of the Twilight has stolen three of the four Light Spirits and conquered the kingdom of Hyrule. As soon as Link in his own realm, the mission is on to restore the light to the kingdom and stop Zant’s diabolical conquest. However, not only is there more to Midna than she lets on but an ancient evil from the past returns that threatens both Hyrule and the Twilight realm.

Story wise, Twilight Princess is still one of the darker entries of the Zelda franchise. Not just visually but the story builds up the threat much more than before to make it feel legit. With real people dying instead of being put to sleep then waking up and presents demonic possession. The player can actually feel the evil around them in this game. Added with the character development in Twilight Princess HD the writing makes the game more solid for those who love to play games for the story.

As mentioned earlier, Twilight Princess HD is a darker game in terms of visuals and tone that can be compared to the Lord of the Rings. The reason for the darker visuals is that since the release of The Wind Waker back in 2003, fans had mixed reception with the more colourful cel-shaded approach with its graphics. The gameplay remained true to the Zelda name and even the story is quite emotional. But fans wanted a darker approach to every new game as The Legend of Zelda franchise established itself to be the opposite of the colourful and more family friendly Super Mario Bros. So Twilight Princess was made to cater to that demographic as a more “adult” Zelda game. While the updated visuals really shine to make the game less blurry than it did before, the graphical update isn’t as big as The Wind Waker remake was. For that game the Wii U’s graphics really made the colour pop out more as if it was MADE to be released in HD. This doesn’t hurt Twilight Princess HD’s visual update, but it pales in comparison by a bit to The Wind Waker HD.

For the remake’s gameplay, the re-release takes the two versions of Twilight Princess and combines them into one. In standard mode players play the updated version of the Gamecube version whereas hero mode is the updated Wii version as the world is flipped around and the player takes more damage when hit, adding more difficulty to players that want to challenge their skills. The Wii U’s gamepad makes it easier to access the menu for items for a smoother experience without the need to pause the game constantly. Like the other Zelda remakes of the past the use of the double screen helps for a faster gameplay that doesn’t interrupt the player’s pace.

 

Finally, the addition that makes Twilight Princess HD standout from the rest of the franchise is that the game is the very first Zelda title to use amiibo figurines. It should be noted that the game can only use the amiibo based off of the Zelda characters, which also includes the exclusive Wolf Link amiibo that only comes with the Collector’s Edition. Using the Link and Toon Link amiibos restores the player’s arrow ammunition and the Zelda and Sheik amiibo restore the player’s health. But the Ganondorf amiibo contrasts to the other four by weakening the player’s health so even in standard mode the player will take twice as much damage from a hit. Adding the same challenge one would get from the hero mode. Finally the Wolf Link’s amiibo usage is quite different as it is the only amiibo that can access the game’s Cave of Shadows dungeon. A special area that is similar to the optional side quest Cave of Ordeals in the main game, but the player cannot recover their health. So this addition is like a survival mode that has a hidden reward that a player can only access by clearing the Cave of Shadows. The usage of the amiibo is optional as they are not really needed to play the game but they can be used if the player needs assistance or want to challenge themselves.

Overall, Twilight Princess HD is a solid remake that will please those who enjoyed its original release with its updates features. While it may not stand out as much in updates when compared to The Wind Waker HD, the comparison is quite minimal. Twilight Princess HD can be approached by any fan whether they played the entry before or are new to the game.

ZooTopia Review

Following The Big Hero 6 of 2014, Disney's 55th animated feature ZooTopia brings the focus of anthropomorphic animals back to the big screen. Unlike other Disney films that focused on talking animals like the The Lion King (1994) for example, Disney only made two animated films where all the animals can walk and talk like humans. The first was Robin Hood (1973) where despite its lukewarm reception, is fondly remembered as a fun film that people still enjoy today. The other is Chicken Little (2005) which was a disastrous result for Disney's first CGI film without Pixar. Since then it would take 11 years before we saw another film that focused entirely on talking animals from Disney. So how does the film hold up?

ZooTopia is about a rabbit named Judy Hopps, played by Ginnifer Goodwin, who becomes the very first bunny cop and became appointed into the ZooTopia Police Department. Where in the said city that all animals, predator and prey live together in civilized harmony. Judy starts as a meter maid due to being smaller compared to the larger animals on the force despite graduating top class. While on the job she encounters a con artist fox named Nick Wilde, played by Jason Bateman. During one of her duties she learns there is a case going on with 15 animals missing, coincidentally they are all predators. Eager to prove herself as a cop, Judy takes one of the missing animal cases and recruits the reluctant Nick as a witness to the scene of the crime. They learn that there is a bigger conspiracy going on that not only threatens the lives of ZooTopia, but the very peaceful nature that the entire city as well.

At first glance one would think that the film would be riddled with pop culture references since ZooTopia takes place in a modern setting. Thankfully none of that is the case since the film tells its story efficiently with three strengths that makes this film delightful.

The first is the main characters being so likable. Judy is a wide-eyed optimistic with a never give up attitude, while Nick is laid back, slick and a wise cracker that the two work off each other well. Nick also has a sympathetic backstory that goes hand in hand with the theme of the film. 

The entire concept of an animal based world is the film's second strength. Given its concept the animators took full advantage of the possibilities of how a civilization where animals of all sorts live together. There are sections based on the climates that animals thrive in from deserts, jungles, tundras, there is even a small city for the smallest of animals to live in. The film could have made the entire location a generic industrial metropolis but it was a very smart decision to make the city diverse, colourful and pleasing to the eyes.

Finally, the last strength of the film without giving away too much is its theme of prejudice. The subject? Racism. The beginning of the film even pointed out how the animals used to go by the law of the jungle, the prey are helpless against the violent predators. In time they evolved and became civilized and live together in peace. However, that peace is not always present as a common element in the film is always shown of how foxes are the enemies of rabbits. While they live together, tensions can rise at times pending on a character's actions and beliefs in animal stereotypes. It is a lesson that has been repeated many times, but given the situation our world is in now, the film's message is vital given the constant hostility towards people of colour today. From corrupt cops violently killing innocent African Americans in the United States to the persecution of Muslims that have no connection to terrorist organizations that result in racial profiling. ZooTopia came out at the right time to not just teach kids but everyone about the dangers of prejudice and how intolerance affects EVERYONE.

If there are any flaws with the film there are just two points. A minor one is that given its concept, surprisingly there are no birds, amphibians, reptiles and insects. For a place called ZooTopia, one would think there would be more than just mammals there, but in actuality this is just a technicality that doesn't hurt the film's presentation. The other flaw is the plot twist of the mastermind behind the epidemic. Since Wreck-it-Ralph (2012), Disney has been on a streak with adding plot twists in their animated films to throw the audience off. While ZooTopia's twist isn't that bad, the pattern from the films before it makes it obvious to those who has seen the pattern recently. One can only imagine if Disney is trying to become M. Night Shaymalan who is famous for the term with his films; "What a twist!"

Overall, ZooTopia is a film that can surprise people with its concept that guarantees to make them feel like a kid again and presents a message that will not only become timeless, but important for days ahead when dealing with intolerance and prejudice. A must see for any Disney fan and casual movie goers!

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