Pokken Tournament
Wii U
Developer: The Pokemon Company, Bandai Namco Entertainment
Background
The highly anticipated Pokemon fighter that breathed new life into the franchise and genre. Pokken Tournament is a new franchise designed as a crossover between the popular fighter Tekken, and the beloved Nintendo franchise Pokemon. The game series was developed by Namco Bandai and The Pokemon Company and was brought to America in the form of a port from Japanese exclusive arcades on March 18, 2016. This new franchise features 16 Pokemon, some highly popular such as Charizard and Pikachu and other more lesser known, more recent Pokemon such as Chandelure and Braixen. The game also features many stages and background Pokemon to help put some more variety and life into more than just the game’s combat, but it’s world as a whole. The game’s main story pits you against a pool of other AI trainers in tournaments and you must climb to the top of each ladder, defeat the champion of that league and move on to the next league, all while uncovering the mystery of who is controlling the mysterious entity known as Shadow Mewtwo.
Combat Efficiency
I love all types of games, certain genres are a little harder to love then others but when it comes down to it, I am predominantly a fighter and RPG gamer. With that being said I have played just about every relevant fighting franchise out their as well as some lesser known ones. I can very confidently say that this game plays like no other. This franchise has started with it’s strong foot forward with very fun fighting mechanics that feel so incredibly unique. I was very unsure how to play at first, should I play like I play Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter or even Tekken. But the truth is it feels like it’s own game. It features a mechanic that is unique to itself with the “phase shifting.” It starts with an open battleground where one may run around freely, which is known as the “Field Phase” which is reminiscent of the Tekken franchise which boast similar mobility. However upon landing certain moves, the phase will change to the “Dual Phase” which is similar to most other fighting games where a player may only move back and forth.
This phase also helps to tie this game to the Pokemon franchise where you have two Pokemon facing off against each other face to face. The fighting is further supplemented by the use of support sets. A support set is a pair of two Pokemon that can be used throughout the match in whatever manner the player chooses. Some sets will are meant to attack the opposing player while others counter and attack on the user. Integrating the supports with your own abilities are key to victory. Don’t lose faith should you find yourself on the receiving end of a beating, the game features an ability called synergy, which represents the bond you share with your Pokemon… kinda cheesy but super efficient. This will throw your fighter into a kind of overdrive with attacks being stronger and having additional affects. In the case of those capable of mega-evolution will do just that. While in this mode you can also do a move called a synergy burst which is a devastating attack that will take a huge chunk or health from the enemy. All-in-all this game features very unique combat and is incredibly fun and fast paced.
Characters
The game features 16 playable characters and each one has a fully unique move set and you really have to learn each character and put time into each of them to learn their move set. Characters can have different fortes such as speed, power, technical or a standard balance. Whats great is that much like in the Pokemon games, you level up the fighters through playing matches.
With every level gained you can allocate one skill point to either attack, defense, synergy or technique helping to make each fighter feel like your own. Each fighter can have their points further increase their main attribute or help their shortcomings. For me, I put almost all my points on my Machamp towards his attack, with a few in defense, putting the fear in my opponents that one combo from me may end the match. It’s all about player preference which is a very under utilized feature in fighting games. I am a big fan of most of the Pokemon in this game as they are both popular and unpopular with characters like Suicune and Chandelure seeming like very odd additions helping to break the fighting game mold of a fighter being bipedal. The game also serves to help personify each Pokemon finally allowing us to get a feel for what they are like, such as Chandelure being a creepy ghost who is goofy and child-like, and Machamp who is quite proud and “showoffy”. Excellent attention to the characters and great inclusions on the roster, I hope they decide to follow this up with more DLC fighters as the roster very clearly has open slots for four more fighter.
Stages & Supports
While most games feature stages that just offer a different backdrop to fight on this game plays it a little differently. With barriers around the perimeter of the field, players can use this barriers to their advantage. However with each stage in this game, each one has a different size and proportion. With some stages having a circular shape and other having a very oval-like shape. Knowing which stages have which layouts is crucial in selecting a stage. Some characters will shine on certain stages depending on your play style. you may prefer a stage that allows for a lot of mobility all around, or you may want one that keeps you in line so you can face down your opponent head on. If your opponent is out classing you in combos then thats where the support sets come in. In the world of Pokemon, why would you ever choose to take on an opponent alone. Choose from 15 support sets with a pair of Pokemon each and use them to your advantage to either attack the opponent, disrupt their advances or open them up to a combo. So much potential if you figure out what works and what doesn’t.
Arcade Issues
Prior to its release on the Wii U, this game was exclusive to one place: Japanese arcades. On July 16, 2015 the game was released exclusively to arcades in Japan featuring less content than the console version obviously. The game features a total of 13 fighter with 5 of those fighters coming later as post-release content. The game cabinet has been slowly being removed from arcades due to a lack of profit coming from each cabinet. With each credit giving a player up to 45 minutes of game time, each pulled in very little profit making it very difficult for arcades to keep invested in them.
Verdict: 8/10
Fun, addictive and innovative, this game screams to be owned by anyone whose home houses a Wii U. The graphics are beautiful and highly uncommon for games on this console. It is a great and fun experience for anybody who enjoys either fighting games or Pokemon. If you own a Wii U you should own this game. Plus it’s nice to play as some Pokemon that would have made nice additions to the Super Smash Bros. franchise but didn’t quite make the cut (Sceptile anyone). The game does suffer from a lack of single-player content as it only has those ladder tournaments for you to challenge which can take four or five hours, maybe six if you decide to take your time. However once one climbs the ladders and leagues there is little left for one to do aside from playing others in online or couch competitive, which isn’t the worst issue for a fighting game, but an issue nonetheless. The pros undoubtedly outweigh the cons with this game and one should not let the lack of single-player content shy them away from purchasing it.
