Review No. 44 Pokémon Rumble - WiiWare (3+)

Strong Points:

Loads of Pokémon

Great bosses

Different battling system to the main series

Weak Points:

Rubbish storyline

Very repetitive

The same levels are repeated each time

Very hack n' slash

In-depth Review:

Release Dates:
Japan: June 16, 2009
North America: November 16, 2009
Europe: November 20, 2009

Controls:
D-Pad: move/select menu
A/B/1/2: attack
Start: menu/pause

This is a strange game. Generally, the point of a Pokémon game is to catch and train a Pokémon, not to catch and throw out an older one. The idea for this game is that some toy Pokémon and are competing to get into the Battle Royale so as to win and become champion. Much like the gyms and leagues of the main series, actually.  

You begin Pokémon Rumble as a Ratatata who manages to get into the Battle Royale by squeezing through a gap in the door. Unbelievably underpowered you are quickly defeated. Now, in most Pokémon games, you have to train your Ratatata to a Ratacate so that you can defeat the Battle Royale. Not this time. Instead, you have to find another Pokémon from one of the six stages and swap it for the Ratatata. Sadly, Ratatata will never beat the Battle Royale.

The six stages are Silent Forest, Windy Prairie, Rocky Cave, Fiery Furnace, Bright Beach, Eternal Tower. In each stage, there are three sections in which you battle hoardes of toy Pokémon followed by a boss section in which you fight a supersized Pokémon. Sometimes, when the opponent faints, it will stay on the screen enabling you to walk over it and collect it. If the opponent does not stay on the screen, then it will turn into coins which you can collect and use to upgrade your moves.

There are four ranks and two modes (beginner and advanced). The ranks go from C to S increasing the difficulty with each rank. In each rank, you have the option to complete each of the six stages again so that you can get a more powerful Pokémon. To get into the Battle Royale you have to have a Pokémon equal or higher to a certain level so a lot of collecting is involved.

The Battle Royale involves you defeating a hoard of Pokémon in a certain amount of time. No coins or Pokémon are dropped and are instead replaced by time. At the end of the Battle Royale you have to defeat a few boss Pokémon (this time, not supersized). 

Conclusion: overall, I think that Pokémon Rumble focuses on two of the three main parts if the Pokémon genre: battling and capturing. However, it completely ignores the training aspect of the series so you never grow to like the Pokémon in your team and instead just through them at the enemy.

Rating: 45%

Goodbye for now, Harry