Info about Video Games
Pokémon Soul Silver
With the wide range of Pokémon games out there it becomes very hard to pick between the different ones… or even know where to start.
Is there even a beginning? Well, to get players started in Pokémon we have included a special feature to give a jump start to those new to the game, and tips and tricks that some experienced players can learn on page 62. In this review we are going to focus on the main points of the Heart Gold and Soul Silver and how they are different from the rest of the Pokémon games out there.
Team Rocket is back after a bad break up and they are at it again. They are forcing Pokémon to evolve into their bigger states and also attempting to control all Pokémon in the land. They have taken over the radio stations and are sending out their control signal over all of Johto. As a trainer the player journeys through the land of Johto, fighting various Pokémon gym leaders. There is almost always someone or something in the way of fighting the gym leader and the player will need to solve each bit of the story to continue; this is where Team Rocket comes in.
After getting all the badges in the area, the player moves on to the Pokémon league to eventually fight the league champion. In most other Pokémon games, after the league champion is beaten it only opens up the battle area and continued general battling is available. In Heart Gold and Soul Silver beating the league champion will open a new area with 8 more badges and another league to win! That is like buying two Pokémon games for the price of one.
This fact alone should help when looking to buy a Pokémon game, as these are twice as long. Are there differences between Heart Gold and Soul Silver other than the box art and loading screen? Only one main difference is the time in which legendary creature is available to catch. It ends up about as important as picking the gender of the player’s character. The Pokémon seen on the cover of each of these versions are both available in the game. Lugia is the Soul Silver Pokémon with Ho-oh being the Heart Gold one. Lugia can always be found in the Whirl Islands (after obtaining the silver feather and beating both Team Rocket and the Kimono Girls) while Ho-oh is found at the Bell Tower in Ecruteak City and will need a Rainbow Wing and victory over the same Team Rocket and Kimono Girls. The difference in version is whether you meet them there at level 45 or at level 70. If playing Soul Silver, for example, the silver feather will be given during the story and the Rainbow Wing will need to be found in Pewter City from someone there.
The Pokéwalker is a new addition to the Pokémon games and only comes with SoulSilver and HeartGold. This is a pedometer: it counts the steps that a person takes when it is attached to their belt. It is in the shape of a Pokéball and the player is able to load a Pokémon onto it and walk around, with each step adding one point of experience. No matter how far you walk, though, a trip on the Pokéwalker will only ever add one level to any Pokémon loaded onto it.
There are two mini games on the Pokéwalker, which allow the player to dowse for items and use a PokéRadar to catch Pokémon. The item and Pokémon change according to the area the player selects to ‘walk’ in. Pokéwalkers are also able to communicate with each other, allowing gift exchanging.
Being able to catch and find different Pokémon with the Pokéwalker does help in filling the player’s Pokédex. There are also a few general feature improvements in the game. The first Pokémon that comes out in a battle now walks behind the player as they walk around. The Pokédex view has been altered to show a scrollable grid of Pokémon before selecting a single one.
There are also changes to the way of selecting and using items in the menus, with most of the buttons now on the bottom screen.
The player has three different ways to play: using just buttons and selecting with the “A” button, or switching the second option on and using the “L” button to select and only needing one hand, or just using the d-pad to walk around and the stylus for everything else. Before the stylus use was limited and buttons where only on the top screen.
Don’t forget that buying any of the same type Pokémon games also lets the player battle or trade with other version of the same type, so playing with a friend and their Pearl version is still possible.
This is the only way to collect all of the more than 250 Pokémon… if you gotta catch ‘em all.