209-715: Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version are 2010 role-playing video games developed by Game Freak and published by The Pokémon Company and Nintendo for the Nintendo DS . They are the first installments in the fifth generation of the Pokémon video game series . First released in Japan on 18 September 2010, they were later released in Europe, North America and Australia in 2011. Sequels to Black and White , Pokémon Black 2 and Pokémon White 2 , were released for
418-515: A linear storyline; the main events occur in a fixed order. The protagonist of Pokémon Black and White is Hilbert and Hilda, who journeys through Unova to become the Pokémon Master. At the beginning of the games, the player chooses either Snivy , Tepig , or Oshawott as their starter Pokémon as a gift from Professor Aurea Juniper . The protagonist's friends, Cheren and Bianca, are also rival Pokémon Trainers who occasionally battle
627-490: A party , and attain victory by completing a series of quests or reaching the conclusion of a central storyline. Players explore a game world, while solving puzzles and engaging in combat. A key feature of the genre is that characters grow in power and abilities, and characters are typically designed by the player. RPGs rarely challenge a player's physical coordination or reaction time, with the exception of action role-playing games . Role-playing video games typically rely on
836-445: A turn-based system . The player may carry between one and six Pokémon in their active party; the first Pokémon in the lineup is automatically sent into battle. At the start of each turn, both sides may use a move , use an item , switch their active Pokémon out for another in their party, or attempt to flee from battle if against a wild Pokémon. Each Pokémon uses moves to reduce their opponent's Hit Points (HP) to zero, at which point
1045-635: A Battle Frontier, identical to that of Platinum , where the Battle Tower was found in Crystal . After a series of battles in each venue, players encounter Frontier Brains who are challenged in the same fashion as the other battles in their respective venues, and the player will either earn a Symbol (in Emerald ) or a Commemorative Print (in Platinum ) for winning. The Frontier Brains can be challenged
1254-618: A Pokémon 10 EVs in a single stat, and certain berries removing 10 EVs in a stat in return for an increase in the Pokémon's friendship value. Pokérus , a condition introduced in Pokémon Gold and Silver , doubles the rate at which Pokémon gain EVs, as well as giving the Pokémon the ability to spread Pokérus to other Pokémon for a limited time. Individual values , or IVs , are additional hidden values for each Pokémon that help to determine
1463-494: A Pokémon is Stellar-type. Tera Starstorm, when changed into Stellar-type, hits all opponents in Double Battles instead of just one. Both Stellar-type moves are super effective against other Terastallized Pokémon. Like the characters in many role-playing video games , Pokémon can learn a wide variety of moves. These moves may inflict damage, induce status problems, restore health, or perform actions that in some way affect
1672-511: A Pokémon is holding a Mega Stone that corresponds to its species, that Pokémon will be able to Mega Evolve during battle. Every Pokémon capable of Mega Evolution has one Mega Evolved form, with the exception of Charizard and Mewtwo, both of which have two. A similar ability known as Primal Reversion was introduced in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire , exclusively for Kyogre and Groudon. Pokémon Sword and Shield introduced
1881-410: A Pokémon's HP is reduced to zero, it faints until it is revived. If an opposing Pokémon faints, all of the player's Pokémon who participated in defeating it receive experience points . After accumulating enough experience points, a Pokémon may level up, increasing its stats. Many Pokémon evolve into other forms after certain conditions are met, usually after reaching a certain level threshold or by having
2090-558: A Pokémon's Tera Type when it Terastallizes. In The Indigo Disk , a new type, called the Stellar type, was introduced. The Stellar type can only be brought out when a Pokémon with this Tera Type Terastallizes. While Pokémon retain their original weaknesses while in the Stellar type, all of their moves will be boosted, but only once; after a Stellar-type boosted move is used, that move loses its boost. It also applies to Pokémon who have two moves of similar typing. For example, if Dazzling Gleam
2299-470: A Pokémon's Tera Type while it is Terastallized, as well as dealing physical damage over special damage if the Pokémon's physical attack stat is higher (and vice versa). However, when not Terastallized, Tera Blast remains a Special category Normal-type move. After defeating and catching Terapagos in The Indigo Disk , a new Tera Type is unlocked, called "Stellar". Unlike most types, it only exists as
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#17327720260112508-1005: A Pokémon's statistics or weaken a foe, inflict status effects such as paralysis or poisoning, or perform other effects. Some Abilities may also grant immunities or resistances. Most Abilities can only be activated during a battle, however, some Abilities have effects outside of Pokémon battles. For example, a Pokémon with the Ability Intimidate will cause the player to encounter lower-level wild Pokémon less often. All Pokémon have six statistics that affect their performance in battle. These are HP, Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed. These statistics can be temporarily modified during battle by Abilities, items, and moves. There are also two other statistics, Accuracy and Evasiveness, which are not affected when Pokémon level up. No Pokémon has innately higher Accuracy or Evasiveness than any other, but they can be modified during battle like other statistics. Increasing Accuracy makes
2717-425: A Tera Type, and thus does not have a set of strengths or weaknesses (instead retaining only the strengths of its original type(s)). When Terastallized, it grants STAB to all of a Pokémon's moves, but only once per move type. Terapagos ignores this weakness, and has STAB for all moves for the full duration of its Terastallized state. Tera Blast and Tera Starstorm (Terapagos' signature moves) become Stellar-type moves when
2926-426: A benefit on the user before executing the move. Some Pokémon can learn Z-Moves exclusive to their species using a special Z-Crystal. Hidden Machines, commonly abbreviated as HMs, can be used to teach moves to Pokémon, including some moves that they would otherwise not learn by increasing in level. HMs are often vital, or even required, to progress in the games, as they have important effects outside of battle, allowing
3135-450: A big open world , and let you do whatever you like [which makes it] difficult to tell a compelling story." Hironobu Sakaguchi noted that "users like to categorise" WRPGs as "a sort of different style, born from first person shooters." In recent years, some have also criticized WRPGs for becoming less RPG-like, instead with further emphasis on action. Christian Nutt of GameSpy states that, in contrast to JRPGs, WRPGs' greater control over
3344-609: A certain item used on them. At the "Day Care" location, the player can breed two of their Pokémon—usually, a male and a female—to create Eggs that hatch into baby Pokémon at level 1. Pokémon Black and White takes place in the Unova region, based on New York City . As with all regions, Unova consists of a number of cities and towns connected by "Routes". Random encounters may take place in tall grass along routes or in bodies of water. The player occasionally battles Trainers in cities and towns, as well as along routes. In addition, eight of
3553-639: A cruise ship that the player can ride and fight Trainers aboard to win otherwise rare items. The C-Gear replaces the Pokétech from Diamond and Pearl on the Nintendo DS's bottom screen. It controls the game's wireless capabilities, including infrared (IR) communication for battling and trading, wireless communications in the Xtranceiver video chat access to the Entralink to transfer content from
3762-409: A finite number of points to the attributes of their choice. Gaining experience will also unlock new magic spells for characters that use magic. Some role-playing games also give the player specific skill points , which can be used to unlock a new skill or improve an existing one. This may sometimes be implemented as a skill tree. As with the technology trees seen in strategy video games , learning
3971-549: A gamemaster. Exploring the world is an important aspect of many RPGs. Players will walk through, talking to non-player characters , picking up objects, and avoiding traps. Some games such as NetHack , Diablo , and the FATE series randomize the structure of individual levels, increasing the game's variety and replay value. Role-playing games where players complete quests by exploring randomly generated dungeons and which include permadeath are called roguelikes , named after
4180-449: A greater degree in the early 1990s. As console RPGs became more heavily story-based than their computer counterparts, one of the major differences that emerged during this time was in the portrayal of the characters. Console RPGs often featured intricately related characters who had distinctive personalities and traits, with players assuming the roles of people who cared about each other, fell in love or even had families. Romance in particular
4389-536: A highly developed story and setting, which is divided into a number of quests. Players control one or several characters by issuing commands, which are performed by the character at an effectiveness determined by that character's numeric attributes. Often these attributes increase each time a character gains a level , and a character's level goes up each time the player accumulates a certain amount of experience. Role-playing video games also typically attempt to offer more complex and dynamic character interaction than what
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#17327720260114598-647: A hold as they had in the West due to their cost; there was little market for Western-developed games and there were a few Japanese-developed games for personal computers during this time such as The Black Onyx (1984) which followed the Wizardry / Ultima format. With the release of the low-cost Famicom console (called the Nintendo Entertainment System overseas), a new opportunity arose to bring role-playing games to Japan. Dragon Quest (1986)
4807-815: A large number of Western indie games are modelled after JRPGs, especially those of the 16-bit era , partly due to the RPG Maker game development tools . Another oft-cited difference is the prominence or absence of kawaisa , or "cuteness", in Japanese culture, and different approaches with respect to character aesthetics. WRPGs tend to maintain a serious and gritty tone, whereas JRPG protagonists tend to be designed with an emphasis on aesthetic beauty, and even male characters are often young, androgynous , shōnen or bishōnen in appearance. JRPGs often have cute characters, juxtaposed with more mature themes and situations; and many modern JRPGs feature characters designed in
5016-641: A little box doesn't mean it belongs there." Nick Doerr of Joystiq criticizes the claim that JRPGs are "too linear", pointing out that non-linear JRPGs are not uncommon—for instance, the Romancing SaGa series. Likewise, Rowan Kaiser of Joystiq points out that linear WRPGs were common in the 1990s, and argues that many of the often mentioned differences between Eastern and Western games are stereotypes that are generally "not true" and "never was", pointing to classic examples like Lands of Lore and Betrayal at Krondor that were more narrative-focused than
5225-423: A major challenge in order to progress to the next area, and this structure can be compared to the boss characters at the end of levels in action games . The player typically must complete a linear sequence of certain quests in order to reach the end of the game's story. Many RPGs also often allow the player to seek out optional side-quests and character interactions. Quests of this sort can be found by talking to
5434-459: A mixed class, such as a fighter who can cast simple spells. Characters will also have a range of physical attributes such as dexterity and strength, which affect a player's performance in combat. Mental attributes such as intelligence may affect a player's ability to perform and learn spells, while social attributes such as charisma may limit the player's choices while conversing with non-player characters. These attribute systems often strongly resemble
5643-435: A move more likely to hit, while increasing Evasiveness makes the opponent's move more likely to miss. Another stat called "Critical Hit Rate" also exists, and affects the chance that a Pokémon's moves will land a critical hit. This stat can only be raised, not lowered, and methods of changing it are much less common than methods to change the other 7 (not including HP) stats. In Pokémon Red , Green , Blue , and Yellow , both
5852-474: A new Pokémon was shown by Junichi Masuda on the 7 February 2010 episode of Pokémon Sunday , stated to be in the film for the summer and to be identified in a future episode on 21 February. This new Pokémon was also featured in the March 2010 issue of CoroCoro Comic available on 15 February. Since then, the Pokémon has been named " Zoroark ", and it evolves from a Pokémon named " Zorua ". Both were featured in
6061-419: A non-player character, and there may be no penalty for abandoning or ignoring these quests other than a missed opportunity or reward. Players can find loot (such as clothing, weapons, and armor) throughout the game world and collect it. Players can trade items for currency and better equipment. Trade takes place while interacting with certain friendly non-player characters, such as shopkeepers, and often uses
6270-466: A number of user-configurable settings. Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel and Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura offered players the option to play in either turn-based or RTwP mode via a configuration setting. The latter also offered a "fast turn-based" mode, though all three of the game's modes were criticized for being poorly balanced and oversimplified. Early Ultima games featured timed turns: they were strictly turn-based, but if
6479-442: A particular action will increase. Many role-playing games allow players to play as an evil character. Although robbing and murdering indiscriminately may make it easier to get money, there are usually consequences in that other characters will become uncooperative or even hostile towards the player. Thus, these games allow players to make moral choices, but force players to live with the consequences of their actions. Games often let
Pokémon Black and White - Misplaced Pages Continue
6688-483: A particular skill in the tree will unlock more powerful skills deeper in the tree. Three different systems of rewarding the player characters for solving the tasks in the game can be set apart: the experience system (also known as the "level-based" system), the training system (also known as the "skill-based" system) and the skill-point system (also known as "level-free" system) Older games often separated combat into its own mode of gameplay, distinct from exploring
6897-581: A positive-feedback cycle that is central to most role-playing games: The player grows in power, allowing them to overcome more difficult challenges, and gain even more power. This is part of the appeal of the genre, where players experience growing from an ordinary person into a superhero with amazing powers. Whereas other games give the player these powers immediately, the player in a role-playing game will choose their powers and skills as they gain experience. Role-playing games usually measure progress by counting experience points and character levels. Experience
7106-465: A rare Pokémon, a Pokémon more common in the opposite game version, or the highest evolutionary form of a Pokémon whose lower forms can normally be found in the area. This is the only way to capture Pokémon such as Audino , Emolga , and Alomomola . Also, dust clouds in caves and the shadows of flying Pokémon on certain bridges can be entered to either find a rare item or encounter Drilbur , Excadrill , Ducklett , or Swanna , none of which can be found in
7315-402: A result, Japanese-style role-playing games are held in disdain by some Western gamers, leading to the term "JRPG" being held in the pejorative. Some observers have also speculated that JRPGs are stagnating or declining in both quality and popularity, including remarks by BioWare co-founder Greg Zeschuk and writing director Daniel Erickson that JRPGs are stagnating—and that Final Fantasy XIII
7524-415: A rival character, who receives the Pokémon whose type is advantageous against the player's starter Pokémon. By traveling around the region, catching and evolving Pokémon, and defeating other Trainers in battle, the player increases the size and strength of their Pokémon collection. A major subplot of most games is to defeat a criminal organization, whose intents are usually trying to take over the world through
7733-466: A row at once; Some moves only allow Pokémon on the left or right side to attack the opponent's Pokémon on the same side or in the center. Changing position takes up one turn. In Rotation Battles, each side sends out three Pokémon at once, but they are arranged in a circle that can be rotated at will. Black has more Rotation Battles than Triple Battles, and the opposite is true in White . Another introduction
7942-406: A seasonal cycle, rotation battles, triple battles, hidden abilities, and fully animated Pokémon sprites. Both titles are independent of each other but feature largely the same plot, and while both can be played separately, trading Pokémon between both of the games is necessary in order to complete the games' Pokédex . Upon their release, Black and White received positive reviews, with praise for
8151-915: A second time to more advanced versions of the Symbols or Prints (advancing from Silver to Gold). The Frontier Brains have very powerful Pokémon, often including Legendary Pokémon, making a victory even more difficult than in the main storyline. A Pokémon's type is an elemental attribute determining the strengths and weaknesses of each Pokémon and its moves. These types interact in rock–paper–scissors -style relationships: Pokémon take double damage from attacking moves of types they are weak to and half damage from moves of types they resist. In Pokémon Red , Blue , and Yellow , there were only 15 types: Normal, Fire, Water, Grass, Electric, Ice, Fighting, Poison, Ground, Flying, Psychic, Bug, Rock, Ghost, and Dragon. The Dark and Steel types were introduced in Gold and Silver , and
8360-539: A select few websites to ask them to take down confidential images". The foreign promotion for the games began on 22 November 2010, when the official website for the North American, European, and Australian markets was updated, which included the localized names of the starter Pokémon (Snivy, Tepig, and Oshawott) in English, Dutch , Italian , Brazilian Portuguese , and Spanish markets and the games' setting in
8569-474: A short description will be added to a player's Pokédex. Each region has its own Pokédex, which differs in appearance, species of Pokémon catalogued, and functions. In Pokémon Legends: Arceus , which takes place long before any other Pokémon games, players are tasked with assembling the first-ever Pokédex. The National Pokédex allows Pokémon from all regions to be catalogued. After its removal from Pokémon Sword and Shield , many fans were upset, due to
Pokémon Black and White - Misplaced Pages Continue
8778-442: A side-scrolling view. Most notably since Ultima Underworld (1992), role-playing games started implementing true three-dimensional (3D) graphics, where players typically navigate the game world from a first or third-person perspective. However, an isometric or aerial top-down perspective is common in party-based RPGs, in order to give the player a clear view of their entire party and their surroundings. Role-playing games require
8987-494: A single paragraph) spread across 13 booklets, while the second contains 50,000 paragraphs spread across 14 booklets. Most of the games from this era are turn-based, although Dungeon Master and its imitators have real-time combat. Other classic titles from this era include The Bard's Tale (1985), Wasteland (1988), the start of the Might and Magic (1986–2014) series and the continuing Ultima (1981–1999) series. Later, in
9196-409: A smaller set of possible actions, since computers can't engage in imaginative acting comparable to a skilled human gamemaster. In exchange, the typical role-playing video game may have storyline branches, user interfaces, and stylized cutscenes and gameplay to offer a more direct storytelling mechanism. Characterization of non-player characters in video games is often handled using a dialog tree . Saying
9405-501: A special class of TMs for important moves that allow the player to traverse the environment. The "Surf" HM move, for example, is used to cross bodies of water. The graphics have been improved from Diamond and Pearl . The dialog boxes of previous games have been changed to speech balloons that appear over other characters' heads, allowing more than one character to speak at once. Japanese players can have kanji appear on screen, rather than only hiragana and katakana . During battles,
9614-415: A specialized trading screen. Purchased items go into the player's inventory. Some games turn inventory management into a logistical challenge by limiting the size of the player's inventory, thus forcing the player to decide what they must carry at the time. This can be done by limiting the maximum weight that a player can carry, by employing a system of arranging items in a virtual space, or by simply limiting
9823-463: A spell, as ammunition is consumed by a gun, most games offer players a finite amount of mana which can be spent on any spell. Mana is restored by resting or by consuming potions. Characters can also gain other non-magical skills, which stay with the character for as long as the character lives. Role-playing games may have the player focus only on a single character throughout the game; the character may be joined by computer-controlled allies outside of
10032-754: A three-on-three battle system. The August 2010 issue of CoroCoro Comic elaborated upon many new game mechanics: the three-on-three system, the online Global Link system, an online Dream World that can allow for access to other Pokémon, access to an area that uses the Wi-Fi called the Hilink (similar to the Underground), a special feature called the Live Caster for video chat on the Nintendo DSi and Nintendo 3DS , kanji support, aesthetic differences between
10241-695: A time. The Pokémon which is battling can be switched out with the other two without using up a turn. In addition to the Pokémon Gyms and other battles to advance the plot, side games and post-game areas have been introduced in subsequent editions of the Pokémon games that extend the gameplay. First introduced in Pokémon Crystal , the Battle Tower , Battle Subway , Battle Maison , and Battle Tree are game features accessible outside of
10450-482: A variety of options unique to each game. Pokémon Abilities are special attributes that were introduced in Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire . Specific species of Pokémon have one to three possible Abilities, with individual Pokémon exhibiting one Ability each. Unlike the moves a Pokémon knows, its Ability cannot normally change (Except for when an Ability Patch or Ability Capsule is used). Abilities can strengthen
10659-534: A way to demonstrate the new color capabilities of the Game Boy Color system. These are Pokémon that have a different coloration than normal; in earlier games, this was often done by means of a palette swap . Encountering a Shiny Pokémon is extremely rare; the probability under normal conditions is 1 in 4,096 (1 in 8,192 prior to Pokémon X and Y ). The term "Shiny" used to be unofficial. The first time it fell into official use in an English-language game
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#173277202601110868-426: A weaker lineup of monsters (largely an aesthetic complaint), this is the best Pokémon has to offer on every level, renewing my waning interest in monster battling". Jeremy Parish of Retronauts criticized Black and White , commenting that he grew tired of it shortly after starting and feeling like it was too similar to all previous Pokémon games. He further went on to say that EVs and IVs, invisible mechanics in
11077-478: A young Pokémon, usually of the lowest stage in its mother's evolutionary line . Players have the ability to trade their Pokémon with one another by connecting two compatible games. Because of the Pokémon series revolving around catching as many Pokémon as possible, trading is considered an important aspect of Pokémon . Certain Pokémon are only able to evolve by trading, with the exception of Pokémon Legends: Arceus , where some of these Pokémon can evolve with
11286-487: Is Combination Moves: a starter Pokémon can be taught one of three moves, and using them together in Double or Triple battles produces more powerful attacks. In the wild, walking through darker-colored tall grass can trigger Double Battles against wild Pokémon rather than only Single Battles with lighter-colored grass. Occasionally, the player can find rustling patches of grass and rippling water, where they can encounter either
11495-595: Is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immersed in some well-defined world, usually involving some form of character development by way of recording statistics. Many role-playing video games have origins in tabletop role-playing games and use much of the same terminology , settings , and game mechanics . Other major similarities with pen-and-paper games include developed story-telling and narrative elements, player character development, complexity, as well as replay value and immersion. The electronic medium removes
11704-415: Is also home to a diversity of people who vary in skin tone , language, and occupation. The region's Japanese name "Isshu" ( イッシュ ) is derived from the Japanese words tashu ( 多種 , meaning "many kinds") and isshu ( 一種 , meaning "one kind") ; the many kinds of people and Pokémon seen up close look like only one kind of life from afar. Like previous Pokémon games, Black and White both follow
11913-430: Is as addictive as ever." Edge acknowledged that "where next for Pokémon , Black and White don't suggest any answers, but they do remind us why we'd care in the first place." IGN gave the games a 9/10, a higher rating than any of the other Nintendo DS Pokémon games. The review praised the games for renewing interest in the series, though criticized some of the new Pokémon designs, explaining that "aside from
12122-559: Is available, which allows a player to trade a Pokémon for a random Pokémon from another player who also attempted a Wonder Trade. Certain Pokémon and items can be obtained through events. Mystery Gift , a feature introduced in Gold and Silver , allows players to receive in-game rewards during limited-time events. While some rewards are distributed with online serial codes or online functionality, others are exclusive to in-person events. Shiny Pokémon ( 光るポケモン , Shining Pokémon ) were first introduced in Gold and Silver as
12331-413: Is during the games' winter season. On the day of the Japanese release, Nintendo of America sent cease and desist letters to two English language Pokémon fansites, PokéBeach and Serebii , after they published screenshots and various other media from the newly released games. Nintendo claimed the posting of the media was infringing copyright and noted their intention to shut down the websites under
12540-484: Is found in other video game genres. This usually involves additional focus on the artificial intelligence and scripted behavior of computer-controlled non-player characters . The premise of many role-playing games tasks the player with saving the world, or whichever level of society is threatened. There are often twists and turns as the story progresses, such as the surprise appearance of estranged relatives, or enemies who become friends or vice versa. The game world
12749-496: Is largely predefined for the sake of telling a specific story, many role-playing games make use of a character creation screen. This allows players to choose their character's sex, their race or species, and their character class. Although many of these traits are cosmetic, there are functional aspects as well. Character classes will have different abilities and strengths. Common classes include fighters, spellcasters, thieves with stealth abilities, and clerics with healing abilities, or
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#173277202601112958-492: Is not even really an RPG; criticisms regarding seemingly nebulous justifications by some Japanese designers for newly changed (or, alternately, newly un-changed) features of recent titles; calls among some gaming journalists to "fix" JRPGs' problems; as well as claims that some recent titles such as Front Mission Evolved are beginning to attempt—and failing to—imitate Western titles. In an article for PSM3 , Brittany Vincent of RPGFan.com felt that "developers have mired
13167-492: Is notable for introducing automapping and in-game scrolls providing hints and background information. They also released Pool of Radiance in 1988, the first of several " Gold Box " CRPGs based on the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules . These games feature a first-person display for movement, combined with an overhead tactical display for combat. One common feature of RPGs from this era, which Matt Barton calls
13376-621: Is often rooted in speculative fiction (i.e. fantasy or science fiction ), which allows players to do things they cannot do in real life and helps players suspend their disbelief about the rapid character growth. To a lesser extent, settings closer to the present day or near future are possible. The story often provides much of the entertainment in the game. Because these games have strong storylines, they can often make effective use of recorded dialog and voiceover narration. Players of these games tend to appreciate long cutscenes more than players of faster action games . While most games advance
13585-476: Is only accessible by downloading a special item from Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection , DS Stations , and Nintendo Zones (such as those found in Japanese McDonald's restaurants) to a game save. This was initially available for a month following the games' release date. Another promotional Pokémon given out after the games' release is a Kumasyun , a Pokémon that is difficult to find in the games unless it
13794-518: Is used with the Stellar boost, then any other Fairy-type moves aside from Dazzling Gleam will also lose the boost. Evolution is a sudden change in form of a Pokémon, usually accompanied by an increase in stat values. There are several different conditions that can trigger evolution in different species; the most common is gaining enough battle experience and leveling up. There are many other factors that can determine if, when, and into what, different Pokémon will evolve. The original alternate methods were
14003-406: Is usually divided so that each game location is an opportunity to reveal a new chapter in the story. Pen-and-paper role-playing games typically involve a player called the gamemaster (or GM for short) who can dynamically create the story, setting, and rules, and react to a player's choices. In role-playing video games, the computer performs the function of the gamemaster. This offers the player
14212-451: Is usually earned by defeating enemies in combat, with some games offering experience for completing certain quests or conversations. Experience becomes a form of score , and accumulating a certain amount of experience will cause the character's level to go up. This is called "levelling up", and gives the player an opportunity to raise their character(s)'s attributes. Many RPGs allow players to choose how to improve their character, by allocating
14421-465: The Pokémon: Let's Go! games, players catch Pokémon without battling them, instead throwing Poké Balls directly, sometimes aided by berries. The Poké Ball ( モンスターボール , Monsutā Bōru , lit. "Monster Ball") is a spherical device used by Pokémon Trainers to catch wild Pokémon. When a Poké Ball is thrown at a Pokémon, the Pokémon shrink themselves to fit inside of it. Pokémon breeding
14630-511: The Black and White game versions will initially only contain brand-new Pokémon to evoke a feeling of it being a brand-new game, like when the original Pokémon games were first released. In all of the games following the first generation, there were a series of new Pokémon introduced interspersed with Pokémon from the previous generations. For example, Pikachu was introduced in Red and Green and
14839-511: The Digital Millennium Copyright Act unless the media was removed. The screenshots were subsequently taken down from both websites. Luke Plunkett of video game blog Kotaku initially speculated that Nintendo of America issued the cease and desist letters over the belief that the images were illegally obtained via a ROM image ; however, Jon Sahagian of PokéBeach stated the images in question had been obtained from
15048-584: The Dungeons & Dragons ruleset. Some role-playing games make use of magical powers , or equivalents such as psychic powers or advanced technology. These abilities are confined to specific characters such as mages, spellcasters, or magic-users. In games where the player controls multiple characters, these magic-users usually complement the physical strength of other classes. Magic can be used to attack, defend, or temporarily change an enemy or ally's attributes. While some games allow players to gradually consume
15257-1263: The Dynamax mechanic, which vastly increases a Pokémon's size and HP for three turns. While Dynamaxed, all of a Pokémon's moves get replaced with a corresponding "Max Move", which are more powerful and have secondary effects, with the exception of Max Guard, which protects against all attacks. Certain Pokémon take on a different appearance when Dynamaxed, known as Gigantamaxing . Additionally, Gigantamaxed Pokémon gain access to special "G-Max Moves", which possess different secondary effects than those of typical Max Moves. There are 32 known species of Pokémon that can perform this transformation: Venusaur, Charizard, Blastoise, Butterfree, Pikachu, Meowth, Machamp, Gengar, Kingler, Lapras, Eevee, Snorlax, Garbodor, Melmetal, Rillaboom, Cinderace, Inteleon, Corviknight, Orbeetle, Drednaw, Coalossal, Flapple, Appletun, Sandaconda, Toxtricity, Hatterene, Grimmsnarl, Alcremie, Copperajah, Duraludon, and both forms of Urshifu . Players can fight Dynamaxed Pokémon, as well as obtain Pokémon capable of Gigantamaxing, by participating in Max Raid Battles with other players. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet introduced
15466-484: The Nintendo DS have had more original and experimental Japanese RPGs released in recent years. Western RPGs have also received criticism in recent years. They remain less popular in Japan, where, until recently, Western games in general had a negative reputation. In Japan, where the vast majority of early console role-playing video games originate, Western RPGs remain largely unknown. The developer Motomu Toriyama criticized Western RPGs, stating that they "dump you in
15675-470: The Nintendo DS in 2012. Similar to previous installments of the series, the two games follow the journey of a young Pokémon Trainer through the region of Unova, as they train Pokémon used to compete against other trainers while thwarting the schemes of the criminal organization Team Plasma . Black and White introduced 156 new Pokémon to the franchise, 5 more than the previous record holder Pokémon Red and Blue , as well as many new features, including
15884-468: The Pokemon mold, but Black and White offers enough new content coupled with the series' classic, deep battle mechanics to make it endlessly playable. If you could only play one game for the rest of your life, this would be a wise choice." In August 2010, one month before the games' release in Japan, Pokémon Black and White gained a total of 1.08 million pre-orders, becoming the fastest game on
16093-430: The Pokémon series takes place in a fictional region of the Pokémon world, typically based on a real-world location, and begins with the player receiving a starter Pokémon, usually from that region's Pokémon Professor. Players have the option to choose one of three different types of Pokémon: a Grass-type, a Fire-type, and a Water-type, though many starter Pokémon gain an additional type upon evolution. Many games include
16302-727: The Sharp X1 computer in 1983 and later ported to the MSX in 1984, the NES in 1985 and the Sharp X68000 as New Bokosuka Wars . The game laid the foundations for the tactical role-playing game genre, or "simulation RPG" genre as it is known in Japan. It was also an early example of a real-time , action role-playing game . In 1986, Chunsoft created the NES title Dragon Quest (called Dragon Warrior in North America until
16511-574: The Terastal mechanic, which gives a Pokémon a crystalline appearance and changes its type. Each individual Pokémon has a secret "Tera Type" that is unknown to the opponent. Most Tera Types correspond to a main type, but occasionally can be an unrelated type. When a Pokémon Terastallizes, its main type(s) gets replaced with its Tera Type. This also changes the weaknesses of a Pokémon to fit the new typing, and boosts any moves it has of that type. A move called "Tera Blast", learned through TMs, changes type to
16720-504: The Ultima series, employed duplicates of the miniatures combat system traditionally used in the early role-playing games . Representations of the player characters and monsters would move around an arena modeled after the surrounding terrain, attacking any enemies that are sufficiently close. Earlier role-playing video games used a two-dimensional top-down view or tile-based first-person view. Early action-based role-playing games often used
16929-500: The eighth game ), which drew inspiration from computer RPGs Ultima and Wizardry and is regarded as the template for future Japanese role-playing video games released since then. Also in 1986 The Legend of Zelda was released for the NES , while not generally considered an RPG itself did inspire many aspects of future action-RPGs. In 1987, the genre came into its own with the release of several highly influential console RPGs distinguishing themselves from computer RPGs, including
17138-528: The stats of a Pokémon. Every Pokémon has IVs in every stat, ranging from 0 to 31. IVs can be inherited through breeding, as well as being randomly generated . Mega Evolution is a mechanic introduced in Pokémon X and Y and returning in Pokémon Legends: Z-A , which further increases the abilities of specific Pokémon. If the player character possesses an item called the Key Stone and
17347-436: The " Golden Age " of computer RPGs, is the use of numbered "paragraphs" printed in the manual or adjunct booklets, containing the game's lengthier texts; the player can be directed to read a certain paragraph, instead of being shown the text on screen. The ultimate exemplar of this approach is Sir-Tech 's Star Saga trilogy (of which only two games were released); the first game contains 888 "textlets" (usually much longer than
17556-530: The "Pal Park" feature from previous games, the Poké Transfer is a mini-game in which after six Pokémon are transferred, the player uses the touch screen to launch Poké Balls at the transferred Pokémon to catch them within a time limit. Another feature called the Relocator is used to transfer the Pokémon given away in promotions for the film Pokémon: Zoroark: Master of Illusions so the player can obtain
17765-526: The "Random Matchup" feature, the player can battle others randomly. When playing against others online or in IR battles, a new mechanic called the Wonder Launcher allows healing items to be used in battle. Two features were added to transfer Pokémon from older DS Pokémon games to Black and White . For normal transfer, the Poké Transfer feature is available after completion of the main storyline. Unlike
17974-465: The #1 and #2 spots respectively in the UK overall sales charts, with White becoming the second fastest-selling DS game ever in the UK after Professor Layton and Pandora's Box , selling 13,000 more copies than Black . Combined, their sales became Nintendo's third biggest ever launch in the UK, behind Wii Fit and Mario Kart Wii , and the biggest opening weekend ever for a pair of Pokémon titles. In
18183-416: The 1980 video game Rogue . The game's story is often mapped onto exploration, where each chapter of the story is mapped onto a different location. RPGs usually allow players to return to previously visited locations. Usually, there is nothing left to do there, although some locations change throughout the story and offer the player new things to do in response. Players must acquire enough power to overcome
18392-422: The 1990s, and became known for being more heavily story and character-based, American computer RPGs began to face criticism for having characters devoid of personality or background, due to representing avatars which the player uses to interact with the world, in contrast to Japanese console RPGs which depicted characters with distinctive personalities. American computer RPGs were thus criticized for lacking "more of
18601-485: The Celebi / Zorua event, and a new character: Professor Araragi , the first female Pokémon professor to appear in the video games. The 27 June 2010, episode of Pokémon Sunday , made the announcement of the release date as 18 September 2010, and a yet-to-be named character. The 28 June episode of Oha Suta , showed a trailer, which included its release date, new gameplay footage, several new characters, more new Pokémon, and
18810-721: The Dream World, similarly to the Pokéwalker from HeartGold and SoulSilver . The player can maintain a house in the Dream World that other players can visit as well as grow berries . In addition to allowing access to Pokémon acquired in the Dream World, the Entralink also enables players to interact with each other and play side games. These side-games award points that can be traded for temporary powers such as increasing experience, improving capture rate, or lowering prices of items in Poké Marts. Black and White are set in
19019-646: The Elite Four is replaced by the Champion Cup, a single-elimination tournament that determines who gets the right to challenge the Champion). Gyms are absent in Sun , Moon , Ultra Sun, and Ultra Moon , being replaced by trials that serve a similar purpose. Once the player completes the goal of conquering all 8 Gyms (or all Trials) or if the player's Pokémon are strong enough, the player then learns more about
19228-581: The English names for the game location Hiun City and the character Professor Araragi were revealed to be Castelia City and Professor Juniper, respectively. Starting on 3 January and lasting until 9 January 2011, in the United States, players of Diamond , Pearl , Platinum , HeartGold , and SoulSilver were able to visit GameStop stores to download the special shiny Raikou that was previously given out for Phantom Ruler: Zoroark pre-order ticket holders in Japan. Similar downloads would be available for
19437-509: The Fairy type was introduced in X and Y . Some types have special properties unrelated to the damage chart; for example, Electric-types are immune to being paralyzed. When a Pokémon uses a move that is the same type as the user, there is a 50% increase in power due to "STAB", a colloquial acronym for "same-type attack bonus". When developing the types for the original games, generalized ones such as Normal and Fire were conceived before
19646-595: The Flying type was created. As a result Flying was added as a secondary type to many Pokémon, an aspect repeated in later games in the franchise. Pokémon Scarlet and Violet introduced Terastallization, which allows a Pokémon to change its type to match its "Tera Type" when activated, as well as giving the Pokémon a crystalline appearance. Terastallization also allows Pokémon to gain a STAB boost on moves of their Tera Type, while retaining STAB boost on moves of their original type(s). The move Tera Blast changes type to match
19855-436: The Japanese forum 2channel . Charlie Scibetta, Nintendo of America's senior director of corporate communications, later stated that it was the choice of images that were of concern to the company. In a statement to Kotaku , he said, "Nintendo supports and appreciates the efforts that Pokémon fans go through to create fan sites. In most cases there is no issue with the content that is posted, but on this occasion we had to contact
20064-647: The Linking Cord item. Other Pokémon require to be traded while holding an item to evolve, and Shelmet and Karrablast need to be traded with each other to evolve. In certain games, the Global Trading System (GTS) is available, allowing players to place requests for a specific Pokémon in return for another Pokémon, able to be fulfilled by players across the world. In other games, Wonder Trading (known in Sword and Shield as "Surprise Trading")
20273-403: The Nintendo DS to break the 1 million mark. In the first two days on sale, it sold more than 2.6 million copies, becoming the biggest launch in the series history in Japan. By 3 November, the games had sold over 4.3 million copies in Japan. As of 9 January 2011, the games became the fastest DS titles to sell 5 million copies. Upon its release in the UK, White and Black took
20482-451: The PCs enter these locations or perform certain actions. Combat options typically involve positioning characters, selecting which enemy to attack, and exercising special skills such as casting spells. In a classical turn-based system, only one character may act at a time; all other characters remain still, with a few exceptions that may involve the use of special abilities. The order in which
20691-727: The Pokémon Dream World, using the Wi-Fi to sync with the Pokémon Global Link servers, and the new "Pass By mode" which allows the game to communicate with other copies through infrared while the DS is asleep. The Feeling Check function tests the compatibility between two players and awards them items accordingly. In the "Pass By" feature, the player answers various survey questions and receives one of several items depending on how many other players they have connected with. In
20900-415: The Pokémon faints and is unable to battle. When an opponent's Pokémon faints, the player's Pokémon receives experience points ; when a Pokémon accumulates enough, then its level increases. If the player's Pokémon faints, they may select another Pokémon from their active party to battle; in battles against wild Pokémon, the player may attempt to flee instead. If all of a player's Pokémon faint, the player loses
21109-625: The Ravager and Menzoberranzan , transferred the AD&;D license to several different developers, and eventually gave it to BioWare , who used it in Baldur's Gate (1998) and several later games. By the 2000s, 3D engines had become dominant. The earliest RPG on a console was Dragonstomper on the Atari 2600 in 1982. Another early RPG on a console was Bokosuka Wars , originally released for
21318-516: The Special Attack and Special Defense stats were a single stat, named the "Special" stat, which determined both attack and resistance against special attacks. When Pokémon level up, their statistics increase, as determined by the Pokémon's base stat values, effort values, Pokémon Nature, and individual values. These variables working in tandem provide each Pokémon with its unique stats. Effort values , or EVs , are hidden values that affect
21527-634: The US, Black and White sold more than 1.08 million copies on day one, breaking the previous day-one record held by predecessors Diamond and Pearl of 780,000 copies. According to the NPD Group , Nintendo sold 1.3 million units of White and 1.1 million units of Black in March 2011, making them the #1 and #2 top selling games in the US for the month. In April 2011, Nintendo's financial earnings report confirmed that Pokémon Black and White had sold 11.5 million copies worldwide, making them
21736-480: The Unova region, part of a continental mass located far away from the previous regions, Kanto , Johto , Hoenn , and Sinnoh . Unlike the previous regions which were based on real locations in Japan , Unova is modeled after New York City , an idea developed by game director Junichi Masuda when he visited the city for the launch of Diamond and Pearl . One particular example of this is Castelia City, which serves as
21945-515: The Unova region. Floats of version mascots Reshiram and Zekrom accompanied the Pikachu balloon during the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on 25 November 2010, the following Thursday. On 27 December 2010, the official websites for the international releases updated once more, revealing the English names for many of the first Pokémon revealed during the promotion for the Japanese release. In addition,
22154-589: The ability to pause the game and issue orders to all characters under his/her control; when the game is unpaused, all characters follow the orders they were given. This "real-time with pause" system ( RTwP ) has been particularly popular in games designed by BioWare . The most famous RTwP engine is the Infinity Engine . Other names for "real-time with pause" include "active pause" and "semi real-time". Tactical RPG maker Apeiron named their system Smart Pause Mode (SPM) because it would automatically pause based on
22363-413: The advancements in gameplay. Reviewers, however, were divided on some of the Pokémon designs, and some critics felt that the games did not innovate as much as expected. Nevertheless, the games were commercial successes; prior to the games' Japanese release, Black and White sold 1 million consumer pre-orders and became the fastest Nintendo DS titles to sell 5 million copies. As of September 2017,
22572-437: The ambitious scope of Final Fantasy VII raised the possibilities for the genre, with its dozens of minigames and much higher production values. The latter includes innovations such as the use of 3D characters on pre-rendered backgrounds, battles viewed from multiple different angles rather than a single angle, and for the first time full-motion CGI video seamlessly blended into the gameplay, effectively integrated throughout
22781-418: The battle. All moves have power, accuracy, and a number of Power Points (PP). Each move is classified as one of the 18 Pokémon types. Additionally, since Diamond and Pearl , moves that deal damage are classified as either physical or special according to which stats of the attacking and defending Pokémon they use to calculate damage. The moves that one Pokémon may learn are different from another depending on
22990-953: The battle. This causes the player to lose some money and return to the last Pokémon Center they visited. Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire introduced Double Battles, in which the opposing teams battle with two Pokémon at a time. Though the basic mechanics remain the same, certain moves may affect multiple targets at once, and some affect the ally as well as the opponents. Additionally, some Abilities work only in Double Battles. Multi Battles were also introduced, with four Trainers in teams of two. The third-generation games only included Double Battles against other Trainers, but Diamond and Pearl introduced Double Battles with wild Pokémon under certain circumstances. Black and White also introduced Triple Battles and Rotation Battles. In Triple Battles, both teams send out three Pokémon at once, with all three battling simultaneously. In Rotation Battles, both sides send out three Pokémon at once, but only use one at
23199-445: The castle on his captured Pokémon to a far-off land. After Team Plasma's defeat, Looker arrives in Unova and tasks the player with finding the remaining Sages of Team Plasma , so they can be brought to justice. The player can also challenge the Elite Four once again, and challenge Alder, ultimately becoming the Unova region's new Pokémon Champion. The player also gains access to the eastern portion of Unova, which contains Pokémon from
23408-544: The category," pointing to Chrono Trigger (which he also worked on) and the Mana games. He further noted that there have been "other games similar to the style of Chrono Trigger ," but that "it's probably because the games weren't localised and didn't reach the Western audience." Xeno series director Tetsuya Takahashi , in reference to Xenoblade Chronicles , stated that "I don't know when exactly people started using
23617-643: The characters act is usually dependent on their attributes, such as speed or agility. This system rewards strategic planning more than quickness. It also points to the fact that realism in games is a means to the end of immersion in the game world, not an end in itself. A turn-based system makes it possible, for example, to run within range of an opponent and kill them before they get a chance to act, or duck out from behind hard cover, fire, and retreat back without an opponent being able to fire, which are of course both impossibilities. However, tactical possibilities have been created by this unreality that did not exist before;
23826-460: The characters within a tile-based graphics system . Dragon Quest was highly successful in Japan, leading to further entries in the series and other titles such as Final Fantasy that followed the same simplifications made in RPGs for Dragon Quest . Because of these differences, the role-playing genre began to be classified into two fairly distinct styles: computer RPG and console RPG . By
24035-408: The development and customization of playable characters has come at the expense of plot and gameplay, resulting in what he felt was generic dialogue, lack of character development within the narrative and weaker battle systems. He also states that WRPGs tend to focus more on the underlying rules governing the battle system rather than on the experience itself. Tom Battey of Edge Magazine noted that
24244-478: The director of the Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver games, can also be found and battled in the game. On 29 January 2010, The Pokémon Company announced that a new game was in development for the Nintendo DS to be released later that year . Director Junichi Masuda stated that several aspects of the series were being revamped for the new generation. On 9 April 2010, the Japanese website updated with
24453-520: The earliest role-playing video games on a microcomputer was Dungeon n Dragons , written by Peter Trefonas and published by CLOAD (1980). This early game, published for a TRS-80 Model 1, is just 16K long and includes a limited word parser command line, character generation, a store to purchase equipment, combat, traps to solve, and a dungeon to explore. Other contemporaneous CRPGs (Computer Role Playing Games) were Temple of Apshai , Odyssey: The Compleat Apventure and Akalabeth: World of Doom ,
24662-437: The early 2000s, the distinction between platforms became less pronounced as the same games appeared on both console and computer, but stylistic differences between Western role-playing games (WRPGs) and Japanese role-playing games (JRPGs) remained, rooted in the earlier distinctions. Though sharing fundamental premises, WRPGs tend to feature darker graphics, older characters, and a greater focus on roaming freedom, realism, and
24871-613: The end game. Examples include the Battle Palace's prohibition on choosing what moves the Pokémon uses and the Battle Factory's random rental Pokémon. Instead of prizes, the player is awarded Battle Points (BP) which can be traded for rare items or TMs. The Diamond and Pearl Battle Towers use this same system, and it is replaced by a Battle Frontier in Pokémon Platinum . HeartGold and SoulSilver also have
25080-755: The episode of Pokémon Sunday revealed silhouettes of the three Pokémon available to choose from at the beginning of the games, which were later revealed to be the Grass Snake Pokémon Tsutarja , the Fire Pig Pokémon Pokabu , and the Sea Otter Pokémon Mijumaru. Other information revealed is that the game takes place in the Isshu Region which includes the Hiun City metropolis. On 16 May 2010,
25289-431: The episode of Pokémon Sunday showed game battle footage, illustrating the new in-battle animations and dynamic camera positioning; also described were Zoroark's Illusion ability and the special Zoroark acquired by the movie ticket pre-order gift Pokémon. On 28 May 2010, both the official Japanese and English Pokémon websites revealed names and designs of the two major legendary Pokémon of these games, who also serve as
25498-428: The episode of Pokémon Sunday showed game footage of a player character walking around in a 3D environment and a single screenshot depicting a battle between the player's Zoroark and an enemy Zorua. Host Shoko Nakagawa made note of how the player's Zoroark's sprite was a full body sprite as viewed from behind, when in the past all such sprites only showed a smaller portion of the player's Pokémon's body. On 9 May 2010,
25707-479: The film Pocket Monsters Diamond & Pearl The Movie: Phantom Ruler: Zoroark . For pre-order ticket holders, an alternate-colored Raikou , Entei , or Suicune was available for transfer to their Diamond , Pearl , Platinum , HeartGold , or SoulSilver games. At the theater, players would be able to download a Celebi to the same games. These Pokémon would activate special events in Black and White involving Zoroark and Zorua respectively. On 18 April 2010,
25916-455: The game a perfect 40/40 score, becoming the 15th game to receive such a distinction, as well as obtaining the highest score ever given to a Pokémon video game by the publication. Game Informer ' s Annette Gonzalez remarked that " Pokémon Black and White do a great job building upon already solid features and taking them to the next level." VideoGamer.com ' s Jamin Smith criticized
26125-559: The game remains virtually open-ended, with the ultimate goal of the player being to obtain at least one member of each of the different species of Pokémon, thus completing the Pokédex . Battles between Pokémon are the central game mechanic of the Pokémon games. Within the game, they are used to train Pokémon to gain experience and become stronger, earn prize money, and to progress through the game's story. Battles can also be done between players by connecting two game systems. Pokémon uses
26334-610: The game version mascots: the White Yang Pokémon Reshiram for Pokémon Black and the Black Yin Pokémon Zekrom for Pokémon White . The July 2010 issue of CoroCoro Comic revealed the C-Gear wireless interactivity features, the ability to upload game data to the internet and the player's computer, several brand-new Pokémon, new Pokémon moves, Reshiram and Zekrom's Pokémon types , details on
26543-435: The game world. More recent games tend to maintain a consistent perspective for exploration and combat. Some games, especially earlier video games, generate battles from random encounters ; more modern RPGs are more likely to have persistent wandering monsters that move about the game world independently of the player. Most RPGs also use stationary boss monsters in key positions, and automatically trigger battles with them when
26752-685: The game's cities and towns are homes to "Gym Leaders", powerful Trainers specializing in certain types of Pokémon; beating a Gym Leader gives the player a "Badge". All eight Badges are needed to unlock the Pokémon League, where the player faces off against the "Elite Four" and, finally, the Champion. Across Unova, items can be found on the ground or purchased from "Poké Marts". For example, Hyper Potions restore HP, Antidotes cure poisoning, and Revives revitalize fainted Pokémon. TMs (Technical Machines) teach moves to Pokémon, and HMs (Hidden Machines) are
26961-630: The game, are not necessarily beneficial. By contrast, he noted that it would be great to new players. He also compared it to the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games and Final Fantasy XIII , arguing that they all share the common element of being bad before they get good. Fellow Retronauts contributor Justin Haywald criticized the games' release on the DS, which had received two main Pokémon series games published before them. GamesRadar editor Carolyn Gudmundson stated "It may not break
27170-521: The game. The game was soon ported to the PC and gained much success there, as did several other originally console RPGs, blurring the line between the console and computer platforms. Computer-driven role-playing games had their start in Western markets, with games generally geared to be played on home computers. By 1985, series like Wizardry and Ultima represented the state of the art in role-playing games. In Japan, home computers had yet to take as great
27379-406: The games for not innovating as much as some people would have liked, but stated that "rest assured in the knowledge that Black and White are damn fine games; the best the series has to offer." Official Nintendo Magazine referred to them as "A beautiful refinement of a great series [...] the best Pokémon ever." Nintendo Power expressed that "the Pokémon series's latest pair of adventures
27588-410: The games' combined sales have reached 15.64 million, putting them amongst the best-selling games for the Nintendo DS , just behind their predecessors, Pokémon Diamond and Pearl . Pokémon Black and White are role-playing video games with adventure elements, presented in a third-person , overhead perspective . There are three basic screens: an overworld , in which the player navigates
27797-402: The games' main antagonist force, Team Plasma , a Knights Templar -esque group who claim that Pokémon are oppressed by humanity and seek to liberate them from their trainers. Team Plasma is led by N , a young man who was brought up alongside Pokémon and sees them as friends rather than tools for sport. Throughout the game, the player has some encounters with N, who claims that by capturing one of
28006-537: The genre-defining Phantasy Star , released for the Master System . Shigeru Miyamoto 's Zelda II: The Adventure of Link for the Famicom Disk System was one of the earliest action role-playing games , combining the action-adventure game framework of its predecessor The Legend of Zelda with the statistical elements of turn-based RPGs . Most RPGs at this time were turn-based. Faxanadu
28215-416: The ground in winter. Certain areas are only accessible during certain seasons, and different Pokémon can be found in the wild in winter where others are encountered in the other seasons. The Pokémon Deerling and Sawsbuck change their physical appearance to match the seasons. There are two new battle mechanics: Triple Battles and Rotation Battles. In Triple Battles, both teams must send out three Pokémon in
28424-546: The highest selling DS games for Nintendo in the 2010–11 financial year, and third overall, behind only the Wii games, Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort . As of September 2017, the games' combined sales have reached 15.64 million. Sequels to Black and White , Pokémon Black 2 and Pokémon White 2 , were released for the Nintendo DS in 2012. Role-playing video game A role-playing video game , role-playing game ( RPG ) or computer role-playing game ( CRPG )
28633-582: The item to allow players to capture Victini was also run following the games' release internationally. North American players were able to download the item from Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection from 6 March to 10 April 2011. European players were able to get the item from 4 March to 22 April. Australian players were able to download it from 10 March to 28 April 2011. Pokémon Black and White have received largely positive reviews by critics, having an aggregate score of 87% on Metacritic , indicating "generally favorable reviews". Japanese magazine Famitsu Weekly awarded
28842-539: The key features of RPGs were developed in this early period, prior to the release of Ultima III: Exodus , one of the prime influences on both computer and console RPG development. For example, Wizardry features menu-driven combat, Tunnels of Doom features tactical combat on a special "combat screen", and Dungeons of Daggorath features real-time combat which takes place on the main dungeon map. Starting in 1984 with Questron and 50 Mission Crush , SSI produced many series of CRPGs. Their 1985 game Phantasie
29051-520: The label "JRPG" is most commonly used to refer to RPGs "whose presentation mimics the design sensibilities" of anime and manga, that it's "typically the presentation and character archetypes" that signal "this is a JRPG." Modern JRPGs are more likely to feature turn-based battles; while modern WRPGs are more likely to feature real-time combat. In the past, the reverse was often true: real-time action role-playing games were far more common among Japanese console RPGs than Western computer RPGs up until
29260-731: The lack of a National Pokédex meaning that not every Pokémon would be transferable to Sword and Shield . Although the National Pokédex returned in Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl , albeit only allowing Pokémon existing in the original Diamond and Pearl games, it has remained absent in non-remakes. Pokémon Bank is an application which allows players to store up to 3,000 Pokémon in an online cloud storage service . Players can deposit and withdraw Pokémon from both physical and downloaded versions of compatible games, allowing players to exchange Pokémon between
29469-437: The late 1990s had become more cinematic in style (e.g. Final Fantasy series). At the same time, WRPGs started becoming more novelistic in style (e.g. Planescape: Torment ), but by the late 2000s had also adopted a more cinematic style (e.g. Mass Effect ). One reason given for these differences is that many early Japanese console RPGs can be seen as forms of interactive manga or anime wrapped around Western rule systems at
29678-415: The late 1990s have had a stronger focus on extensive dialog tree systems (e.g. Planescape: Torment ). On the other hand, JRPGs tend to limit players to developing pre-defined player characters , and often do not allow the option to create or choose one's own playable characters or make decisions that alter the plot. In the early 1990s, JRPGs were seen as being much closer to fantasy novels , but by
29887-934: The late 1990s, due to gamepads usually being better suited to real-time action than the keyboard and mouse. Some journalists and video game designers have questioned this cultural classification, arguing that the differences between Eastern and Western games have been exaggerated. In an interview held at the American Electronic Entertainment Expo , Japanese video game developer Tetsuya Nomura (who worked on Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts ) emphasized that RPGs should not be classified by country-of-origin, but rather described simply for what they are: role-playing games. Hironobu Sakaguchi , creator of Final Fantasy and The Last Story , noted that, while "users like to categorise" JRPGs as "turn-based, traditional styles" and WRPGs as "born from first-person shooters ," there "are titles that don't fit
30096-428: The late 1990s, which saw the rise of optical disks in fifth generation consoles. The implications for RPGs were enormous—longer, more involved quests, better audio, and full-motion video . This was first clearly demonstrated in 1997 by the phenomenal success of Final Fantasy VII , which is considered one of the most influential games of all time. With a record-breaking production budget of around $ 45 million,
30305-488: The legend of the region and can open the opportunity to summon, battle, and catch the mascot Legendary Pokémon at a certain location. Additionally, completing the main storyline opens up other features in the games; this is primarily done by allowing passage into otherwise inaccessible places. Many games also have facilities dedicated to battling, such as the Battle Frontier, Battle Tower, and Battle Maison. Afterward,
30514-497: The legendary Pokémon ( Reshiram and Zekrom ) of Unova and defeating the Pokémon Champion Alder, he will be recognized as Unova's hero and will be able to convince the humans to part with their Pokémon. Depending on the game version, N will capture Reshiram in White or Zekrom in Black . After the player defeats the Elite Four and enters the Champion's chamber, he or she finds that N has defeated Alder and become
30723-474: The main character; a battle screen; and the menu, in which the player configures their party, items, or gameplay settings. The player controls a Pokémon Trainer who begins the game with a single Pokémon and is able to capture more using Poké Balls . Like all other Trainers, the player can carry up to six Pokémon at one time. However, the game also includes a network of PCs to store hundreds of Pokémon. PCs are found in certain buildings—named, "Pokémon Centers", where
30932-580: The main storyline where the player faces several Trainers in succession with a limited set of their Pokémon and receive prizes in the form of otherwise rare items. The Battle Frontier was introduced in Pokémon Emerald , replacing the Battle Tower as found in the Ruby and Sapphire games. In addition to having its own Battle Tower with the same rules as the previous ones, the Battle Frontier adds several other game mechanics that make battles unique in
31141-461: The mid-1970s, as an offshoot of early university mainframe text-based RPGs on PDP-10 and Unix -based computers, such as Dungeon , pedit5 and dnd . In 1980 , a very popular dungeon crawler , Rogue , was released. Featuring ASCII graphics where the setting, monsters and items were represented by letters and a deep system of gameplay, it inspired a whole genre of similar clones on mainframe and home computers called " roguelikes ". One of
31350-591: The middle to late 1990s, isometric, sprite-based RPGs became commonplace, with video game publishers Interplay Entertainment and Blizzard North playing a lead role with such titles as the Baldur's Gate , Icewind Dale and the action-RPG Diablo series, as well as the dialogue-heavy Planescape: Torment and cult classics Fallout and Fallout 2 . This era also saw a move toward 3D game engines with such games as Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven and The Elder Scrolls: Arena . TSR , dissatisfied with SSI's later products, such as Dark Sun: Wake of
31559-551: The misuse of the game's legendary Pokémon. Various facilities can be found throughout the Pokémon world such as Pokémon Centers, Poké Marts, and Pokémon Gyms. At a Pokémon Center, the player can have their Pokémon healed for free and access the PC, where players can organize their collection of Pokémon, store and withdraw items, and have their Pokédex rated. Before X and Y , this is also where players can link up with other game cartridges or cards to battle or trade with other players. Poké Marts are shops where players can buy items with
31768-576: The modern JRPG in unoriginality", citing Square Enix CEO Yoichi Wada who stated that "they're strictly catering to a particular audience", the article noting the difference in game sales between Japan and North America before going on to suggest JRPGs may need to "move forward". This criticism has also occurred in the wider media with an advertisement for Fallout: New Vegas ( Obsidian Entertainment ) in Japan openly mocked Japanese RPGs' traditional characteristics in favor of their own title. Nick Doerr of Joystiq noted that Bethesda felt that JRPGs "are all
31977-495: The money they win during battles; certain cities may have specialized shops, like a pharmacy or a department store. Periodically, a town will contain a Pokémon Gym, which houses a powerful Trainer known as a Gym Leader that functions as a boss . Victory against them grants the player a Gym Badge; after collecting eight Gym Badges, the player may challenge the region's Elite Four and Champion (in Pokémon Sword and Shield ,
32186-421: The more fantasy novel approach of Squaresoft console RPGs such as Final Fantasy IV . However in 1994, game designer Sandy Petersen noted that, among computer gamers, there was criticism against cartridge-based console JRPGs being "not role-playing at all" due to popular examples such as Secret of Mana and especially The Legend of Zelda using "direct" arcade-style action combat systems instead of
32395-656: The more "abstract" turn-based battle systems associated with computer RPGs. In response, he pointed out that not all console RPGs are action-based, pointing to Final Fantasy and Lufia . Another early criticism, dating back to the Phantasy Star games in the late 1980s, was the frequent use of defined player characters , in contrast to the Wizardry and Gold Box games where the player's avatars (such as knights, clerics, or thieves) were blank slates. As Japanese console RPGs became increasingly more dominant in
32604-427: The necessity for a gamemaster and increases combat resolution speed. RPGs have evolved from simple text-based console-window games into visually rich 3D experiences. Role-playing video games use much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics as early tabletop role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons . Players control a central game character, or multiple game characters, usually called
32813-411: The new game, stating "people may not like what they like in the past, trend wise". He explained the new battle styles, stating that while triple battles take more strategy, rotation battles take more luck to win. Masuda stated that their goal when making the games was to make it fun for new players, but they also wanted to get players who have not played the series in a while to come back. He said that it
33022-603: The newest Pokémon Champion. Soon after, he summons a large castle surrounding the Unova Pokémon League, challenging the player to find him to participate in one final battle. When the player finally reaches him, Reshiram in Black or Zekrom in White appears before the player, and the player must capture the legendary Pokémon before challenging N. After his defeat, N laments the possibility that his ideals are mistaken, Ghetsis intrudes and angrily reveals that his true intentions were to use N to ensure that he would be
33231-459: The number of items that can be held. Most of the actions in an RPG are performed indirectly, with the player selecting an action and the character performing it by their own accord. Success at that action depends on the character's numeric attributes. Role-playing video games often simulate dice-rolling mechanics from non-electronic role-playing games to determine success or failure. As a character's attributes improve, their chances of succeeding at
33440-547: The number of times players can move before the opponent can, and the strong style does the opposite. Once per battle in Pokémon Sun , Pokémon Moon , Pokémon Ultra Sun , and Pokémon Ultra Moon , if a Pokémon holds a Z-Crystal, a powerful object usually obtained from completing island trials, it can use an upgraded version of one of its moves, called a Z-Move. Z-Moves based on attacking moves tend to have much higher power than normal; those based on status moves usually incur
33649-481: The only human left with control over Pokémon and use them to rule the world. In his rage, Ghetsis challenges the player to a true final battle. After Ghetsis's defeat, he is arrested, allowing Alder to resume his position as the Champion of the Unova Region. N then thanks the player for helping realize his mistake about the nature of the relationship between people and their Pokémon before saying goodbye and leaving
33858-610: The platform divide between consoles and computers , respectively. Finally, while the first RPGs offered strictly a single player experience, the popularity of multiplayer modes rose sharply during the early to mid-1990s with action role-playing games such as Secret of Mana and Diablo . With the advent of the Internet, multiplayer games have grown to become massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG), including Lineage , Final Fantasy XI , and World of Warcraft . The role-playing video game genre began in
34067-400: The player encounters a wild Pokémon or is challenged by another Trainer to a battle, the screen switches to a turn-based battle screen where the Pokémon fight. During the battle, the player may use a move , use an item, switch the active Pokémon, or flee. However, the player cannot flee a battle against another Trainer or against certain wild Pokémon that are stronger than the player's. When
34276-434: The player can heal their Pokémon when they have low health or have fainted. Pokémon can learn up to four moves, including attacking moves, healing moves, and moves that inflict status conditions on the opponent. They have six stats that affect battle performance: maximum hit points (HP), Attack, Defense, Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed. Attack and Special Attack are distinguished from Defense and Special Defense by
34485-424: The player control an entire party of characters. However, if winning is contingent upon the survival of a single character, then that character effectively becomes the player's avatar . An example of this would be in Baldur's Gate , where if the character created by the player dies, the game ends and a previous save needs to be loaded. Although some single-player role-playing games give the player an avatar that
34694-608: The player determines whether the loss of immersion in the reality of the game is worth the satisfaction gained from the development of the tactic and its successful execution. Fallout has been cited as being a good example of such a system. Real-time combat can import features from action games , creating a hybrid action RPG game genre. But other RPG battle systems such as the Final Fantasy battle systems have imported real-time choices without emphasizing coordination or reflexes. Other systems combine real-time combat with
34903-432: The player is presented with a choice of one of three starter Pokémon at the beginning of the game. Each starter Pokémon has a different type , being either Grass, Fire, or Water. Catching is one of the most recognizable and important aspects of the Pokémon franchise . In most Pokémon games , players aim to weaken wild Pokémon in battle to then throw a Poké Ball. In Pokémon Go , Pokémon Legends: Arceus , and
35112-549: The player to change the party's character classes during the course of the game. Another "major innovation was the introduction of day/night cycles; certain items, characters, and quests are only accessible at certain times of day." In 1989, Phantasy Star II for the Genesis established many conventions of the genre, including an epic , dramatic, character-driven storyline dealing with serious themes and subject matter. Console RPGs distinguished themselves from computer RPGs to
35321-896: The player to manage a large amount of information and frequently make use of a windowed interface. For example, spell-casting characters will often have a menu of spells they can use. On the PC, players typically use the mouse to click on icons and menu options, while console games have the player navigate through menus using a game controller. The role-playing video game genre began in the mid-1970s on mainframe computers , inspired by pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons . Several other sources of inspiration for early role-playing video games also included tabletop wargames , sports simulation games, adventure games such as Colossal Cave Adventure , fantasy writings by authors such as J. R. R. Tolkien , traditional strategy games such as chess , and ancient epic literature dating back to Epic of Gilgamesh which followed
35530-571: The player to traverse certain obstacles. For example, Pokémon who learn the HM move Surf can transport the protagonist over water, which is necessary to reach island locations. When a Pokémon learns an HM move, the move cannot be deleted or replaced unless the player uses the services of an NPC known as the Move Deleter. HMs were eventually phased out in Pokémon Sun and Moon , being replaced by
35739-435: The player waited more than a second or so to issue a command, the game would automatically issue a pass command, allowing the monsters to take a turn while the PCs did nothing. There is a further subdivision by the structure of the battle system; in many early games, such as Wizardry , monsters and the party are arrayed into ranks, and can only attack enemies in the front rank with melee weapons. Other games, such as most of
35948-406: The player's control. Other games feature a party that the player can create at the start or gather from non-player characters in the game, coming into partial or full control of the player during the game. Although the characterization of the game's avatar will develop through storytelling, characters may also become more functionally powerful by gaining new skills, weapons, and magic. This creates
36157-486: The player; Cheren will choose the Pokémon with a type advantage against the player's, while Bianca will choose the Pokémon with a type disadvantage. The player's primary goal is to obtain the eight Gym Badges of Unova and ultimately challenge the Elite Four of the Unova Pokémon League, and the Pokémon Champion, to complete the main story. In addition to the standard gameplay, the player will also have to defeat
36366-461: The players, to be as exciting as the Japanese imports", and lacked the arcade and action-adventure elements commonly found in Japanese console RPGs at the time. In the early 1990s, American computer RPGs also began facing criticism for their plots, where "the party sticks together through thick and thin" and always "act together as a group" rather than as individuals, and where non-player characters are "one-dimensional characters", in comparison to
36575-701: The playing ground for new players. Nintendo DS Pokémon Black · White Super Music Collection is a four-disc soundtrack featuring the games' music scored by Masuda, Go Ichinose , Shota Kageyama, Hitomi Sato, Morikazu Aoki, Minako Adachi, and Satoshi Nohara. The soundtrack was released on 20 October 2010, in Japan. Ichinose was in charge of directing all Pokémon voices for the game while Adachi produced all sound effects. Pokémon Black and White were released in Japan on 18 September 2010. They were later released in Europe on 4 March 2011, in North America on 6 March 2011, and in Australia on 10 March 2011. A silhouette of
36784-410: The plot when the player defeats an enemy or completes a level, role-playing games often progress the plot based on other important decisions. For example, a player may make the decision to join a guild, thus triggering a progression in the storyline that is usually irreversible. New elements in the story may also be triggered by mere arrival in an area, rather than completing a specific challenge. The plot
36993-437: The precursor to Ultima . Some early microcomputer RPGs (such as Telengard (1982) or Sword of Fargoal ) were based on their mainframe counterparts, while others (such as Ultima or Wizardry , the most successful of the early CRPGs) were loose adaptations of D&D . They also include both first-person displays and overhead views, sometimes in the same game ( Akalabeth , for example, uses both perspectives). Most of
37202-569: The previous games in the series, as well as access to an area unique to each game version: the ultra-metropolitan Black City, home to powerful Pokémon trainers; and the White Forest, home to humans and Pokémon living in harmony. Cynthia , a former Champion of the Sinnoh Region, is also found in this area of the game and can be challenged. A non-player character named after Shigeki Morimoto , a Game Freak programmer, creature designer, and
37411-763: The problems often cited against JRPGs also often apply to many WRPGs as well as games outside of the RPG genre. BioWare games have been criticized for "lack of innovation, repetitive structure and lack of real choice." WRPGs, such as Bethesda games, have also been criticized for lacking in "narrative strength" or "mechanical intricacy" due to the open-ended, sandbox structure of their games. Types of Pok%C3%A9mon moves Pokémon involves catching and training fictional creatures called " Pokémon " and using them to battle other trainers' Pokémon. Each successive generation of games builds upon this concept by introducing new Pokémon, items, and gameplay concepts. Each game in
37620-400: The rare Pokémon Zorua and Zoroark . Unlike the Poké Transfer, this is available before the main game is completed. Unique to Black and White is the Pokémon Dream World, which is dependent on the official Pokémon Global Link website. Here, the player can befriend Pokémon that are not normally obtainable in-game and that have unique abilities . This occurs after syncing the game back with
37829-457: The region's central metropolis and had such inspirations as its " Brooklyn Bridge -style suspension bridge" and its "huge skyscrapers". Masuda also wanted to convey a "feeling of communities" in Castelia's streets. Unova is host to large urban areas, a harbor, an airport, an amusement park, several bridges, and several mountain ranges. In addition to a diversity of new landscapes, the Unova region
38038-409: The right things to the right non-player characters will elicit useful information for the player, and may even result in other rewards such as items or experience, as well as opening up possible storyline branches. Multiplayer online role-playing games can offer an exception to this contrast by allowing human interaction among multiple players and in some cases enabling a player to perform the role of
38247-436: The same basic structure of setting off in various quests in order to accomplish goals. After the success of role-playing video games such as Ultima and Wizardry , which in turn served as the blueprint for Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy , the role-playing genre eventually diverged into two styles, Eastern role-playing games and Western role-playing games , due to cultural differences , though roughly mirroring
38456-492: The same style as those in manga and anime . The stylistic differences are often due to differing target audiences: Western RPGs are usually geared primarily towards teenage to adult males, whereas Japanese RPGs are usually intended for a much larger demographic, including female audiences , who, for example, accounted for nearly a third of Final Fantasy XIII 's playerbase. In 2015, IGN noted in an interview with Xenoblade Chronicles X 's development team that
38665-598: The same" and "too linear", to which he responded that "[f]or the most part, it's true" but noted there are also non-linear JRPGs such as the Romancing SaGa series. Such criticisms have produced responses such as ones by Japanese video game developers , Shinji Mikami and Yuji Horii , to the effect that JRPGs were never as popular in the West to begin with, and that Western reviewers are biased against turn-based systems. Jeff Fleming of Gamasutra also states that Japanese RPGs on home consoles are generally showing signs of staleness, but notes that handheld consoles such as
38874-647: The shiny Entei from 17 to 23 January, and shiny Suicune from 31 January to 6 February. All three of these Pokémon still enabled the event for Zoroark in the North American Black and White versions. These three Pokémon were later distributed via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for European, Australian, and North American markets (for a second time) starting 7 to 13 February with Raikou, again, with subsequent staggered releases for Entei and Suicune throughout February. The Celebi event
39083-493: The species of Pokémon; even those that evolve from others do not necessarily learn all the same moves that their predecessors learn. Each Pokémon may only know a total of four moves at any one time. Moves may be learned through leveling up, using TMs and HMs , breeding and move tutors ( NPCs that teach moves). In Pokémon Legends: Arceus , each move can be used in either "agile style" or "strong style". The agile style decreases accuracy, power, and effect duration while increasing
39292-445: The sprites of the Pokémon are fully animated and the camera changes position to highlight specific parts of the battle. In addition to continuing the day and night cycle introduced in Gold and Silver , Black and White introduces a seasonal cycle, with the seasons advancing every month rather than being linked to the calendar. Outside areas appear differently depending on the season, such as changing of leaves in autumn or snow on
39501-424: The strengths of a Pokémon in particular statistical areas. Each Pokémon can be assigned 510 EVs, with a maximum of 252 EVs in a single stat . Pokémon can gain EVs with a variety of methods, like defeating other Pokémon or using " vitamins ". Each Pokémon will give out one or more EVs in a specific stat corresponding to its species when defeated. Items can also affect a Pokémon's EVs, with vitamins being used to give
39710-496: The term 'JRPG,' but if this game makes people rethink the meaning of this term, I'll be satisfied." The writer Jeremy Parish of 1UP.com states that " Xenoblade throws into high relief the sheer artificiality of the gaming community's obsession over the differences between" Western and Japanese RPGs, pointing out that it "does things that don't really fit into either genre. Gamers do love their boundaries and barriers and neat little rules, I know, but just because you cram something into
39919-503: The time, in addition to the influence of visual novel adventure games . As a result, Japanese console RPGs differentiated themselves with a stronger focus on scripted narratives and character drama, alongside streamlined gameplay. In recent years, these trends have in turn been adopted by WRPGs, which have begun moving more towards tightly structured narratives, in addition to moving away from "numbers and rules" in favor of streamlined combat systems similar to action games. In addition,
40128-459: The titles of the versions as Pokémon Black and White and announced a Q3 2010 release date. The games feature an improved visual style from other Pokémon games, with an increased use of 3D computer graphics than any other of the handheld series. It also has a special feature that allows the user to upload their saved game to the Internet, allowing them to do certain things on an official website. On 3 August 2010, Masuda announced on his blog that
40337-583: The traditional role-playing " offered by Japanese console RPGs, which instead emphasized character interactions. In response, North American computer RPGs began making a comeback towards the end of the 1990s with interactive choice-filled adventures. Several writers have criticized JRPGs as not being "true" RPGs, for heavy usage of scripted cutscenes and dialogue, and a frequent lack of branching outcomes. Japanese RPGs are also sometimes criticized for having relatively simple battle systems in which players are able to win by repetitively mashing buttons. As
40546-418: The two versions of the game, areas exclusive to the game versions, new characters, new moves, new abilities, and new Pokémon. The 25 July 2010, episode of Pokémon Sunday introduced the new phantom Pokémon Victini , which initially appeared in a trailer for the 2011 Pokémon film that was shown with screenings of Phantom Ruler: Zoroark . It is noted to be Pokémon No. 000 in Isshu's regional Pokédex, and
40755-429: The two versions without the need for a second system. Additionally, an application called the Poké Transporter allows players to upload Pokémon from Pokémon Black , White , Black 2 and White 2 to the Pokémon Bank, after which they can be imported into newer games. Intended for release on December 27, 2013, Pokémon Bank was postponed due to unforeseen traffic levels on the Nintendo Network service. Pokémon Bank
40964-654: The types of moves being considered: generally, moves involving physical exertion are physical, while moves involving supernatural or elemental powers are special. Moves are classed as one of seventeen types: Normal, Water, Grass, Fire, Electric, Ghost, Bug, Fighting, Ice, Steel, Rock, Poison, Psychic, Dark, Dragon, Ground, and Flying; Pokémon can have one or two types. Generally, most of a Pokémon's moves correspond to its typing. A Pokémon's type makes it vulnerable or resistant to others; for example, Fire-type Pokémon are weak to Water-type moves, while Grass-type moves do little damage to them and Electric-type moves do normal damage. When
41173-461: The typical Western-style RPGs of the time. Due to the cultural differences between Western and Japanese variations of role-playing games, both have often been compared and critiqued by those within the video games industry and press. In the late 1980s, when traditional American computer RPGs such as Ultima and Defender of the Crown were ported to consoles, they received mixed reviews from console gamers, as they were "not perceived, by many of
41382-448: The underlying game mechanics (e.g. "rules-based" or "system-based" ); whereas JRPGs tend to feature brighter, anime -like or chibi graphics, younger characters, turn-based or faster-paced action gameplay, and a greater focus on tightly-orchestrated, linear storylines with intricate plots (e.g. "action-based" or "story-based" ). Further, WRPGs are more likely to allow players to create and customize characters from scratch, and since
41591-456: The use of items called "evolutionary stones" or trading the Pokémon to another player. Later additions to the pool of conditions for evolution include dependence on the Pokémon's friendship level, the time of day in the game, carrying a unique item while being traded, the gender, or the area in the game where the Pokémon levels up. In each mainline Pokémon game (with the exception of Pokémon Yellow , Let's Go, Pikachu! , and Let's Go, Eevee! ),
41800-402: The wild otherwise. Occasionally, when throwing a Poké Ball, the capture rate is highly increased, triggered by a random event. There are also new side-games and sidequests: the player can compete in Pokémon Musicals , a side-game similar to the Pokémon Contests of previous games; the Battle Subway , similar to the Battle Towers and Battle Frontiers of previous games; and on the Royal Unova ,
42009-446: Was a theme that was common in most console RPGs at the time but absent from most computer RPGs. During the 1990s, console RPGs had become increasingly dominant, exerting a greater influence on computer RPGs than the other way around. Console RPGs had eclipsed computer RPGs for some time, though computer RPGs began making a comeback towards the end of the decade with interactive choice-filled adventures. The next major revolution came in
42218-402: Was another early action RPG for the NES, released as a side-story to the computer action RPG Dragon Slayer II: Xanadu . Square 's Final Fantasy for the NES introduced side-view battles, with the player characters on the right and the enemies on the left, which soon became the norm for numerous console RPGs. In 1988, Dragon Warrior III introduced a character progression system allowing
42427-400: Was fully released on the Nintendo eShop on January 22, 2014, in Japan, February 4, 2014, in Europe and February 5, 2014, in North America. In an update released on January 24, 2017, Pokémon Sun and Moon became compatible with Pokémon Bank . The update allows players to transfer and deposit their Pokémon between Bank and Sun and Moon , though when transferred, they cannot return to
42636-437: Was hard to find that balance to satisfy both kinds of players. For the new players, there is good explanation in how to play, while for old players, they incorporated the C-Gear , which makes the ability to trade and battle easier. When asked about the decision to introduce over 150 new species of Pokémon , Masuda stated that they did this so old players would not be able to know what is a good Pokémon to use, and it would level
42845-410: Was in a 2009 event distribution of a Shiny Milotic . The Pokédex ( ポケモン図鑑 , Pokémon Zukan , lit. : Pokémon Encyclopedia ) is an electronic device designed to catalog and provide information regarding the various species of Pokémon. The name Pokédex is a portmanteau of Pokémon and index . In the video games, whenever a Pokémon is first caught, its height, weight, species type, and
43054-411: Was introduced in Pokémon Gold and Silver . Pokémon can be bred in-game at a Pokémon Day Care. These are businesses generally run by an elderly person or couple, which raise Trainers' Pokémon for a fee. If two compatible Pokémon are left there, they will eventually produce a Pokémon Egg, which the Trainer can pick up for free. After being carried by the Trainer for some distance, the Egg will hatch into
43263-401: Was obtainable in Blue , Yellow and all subsequent main series games; however, Pikachu will not be obtainable in Black and White from the start of the game. It was later confirmed that Black and White are region locked on the Nintendo DSi and 3DS. Game director and composer Junichi Masuda stated that to keep the games fresh, he looks at every previous element to decide what to adapt to
43472-455: Was run in North America and distributed through GameStop stores from 21 February to 6 March 2011, or it could be acquired from the tour promoting the Black and White games that began on 5 February 2011. In France and Spain, this same Celebi was available through various retailers from 1 February through 3 March 2011. Italian players could get this Celebi from specific video game retailers from 21 January through 3 March. The event to distribute
43681-426: Was the first such attempt to recreate a role-playing game for a console, and requires several simplifications to fit within the more limited memory and capabilities of the Famicom compared to computers; players in Dragon Quest controlled only a single character, the amount of control over this character limited due to the simplicity of the Famicom controller, and a less-realistic art style was chosen to better visualize
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