Pokemon Battle Revolution: for Pokemon fans - 5/10
3D Pokemon colosseum battling has returned for console gamers in the much anticipated Wii version, Pokemon Battle Revolution (PBR). Building on the ever growing Pokemon franchise with the 4th generation of lovable, catchable, trainable pocket monsters, the handheld Diamond and Pearl have done exceptionally well. Quite frankly, the same cannot be said for PBR - at least not in this fan’s eyes.
Visual (9/10 Exceptional)
PBR appeals visually, there is no doubt about that. The battle sequences are magnificent, and every Pokemon has it’s own style for any one move. The Pokemon are animated with humor and modelled well, so you can tell what kind of personality each Pokemon holds. Also mentionable are the weather effects, which are done surprisingly well, although they only can be seen sometimes. After all this visual ecstasy, you thought it couldn’t get better? Well to top it all off, the disk case cover is shiny! Which literally adds a sparkle to your library. From Pokemon, to attacks, to weather, to the pokeballs, PBR does not disappoint visually.
Whoaa
Controls (3/10 Let Down)
PBR is played start to finish, with a wiimote, held in your hand, with an extremity – probably your thumb, pressing A (and the occasional B, but with your index finger). This point-and-click method proves to be a comfortable, but bland way to command your Pokemon. Moreover, it has always been my and probably other fan’s dreams to launch a pokeball or even call a Pokemon back, a simple feature which the wiimote was more than capable of simulating – and was not. (Next-gen much?) This helps the unsuspecting gamer feel like an outsider, who is just observing and commanding Pokemon. More could have been done to immerse the gamer in the Pokemon experience, and was not - which makes for substandard, disappointing controls.
Maybe not as Misty, but we all want to try it!
Gameplay (5/10 Mediocre)
The battle system is exactly the same as in Diamond/Pearl. What PBR presents in this Wii version is a storage system, where diehard fans owning a DS version of Diamond/Pearl can copy their Pokemon to use in PBR. Your handheld’s storages will provide a nice and necessary change to the crappy rental Pokemon available. A friendly warning though: your personally trained Pokemon will probably rip through single player mode, taking away any challenge it might have appeared to have. Fortunately there is always the option to revert back to the horrid rental Pokemon, or you could just send out a Bidoof for kicks. As mentioned before, the attack animations of the Pokemon are spectacular, but more action could have been pumped to increase the pace of the battle. Pokemon Battle Revolution doesn’t really bring anything new to the table, so if you truly want a revolution, look to sliced bread.
Sometimes PBR feels like this, but in 3D.
Audio (7/10 Good)
One of the better features in PBR is the voiceover, done in similar stylings to the anime. There is the option to turn him off for those who don’t wish to hear what they can plainly see, but personally, the battles would be much too boring without it. The Pokemon’s calls aren’t much different to the Diamond/Pearl versions as well, but there is an obvious improvement in PBR. The background music is also just okay, but overall, the audio isn’t bad and it isn’t fantastic, it’s just good.
Single Player Mode (1/10 Abysmal)
If you want a Pokemon game with a storyline, do not buy PBR. Pokemon Battle Revolution takes stage in the world of Poketopia, consisting of colosseums where one literally just, battles. You will live, breathe and die to battle. After the intial state of awe which the battle graphics will bring, the only motive PBR offers to continue playing its stale single player mode is unlocking more colosseums and obtaining battle points to customize your virtual character, which, by the way, you can do without. And the artificial intelligence? Well, let’s just say it could have been more intelligent. Ultimately, this game fails to capture and engross gamers due to a nonexistant storyline and too easy a computer AI.
This is OMG... Poketopia!
Online Play (8/10 Great)
Online, online, online! The appeal of this game to me. You would have to be absolutely mad to attempt going online with the untrained rental Pokemon, so if online is what you want this game for, you’d best have Diamond/Pearl to back you up. PBR allows you to either: battle friends via an exchange of friend codes, reminiscent of D/P’s pal pad or venture into the World Wide Web by putting you up against a random trainer. The battle system is the same as in single player, except while inputting commands, you have a time limit, so players are always under pressure and in the event of a foreseeable deadlock, one can forfeit the game to continue with his or her life.
So, having no friends, I opted for random battling. And it was truly enjoyable! Players choose a colosseum with a set of rules and random opponents are found by matching these preferences up, a pretty cool system. Although, the only gripe I could find was that I was too often put up against teams of ubers, with godlike, unstoppable power or teams made by Japanese kids, which pretty much have the same property. So a tier/skill dividing system should've been implemented. And for those who would do away with the randomness of world wide battling, I’d imagine battling with a friend would be just as easy. Online play in PBR can be enjoyable, taking up hours of your day and makes up for some of this game’s downfalls.
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The Verdict (5/10 Rent it)
Pokemon Battle Revolution is a game for hardcore, competitive fans. Do not even consider spending your well earned money on this game if you do not have a desire to battle competitively, a copy of Diamond/Pearl, an active, stable internet connection for your Wii and a tolerance for some annoyances (that’s right, I didn’t mention them all). Trust me when I say: the single player mode is unbearable and going online with rental Pokemon is absolute suicide. If you are Japanese or satisfy all the above then you will probably enjoy this game (jk about the Japanese). But when it comes to PBR, it really is a love/hate affair. The verdict: try before you buy.
Score Summary
Visual 9/10
Controls 3/10
Gameplay 5/10
Audio 7/10
Single Player 1/10
Online Play 8/10
-------------------------- Overall 5/10 (not an average)
Thanks for reading, this is my first review, so tips/comments are MUCH appreciated! 
Ciao
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