I promised obscure, didn't I?
I feel in love with nerdy trading card games with the Pokemon Trading Card Game (actual cards). My friends all collected them, and I weaseled a deal in which I would get their unwanted doubles. My parents wouldn't get me any...
Anyway, I spun those doubles into some pretty decent decks through some savvy trading, including a fantastic Dewgong for Snorlax trade that remains my pride and joy.
But unfortunately, the fad faded, as fads normally do. My love for the game never faded, however, which is why one of my all time favorite Game Boy games is the Pokemon Trading Card Game. It gave me a chance to build a collection of cards without paying real money and enjoy the mechanics of a game I still enjoy to this day.
So imagine my delight when I discovered the other day that a Japanese exclusive sequel to one of my favorites had been released! And that there is an English translation online!
Well, I've been a bit disappointed, but not as disappointed as someone who doesn't like the card game as much as I do would be. Translation issues aside, as I can't hold the people who made the game responsible for that, the sequel is one of the lazier ones I've seen. All of the gyms look identical, they added very few cards, and the world map is basically identical.
The soundtrack is again excellent, but about 80% of it is recycled from the previous game. As I love that soundtrack, it's not too bad, but it is pretty lazy.
Basically, I'd recommend this to people who both love the card game itself, as well as the original Game Boy game. If you enjoyed that one, you'll probably enjoy this one too. But the best comparison I'd make is that this is equivalent to Madden 17's relationship to Madden 16. A few new features, a few new players, identical look and mechanics, and little to complain about for those who love the game.
I'd give it a 6.0/10 for most people, but I'm enjoying it at an 8.0 level because of my love the original.
*Edit* This is the reason I no longer submit reviews before I finish the game! This should be the last of these.
While I still agree that the game is somewhat lazy, I did not know before writing the review that an entire new continent exists that you can travel to once you clear out the continent from the first game. As a result, there are quite a few new places to explore and fun things to do. Also, the number of new cards is more than I gave it credit for, and the new ones allow for some new and interesting deck combos. They also throw new wrinkles in by making you play certain players with decks that meet certain qualifications, as well as playing under special rules that favor the AI (which is still dirt tier dumb, as in the first game). This prevents you from just making a deck that beats the type of Pokemon found in the gym, and steamrolling the whole gym with it.
I still found this game to be lacking generally, but is much more enjoyable for the person who completed the first game and enjoyed it than I thought it would be. As a result, I'll change my review to a 6.5 for the average player, but I enjoyed it at an 8.5 level.
-TRO
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