I've played all of the other PMD games before this one came out (aside from the WiiWare ones). I've loved just about every single one, even Gates despite its flaws. There was something magical in each and every one and they always brought me on a wild ride. So when this game came out, I was really excited. I couldn't wait to see this new take on the PMD series.
This game is a bit of a mess. First of all, the pacing is really off. For the first half, it's really slow and nothing too important happens, and then suddenly, that plot twist you were waiting for happens and the pace goes way too fast, ending before you know it. I couldn't feel anything for the characters because I was too busy going "WTF is happening" while more and more twists kept unraveling.
Then there's the plot, which really was the weakest point of the entire game. It had potential for a while, but at the end, it ended up becoming a rehash of Gates, except actually screwing up that story too. The main villain is a non-Pokemon entity that exists because of everybody's negativity and wants to plummet the world into the sun. The way the characters go about defeating the villain was poorly executed, which is shocking because Gates did it just fine. The partner ends up saying "I accept you!" and then blam, Dark Matter's gone because that's all it wanted... apparently. And not only that, but DM came right out of nowhere. There was no foreshadowing to it existence until right before you go off to see it, not to mention that nobody was being negative at all.
The characters weren't really all that special either. There was a couple, and of course the partner was pretty significant, but nobody else really felt like they had impact. They were just there, which I find bothersome since part of PMD's charm is in its characters.
The one good thing this game had going for it was the gameplay though. The gameplay was downright perfect with how your teammates are so cooperative and willing to help. The game is hard, I swear you'll use up an absurd amount of Reviver Seeds (which are plentiful in the game), but it's a rewarding kind of hard. It seems that gameplay perfection was found.
But really, I don't recommend this game for a PMD fan or a newcomer. It's got some good parts, but to me, that doesn't outweigh the faults.
Gates to Infinity 2.0 (Not In A Good Way. Spoilers)
I've played all of the other PMD games before this one came out (aside from the WiiWare ones). I've loved just about every single one, even Gates despite its flaws. There was something magical in each and every one and they always brought me on a wild ride. So when this game came out, I was really excited. I couldn't wait to see this new take on the PMD series.
This game is a bit of a mess. First of all, the pacing is really off. For the first half, it's really slow and nothing too important happens, and then suddenly, that plot twist you were waiting for happens and the pace goes way too fast, ending before you know it. I couldn't feel anything for the characters because I was too busy going "WTF is happening" while more and more twists kept unraveling.
Then there's the plot, which really was the weakest point of the entire game. It had potential for a while, but at the end, it ended up becoming a rehash of Gates, except actually screwing up that story too. The main villain is a non-Pokemon entity that exists because of everybody's negativity and wants to plummet the world into the sun. The way the characters go about defeating the villain was poorly executed, which is shocking because Gates did it just fine. The partner ends up saying "I accept you!" and then blam, Dark Matter's gone because that's all it wanted... apparently. And not only that, but DM came right out of nowhere. There was no foreshadowing to it existence until right before you go off to see it, not to mention that nobody was being negative at all.
The characters weren't really all that special either. There was a couple, and of course the partner was pretty significant, but nobody else really felt like they had impact. They were just there, which I find bothersome since part of PMD's charm is in its characters.
The one good thing this game had going for it was the gameplay though. The gameplay was downright perfect with how your teammates are so cooperative and willing to help. The game is hard, I swear you'll use up an absurd amount of Reviver Seeds (which are plentiful in the game), but it's a rewarding kind of hard. It seems that gameplay perfection was found.
But really, I don't recommend this game for a PMD fan or a newcomer. It's got some good parts, but to me, that doesn't outweigh the faults.