Movie REVIEW: Pokemon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life

After the last few years have given us Pokemon films that were either abysmal or average at best, here is the latest in a long line of Pokemon films (the 12th in fact). Arceus and the Jewel of Life is the last in the trilogy of Diamond & Pearl generation films. This movie sees Ash, Brock and Dawn in the of Michina. Little do they expect to once again be found in a conflict between Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina. They are saved by a young woman called Sheena, who can communicate with a Pokémon's heart, and explains the whole conflict was because of Arceus being close to awakening. She also tells them that her ancestor Damos betrayed Arceus and s... tole the Jewel of Life, sending it into a rage and a slumber. Sheena plans to return the Jewel to Arceus.

It is nice to finally see some solid continuity between the movies, as this ties together all the previous meetings the trio have had with the legendary trio of Sinnoh. As per usual, the film opens with a stunning battle sequence (these are always among my favourite parts of the Pokemon movies) to the anime theme song at the time (I can't wait to see it in Japanese with High Touch! played over it). It also boasts some stunning battle sequences between Arceus, Dialga, Palkia and Giratina and also the introduction of the notch eared Pichu, who is rapidly becoming a favourite of mine. I just hope its available on the Western versions of HeartGold and SoulSilver...
But here's the negatives. Although only a dub comment (I'm yet to view this movie in the original Japanese), Arceus voice is TERRIBLE. Seriously, it sounds like a stereotypical anime dub villain. I expected something a little more grand for the supposed god of Pokemon. The villain also seems to be a bit lacking and generic, and I felt like Arceus came off as alot more sinister than he did (although again that could just be because of that god-awful voice).

The film also suffers from an issue that has plagued alot of the more recent Pokemon movies, the fact they all just borrow elements from older movies. Here is a little list I've compiled just to show this...
* Pissed off Pokemon mad at humanity for abusing it >>>> Mewtwo Strikes Back
* Major character dying and being resurrected >>>> Mewtwo Strikes Back
* Time travelling >>>> Pokemon 4ever
* Major legendary Pokemon battle >>>> Pretty much EVERY Pokemon film

This continues my worry that, much like the anime series, the writers have run out of ideas and the films are just going to go around in a repeated circle. Although the next Pokemon movie will supposedly include ANOTHER epic legendary battle, here's hoping they do it in a somewhat original way.

But despite its faults, Arceus and the Jewel of Life is a cut above the rest of the D/P gen films and even some of the Johto/Hoenn ones. I would recommend this to anyone out there who's still a fan of the Pokemon anime and hasn't been put off by its repetitive cycle yet.

Games REVIEW: Pokemon Platinum

Here's the first of my game reviews. And what better place to start than Pokemon Platinum version on the Nintendo DS! Before I begin I should make it clear that this cannot be a FULL review of the game, as I obviously have no yet completeted it (for the record, I've just received my 8th gym badge and about to start my trek down Victory Road), so I will cover everything I've done so far, and provide a brief review of the parts of the game I have no yet seen in a week or so.

Now that that's out of the way, let's begin. Pokemon Platinum is the third in the franchise's Sinnoh region saga. Every generation had them - Red and Blue had Yellow, Gold and Silver had Crystal, and Ruby and Sapphire had Emerald. So, what has Platinum given us that "improves" or "enhances" the already outstanding gameplay that Diamond and Pearl gave us? Well, here's a list of the most notable changes;

• A brand new focus! Diamond had Dialga - ruler of time, Pearl has Palkia - ruler of space. Platinum, while including both these Pokemon, thrusts Giratina - the dimesion Pokemon into the spotlight.
• Obviously to go along with this we have a brand new game plot. There is a far deeper focus on Team Galactic and it's leader Cyrus' plans, involving new characters such as Looker, a detective investigating Team Galactic and Charon, a scientist hired by Team Galactic. As in Diamond and Pearl this story comes to a gripping battle atop Mt. Coronet, but unlike before it doesn't end there. You are then forced into Giratina's distortion world, which includes floating/disappearing platforms, sideways paths and upside down waterfalls! Only here will you have the final showdown with Cyrus and the mysterious Giratina!
• A brand new regional Pokedex that encompasses every new 4th generation Poke mon aswell as the ones included in the original Sinnoh Dex! Obviously because of this, there are new Pokemon in the wild along with items that wouldn't otherwise be found until much later in the game.
• New sprites for all Pokemon in the regional Pokedex! Including newly animated backsprites.
• New character sprites! Each sporting new clothes.
• Brand new Pokemon formes! Say hello to Girantina's origin forme and Shaymin's sky forme, each offering different stats and abilities to the originals. And ever wondered what Rotom would be like as a lawnmower? Or the refridgerator? Well wonder no more! (provided you obtain the secret key from a Nintendo wifi event)
• New wifi minigames (which admittedly I have not yet checked out, as I have no wifi at this current point in time)
• And much more! Check here for a full list of changes.

Anyway now onto the important part, my thoughts on the game. Admittedly, I'm a huge fan of all Pokemon games, and I had very high hopes for this one, despite there being obvious truth in the game being an obvious rehash of titles we bought 2 years ago. But, much like Emerald did with the third generation of Pokemon games, I feel these changes have brought enough for the game to be able to stand on its own. The distortion world, while seemingly short, is a very interest dungeon with its many dimensions and puzzles (with clues given by the lake trio Uxie, Azelf and Mespirit!). These are things I like in a game, fleshing out the story as much as possible. Why have Dialga or Palkia when you can have both plus more? The gyms have all been rearranged and some redesigned too, along with an Elite 4 with different Pokemon to the games 2 predecessors, so owners of the original won't be getting quite the same challenge. I look forward to giving my opinions on the Battle Frontier portion of the game, but for now I need to get back to my Elite 4 training!

So....rating? Well if you haven't got a version of this generation of Pokemon its full marks without a doubt. But then again, if you already own Diamond or Pearl (or both) it is at the end of the day much of the same. But hey, that isn't a bad thing, and I think the new additions more than make it worthy of  a 4.