Pokémon Puzzle League
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| Pokémon Puzzle League | |
|---|---|
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| Developer(s) | NST Intelligent Systems |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Release date(s) | September 25, 2000 (US) March 16, 2001 (EU) |
| Genre(s) | Puzzle |
| Mode(s) | 1-2 players |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Everyone (E) |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo 64 |
| Media | Cartridge |
Pokémon Puzzle League is a puzzle game for the Nintendo 64 console. It is based on the popular puzzle game Panel de Pon, but with Pokémon likeness. This game was only available in North America starting in 2000, making it the first Pokémon game produced for North America first. Although the game was not available in Japan, the Japanese did receive the game's Game Boy Color counterpart, Pokémon Puzzle Challenge. This is the second Pokémon game to based on the anime (in one way or another), the first being Pokémon Yellow.
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[edit] Gameplay
The game plays very similarly to the game Tetris Attack. The objective is to arrange horizontal or vertical lines of three identical blocks or more while rows of blocks are being pushed up from the bottom. If the player is unable to clear out enough blocks to keep the entire field from filling up, the player will lose. Unlike Tetris Attack, the game possess 3D puzzles in addition to 2D puzzles. This mode functions similarly to its 2D counterpart, though instead of a flat field, the game is played on a cylinderical field, which can be scrolled left and right.
The game has an option to switch the block design to Tetris Attack style panels, instead of the default Pokémon oriented blocks. This was to give those with experience in Panel de Pon style games a better chance to see the chains and combos more clearly. Veterans of Tetris Attack could also enjoy the simulated lag, added for the fact that most experienced players used this to their advantage in previous games of the same style.
Players can select a Trainer to play as and a Pokémon to battle with. Unlike many of the Pokémon games, selecting a certain Pokémon dosen't give the player advantages or effects. You will hear the voice of the Pokémon you selected when a Chain is performed.
[edit] Combos and Chains
Combos and Chains are ways of attacking opponents. Performing these maneuvers will send a larger block known as a garbage block to fall on top of your opponent's stack of blocks. To perform a Combo, line up more than 3 identical blocks horizontally or vertically. The more blocks that are cleared simultaneously, the larger the garabage block will be. Chains occur by clearing blocks with blocks above them. The uncleared blocks fall to line up with 2 or more identical blocks thus clearing them, which can be done continuously to create longer Chains. The longer the Chain, the larger the garbage block will be.
Garbage blocks can be cleared by clearing normal blocks that are adjacent to it. Larger garabage blocks will be multi-layered, meaning they will have to be cleared one layer at a time. Garbage blocks are colored to represent the chosen Pokémon's element. For example, when Pikachu is chosen, the garbage block will be yellow with thunderbolts on them.
[edit] Characters
The characters in Pokémon Puzzle League either come from the anime and were once exclusive to it, like Ash Ketchum, Tracey Sketchit, and Gary Oak or have appear in previous Pokémon games but appear in the game as they do in the anime like Misty , Brock, and Giovanni. There are 16 playable characters in the game. In the 1P Stadium, only Ash is playable and Gary's Pokémon, Nidoran♀, Growlithe, and Krabby, will fully be evolved into Nidoqueen, Arcanine, and Kingler, respectively, in Hard mode, Very Hard mode, and Super Hard mode when challenging him the second time. These fully evolved Pokémon are not playable with Gary.
[edit] Playable Trainers and their Pokémon
| Trainer | Trainer's Pokémon |
|---|---|
| Ash Ketchum | Pikachu, Squirtle, Bulbasaur |
| Gary Oak | Nidoran♀, Growlithe, Krabby |
| Misty | Horsea, Psyduck, Staryu |
| Brock | Vulpix, Geodude, Zubat |
| Tracey Sketchit | Marill, Venonat, Scyther |
| Jessie, James and Meowth | Weezing, Arbok, Golbat |
| Giovanni | Persian, Sandslash, Nidoking |
| Mewtwo | Clone 1 the Pikachu, Clone 2 the Squirtle, Clone 3 the Bulbasaur |
| Lt. Surge | Raichu, Jolteon, Magneton |
| Sabrina | Abra, Hypno, Alakazam |
| Erika | Tangela, Weepinbell, Gloom |
| Koga | Venomoth, Voltorb, Golbat |
| Blaine | Arcanine, Charmeleon, Magmar |
| Ritchie | Sparky the Pikachu, Zippo the Charmander, Happy the Butterfree |
| Lorelei | Cloyster, Dewgong, Poliwhirl |
| Bruno | Onix, Hitmonchan, Primeape |
[edit] Non-Playable
Professor Samuel Oak - The leading authority of Pokémon research. He serves as the tutor for teaching the player basic gameplay and techniques at his lab.
Cassidy and Butch - Rivals of Jessie and James , respectively, who work for Team Rocket. The two of them battle the player in the Spa Service as a bonus challenge to earn more points.
Nurse Joy - A Pokémon nurse who has identical-looking female relatives (all are nurses with same name) in the Pokémon world. She is seen at the Pokémon Center to modify the game settings.
Officer Jenny - A policewoman who has identical-looking female relatives (all are all poilcewomen with same name) in the Pokémon world. She is seen at the Pokémon Center to modify the game settings.
Delia Ketchum - Ash's loving mother. She can be seen and heard in cutscenes after clearing the 1P Stadium at any difficulty level.
Jigglypuff - A Pokémon with a desire to sing. It is seen and/or heard at all the modes except 1P Stadium and 2P Stadium.
Togepi - Misty's baby Pokémon. It can be seen and heard when playing Super Easy Mode in the Mimic Mansion, Time Zone, Marathon, and in cutscenes after clearing the 1P Stadium at any difficulty level.
[edit] Featured Modes
- 1P Stadium
- 2P Stadium
- Marathon (Never-ending)
- Mimic Mansion (Beginner's Area)
- Pokémon Center (Options Menu)
- Professor Oak's Lab (Tutorial)
- Puzzle University (Puzzle Challenge Mode)
- Spa Service (Line Clear Mode)
- Time Zone (Get the best score in a time limit)
[edit] 1P Stadium
In this single player mode, you play as Ash to battle many different trainers from the anime to become the Pokémon Puzzle Master. Ash can choose from his Pikachu, Bulbasaur or Squirtle, but he can only use one of them per battle and you will only battle on 2D puzzle fields. There are six levels of difficulty:
- Super Easy Mode: The easiest mode. This is not part of the 1P Stadium, but this mode can be played for practice at the Mimic Mansion.
- Easy Mode: The second-easiest mode. The challenger will always choose the bottom Pokémon in this mode.
- Normal Mode: The mode of medium difficulty. The challenger will always choose the middle Pokémon in this mode.
- Hard Mode: The third-hardest mode. The challenger will always choose the top Pokémon in this mode.
- Very Hard Mode: The second-hardest mode. The challenger will choose any of his or her Pokémon randomly. It is unlocked when beating Hard Mode.
- Super Hard Mode: The most challenging mode. The challenger will randomly choose any of his or her Pokémon. This is unlocked when beating Very Hard Mode.
These trainers are battled against in the following order:
- Gary Oak
- Brock
- Misty
- Lt. Surge
- Erika
- Koga
- Sabrina
- Blaine
- Tracey Sketchit
- Jessie, James, and Meowth
- Giovanni (final challenger in Easy Mode)
- Ritchie
- Lorelei
- Bruno (final challenger in Normal Mode)
- Gary Oak (final challenger in Hard Mode; his Pokémon are fully evolved)
- Mewtwo (final challenger in Very Hard and Super Hard Modes; if you lose against him, you will go back to re-challenge Gary.)
[edit] 2P Stadium
In this two player mode, players can choose any of the challengers, including Mewtwo (although Mewtwo is only playable with controller 2 and with a code) to battle in 2D or 3D puzzles. Trainers can use up to all of their Pokémon in this mode.
[edit] Development
[edit] Music
Background music for this game is based on the Pokémon 2BA Master CD, and the song "Catch Me if You Can" from Pokémon: The First Movie's short feature Pikachu's Vacation (as well as the score for the movie itself). Some music also comes from the animé.
[edit] Graphics
The cutscene graphics match the animation of the anime. This game was also known for being one of the few N64 games to have FMVs, and the only one to have crisp, clear, full screen, VHS-quality FMVs (other games featuring FMVs, such as Resident Evil 2 and Wheel of Fortune, had the videos shown either in tiny boxes in the corner of the screen or in widescreen format, and the quality was usually very grainy).
[edit] Reception
For the most part, fans and reviewers rated Pokémon Puzzle League positively. Some reviewers believed that it might have capitalized on the popular Pokémon franchise, but enjoyed it because of how similar it is to Tetris Attack. [1] They also praised the graphics and new elements such as the 3D puzzles that made the game more worthwhile and challenging.[2] The game currently has an average of 83% on Game Rankings.com.[3]
[edit] Scores
- Nintendo Power - 8.1 out of 10
- GameSpot - 7.0 out of 10
- IGN - 8.9 out of 10
- GamePro - 4 out of 5
- Game Revolution - B
- 1UP.com - 9.2 out of 10
- Game Informer - 8.5 out of 10
- Cinescape Online - A+
[edit] Character Voices
| Voice Actor | Role(s) |
|---|---|
| Veronica Taylor | Ash Ketchum / Delia Ketchum |
| Jimmy Zoppi | Gary Oak / Butch of Team Rocket |
| Rachael Lillis | Misty / Jessie of Team Rocket / Jigglypuff |
| Eric Stuart | Brock / James of Team Rocket / Squirtle |
| Ted Lewis | Tracey Sketchit / Giovanni / Blaine |
| Ikue Ohtani | Pikachu |
| Satomi Koorogi | Togepi |
| Maddie Blaustein | Meowth of Team Rocket / Lt. Surge / Bruno of the Elite Four |
| Phillip Bartlett | Mewtwo |
| Tara Jayne | Ritchie / Bulbasaur |
| Lisa Ortiz | Sabrina |
| Leah Applebaum | Erika |
| Kathleen Delaney | Lorelei of the Elite Four |
| Stan Hart | Professor Samuel Oak |
| Megan Hollingshead | Nurse Joy / Officer Jenny / Cassidy of Team Rocket |
| Ken Gates | Narrator / Koga |
[edit] References
- ^ http://ign64.ign.com/articles/164/164801p1.html
- ^ http://ign64.ign.com/articles/164/164801p1.html
- ^ http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/913924.asp
[edit] See also
|
Red and Blue • Yellow • Gold and Silver • Crystal • Ruby and Sapphire • FireRed and LeafGreen • Emerald • Diamond and Pearl |
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Panel de Pon • Tetris Attack • Pokémon Puzzle League • Nintendo Puzzle Collection |
