The cow ! Water has really flowed under the bridge since the release of Pokémon in its Blue and Red versions, the very first iterations of the Game Freak and Nintendo phenomenon. This kind of thinking automatically comes to mind when you put your hands on the latest additions to the saga, Pokémon X and Pokémon Y for the first time. had several regions in the vast world of Pokémon, where Ash had a Super NES in his room, where we howled with joy after his first catches, namely harmless Rattata and Pidgey hiding in the tall grass near a monochrome Palette Bourg . Yes, nostalgia is inevitable when you discover for the first time an episode of Pokémon entirely in 3D. Yes, in 3D! Like the thing that the series lacked so much that it pushed Nintendo to create Pokémon Stadium on N64, for the simple pleasure of seeing its creatures come to life, flourish in space. Thanks to the (relative) capabilities of the 3DS, it's now the whole adventure, and not just a few fights, that takes place in three dimensions. We therefore set off to discover a new region, Kalos, a carbon copy of the northern half of France, at the request of Professor Platane (yes, the locations are always full of surprises and my Canarticho baptized Inspector Magret by an NPC to whom I traded it still makes me laugh so much). All this in order, as usual, to fill the Pokédex and incidentally to discover the mystery of the Mega-Evolutions.
Polygon will finally earn its name
Needless to say that this visual leap forward is the main quality and novelty of the software. Even if we are not going to have a blast on the game, everything remains very pretty and in line with the spirit of the series, in particular thanks to the very judicious choice of a cel-shading just enough pronounced to keep its manga side . Movement on the map takes place in an environment that can be compared to super deformed: it's very colorful, pretty well done, but you shouldn't expect crazy animations on all sides either. We stay in a three-quarter view most of the time, to switch in certain corners of the world to a more dynamic camera. Small flat besides on the navigation in Illumis, the capital of Kalos, which frankly fucks the sheaf at times. Good point, however, for the arenas with stylish, well-differentiated decors and a map of the world, a little less fragmented. Of course, this graphic renewal is especially felt in combat: the Pokémon have never been so well modeled and we finally feel them alive (even if the imagination was doing the job so far). Some attacks are also really worth a look (Nitrocharge for example, like most Fire abilities that said), even if we couldn't help but notice some slight and occasional slowdowns. The staging also has its small effect, with moving cameras, angle changes, close-ups of the opposing Pokémon. Your avatar even makes a short appearance during certain animations or the traditional Pokéball throw for capture. Finally, even the smallest element of the game gains something in this redesign: the Surf and Flight techniques, the fact of putting on your rollerblades or riding your bicycle, and even the narration which allows itself some fantasies. Too bad we didn't create and insert digitized cries for all the creatures to end it all well, only Pikachu benefits from this honor.
Mega-Evolution?
On the gameplay side, it is also through a multitude of small novelties that Pokémon X and Y mark the difference, the biggest of them being the Mega-Evolution mechanism during the fights. The Kalos region is indeed home to very special stones. Some of them only correspond to a kind of Pokémon, a species that no longer has the possibility of evolving. By giving him this stone, and having a special bracelet to activate it (which you will obtain during the adventure), you can allow him to mega-evolve, the time of a fight, with transformation and increase key statistics. Tortank will thus need to hold a shard of Tortankite to become Mega-Tortank, equipped with a huge cannon on his back and two more modest ones on his arms. It's pretty cool and it allows you to highlight creatures that have already been pushed to the limit. We will also note the arrival of horde battles, in which your creature must face five wild Pokémon. Of a very low level, they can represent a danger as long as you do not have zone attacks and if you wish to capture one of them, you will first have to take care of the other four. As for aerial battles, they only involve your flying Pokémon, and this is ultimately their only specificity.
Added to this is the possibility of rollerblading, alongside the bike and running shoes (which, to be honest with you, is not the most manageable), to customize your avatar by changing your clothes, his haircut, or the color of his eyes, to cultivate his berries in a much simpler way than before, etc. Too bad the title still loses a little in challenge: we receive the Multi EXP very early, the dungeons are often inhabited by one or two characters who allow you to regenerate your group along the way, and the game offers to choose twice starter pokemon! In a few hours, Professor Platane offers you Grenousse, Marmiton or Fennec then you can also recover Bulbizarre, Carapuce or Salamèche! Fingers in the nose for the start of the game... But come on, let's not sulk our pleasure, collecting does not get old and neither does the concept of Pokémon. Fueled by the arrival of hundreds of new creatures, new evolution systems to discover, new Pokéballs to try, it continues to offer a gargantuan lifespan, which could be close to a hundred hours of play if you want “catch them all”.
The SPV, a kind of training method allowing Pokémon to increase their stats outside of combat, which is likely to attract the most experienced Trainers.
But the passage on 3DS, it is also the assurance of never being alone again with its Link cable bought for nothing. We are entering the era of the always connected! Thus, at any time, you can decide to face a Trainer living on the other side of the planet, play a more peaceful card by offering him a Pokémon exchange or simply interact with him. On the filling side of the Pokédex, the Game Trade Station allows you to offer a specific creature for exchange or to find one that you are missing. You will also be able to barter O-Auras, temporary bonuses that you collect in the game and which offer a surplus of experience, money or an improvement in one of your stats for a given time. But it is the SPV (for Virtual Improvement System), a kind of training method allowing Pokémon to increase their stats outside of combat, which is likely to attract the most experienced Trainers, unlike Poké Récré, Nintendogs at the Pokémon sauce, which should quickly be put aside...
