ladyappletun

[ladyappletun]

Generation 5: Pokémon Black 2

Flareon, Jolteon, Vaporeon, Espeon, Umbreon, and Glaceon

I have a confession to make: I started this playthrough back in April 2023, right before I decided to play all the games in order. When I decided to do this challenge, I set Black 2 aside and resolved to pick up where I left off after I finished the first Gen 5 game. I'd rather not restart my save file, since I spent a lot of time playing through Pokéstar Studios and building up Join Avenue and I don't want to do that work all over again. However, I promise I'll be careful to note as many improvements as I can, even if they first appeared at the beginning of the game.

I'm sure I'll have quite a few. I've only played through BW2 once and it was a long time ago, but that playthrough really stuck with me. I absolutely love Pokéstar Studios, for one, and I really wanted to play through all the movies. This was also the first game I picked up after my brief hiatus from Pokémon, since it was the newest one out at the time. I have a lot of fond memories with it and with returning to fan culture, especially watching Let's Plays of the game on YouTube.

As for my team, it's because of those Let's Plays that I got the idea for an Eeveelution team in the first place. I'm not 100% sure, but I believe it was a Super Skarmory (now King of Zeal) video on this game (or a comment on one of his videos) that mentioned it would be a great game to have an Eeveelution team in since Eevee is available in the wild before the third gym. I've always wanted to try it, and now's my chance!

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Pokémon Improvements I Loved

SoulSilver to White

X in Menus: Hitting the X button in a menu closes out all menus and returns you to the overworld! You don't always need it, but when you do, it's very convenient.

Low Health Music: Especially at this point, I think everyone is very annoyed with the beeping sound the game plays when your Pokémon is at low health. It was a stroke of genius to play a different song in battle instead, even though the beeping has been incorporated into the song, which is still a little grating.

Dynamic Music: They did so many awesome things with the music in Gen 5! There's the low health song that I mentioned above, music that changes if you're walking vs running, and even NPCs that will add instruments to the song when you talk to them. The Gym Leaders even get a special theme when they're down to their last team member! It's so subtle if you're not looking for it, but it adds so much to the experience.

Poké Marts are Inside Pokémon Centers Now: Enough said. It's 1,000 times more convenient.

Infinite-use TMs: It's so lovely to be able to play around with the moves my team has without feeling like I'm wasting rare TMs. If only they made it so you didn't need a Move Deleter for the HMs, this game would have been godlike. I wish they had never changed this feature in later games.

Speech Bubbles: Instead of having some characters' dialogue in a full-size text box, short phrases will appear in little speech bubbles around the characters' heads. This allows multiple characters to say something at once and it saves a little time, since you don't have to scroll through smaller and more insignificant lines of dialogue. Animal Crossing: New Horizons does this, too, and I think it adds a lot of character to the world without shoving every single line of dialogue in your face. It's a nice time-saver for the little details.

Registering Items to Y: You can now register multiple items to the Y button! It's nice to be able to have even two items at such close reach, even though the game allows you to register up to 25!

Revised Exp. System: I'm definitely not an expert on how this works, but from what I understand, a Pokémon will gain more experience points when it battles a Pokémon at a higher level, and a higher difference in levels will yield more experience points. In Gens 1-4, it was more of a static number that didn't take into account the level difference between opponents. Even from my experience playing these games with limited knowledge of how the system works, it definitely feels a lot better. You're more willing to take on challenging opponents because, if you manage to win, your gains will be a lot higher. I'm not sure if this is also part of the revised Exp. system, but I also felt much more equipped to take on Pokémon that were higher-leveled. My team was between levels 64-67 when I fought Cynthia (whose whole team was 75+) in Undella Town, and not only was I confident enough to try with such a big gap, but I won on my second attempt.

Animated Battle Sprites: I wasn't won over on this right away, especially because I did most of my playthrough on a 3DS XL and the sprites were too blown up. But on a DS Lite or a DSi, they look much better! And they're super charming! There are so many little details put into each Pokémon, not to mention the details that affect every Pokémon across the board (how hard they land when sent out into battle, closing eyes when asleep, slowing down at low HP, etc.). I'm not the biggest fan of the 3D models that are coming in Gen 6, so revisiting the animated sprites in Gen 5 was very refreshing.

Quality of Life with Healing Items: Say you go to your bag to use a Potion. The game opens the menu with your team, and then you pick the Pokémon you want to use the Potion on. Then it stays in that menu and lets you use another Potion on another Pokémon! This is so convenient when I have to use items on multiple party members, which happens often.

NPCs Who Heal You: If you find a Doctor or Nurse in your travels and beat them in a battle, they will heal your Pokémon for you whenever you ask. I've heard people say makes the games easier, which it kind of does, but I'm the type of person who runs back and forth to the Pokémon Center a lot, so it was a nice time-saver for me.

Strength: When you find a rock you can use Strength on, there is always a hole nearby that it is supposed to go into. Not only does this make the Strength puzzles more puzzle-like, but the rocks will also stay in their holes for the rest of the game! I wish they had done something like this for all the HMs. It serves as a great way to mark progress in the game (if there's a rock in a hole, I know I've been here before) and it saves so much time! Pokémon games are usually pretty linear, but there are often several reasons to return to previous areas in every game. Solving an HM puzzle once can be fun, but solving the same puzzle every time you want to access a certain area is so tedious.

More Version Differences: Pokémon's had multiple versions of the same game for years, and while it was an interesting gimmick at first, I think the series outgrew it a long time ago. The games are so similar that you have never needed to buy both versions to get the full experience. One of the biggest version differences at this point is the version-exclusive Pokémon. And with how big the internet is now, version-exclusive Pokémon feel more like a perfunctory feature than an engaging mechanic. Some Pokémon are so rare (e.g., a 1% encounter rate on one specific route in some games) that I think that would incentivize people to trade even if they all have the same version of the game. There are always going to be some people who are more willing to seek out rarer Pokémon and others who don't want to put in the effort. Plus there are shinies people can trade. Or if you play with your friends or family, you might want to trade Pokémon just for the sentimental value. Honestly, I think that makes trading more memorable and engaging than simply swapping out the version exclusives with another person. If the developers really want to keep multiple versions, though, I think the more features they add to set the games apart, the better. Even things that don't significantly change the gameplay experience would be more engaging and encourage people to talk about the games more, like the different versions of Opelucid City in Black and White. Opelucid City is functionally the same in both games, but it's fun to compare the two. If we have to keep the two different versions, I would love more concrete differences like that!

The Elite 4: You can battle the Elite 4 in any order you want in this game. While their teams are all around the same level, which is a bit less of a challenge, you get to decide how you want to tackle it. You can go for the team you have the best advantage against first to make things easier for you, or go for the team you're weakest against as a challenge. My only complaint is that there's no way to tell which room belongs to which Elite 4 member until you go inside.

Saving: At the very end of my playthrough, I noticed that when you go to save there's a little note at the bottom of the screen that tells you when you last saved. That's so convenient! I usually save multiple times in a row because I zone out and forget whether I actually saved or not. Having a little note of when I last saved would have cut down on how often I did that, and I wish I had noticed it sooner!

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"I get it now"

Public opinion on Pokémon Black and White has experienced quite a roller coaster since its release, at least in the English-speaking world. When the games first came out, people criticized so many different aspects of them, from character and Pokémon designs to the gameplay and everything in between. And now, they're some of the most highly-praised games in the series, especially for the story.

I never really jumped on the BW hate bandwagon when the games first came out. Sure, I didn't play them on launch, but that was more because I thought I was too old for Pokémon at the time. When I did come back to them, I enjoyed them but definitely wouldn't have said they were my favorite games.

As I was playing through White Version for this challenge I'd set for myself, I really didn't get what all the hype was about concerning the story. Certainly, absolutely, the games have amazing graphics, cool Pokémon, and much-improved mechanics compared to previous games, but I could never get into the story. At first, I thought maybe it was because N's dialogue was written in a way I found preachy and off-putting (his dialogue in Chargestone Cave was particularly condescending IMO). Then I started digging through Bulbapedia, looking for information about N, the other characters, and the dichotomy between truth and ideals to see if I had missed something, or maybe if something was lost in translation. I couldn't understand why NPCs would take myths and legends so seriously when the Pokémon games have such a modern setting, so N's plan to befriend Reshiram and convince Unova he was the true hero/worth listening to didn't make much sense to me. And why would N or anyone else in Team Plasma encourage the player to befriend Zekrom and try to stop their plans?

This bothered me so much that, right before the final fight with N, I actually wrote out my thoughts on the matter to get to the root of why this story really didn't gel with me. And then I remembered a comment from Shoogles' video on Brilliant Diamond: "In the West, we see science and spirituality as...incompatible. My understanding is that it's easier to reconcile the two in Japanese culture; the literal and the metaphysical are not necessarily mutually exclusive" (7:16:18-35). Seeing it that way, it makes a lot more sense that people in a very modern region like Unova would still put weight in the region's founding myth, whether you want to see Reshiram and Zekrom as gods or just as really powerful and rare Pokémon. N, too, clearly believes in the region's mythology, not just because he seeks to befriend Reshiram and become the next true hero, but also because he wants to legitimize his claim by defeating Zekrom and the other true hero, proving beyond a doubt that his values (in the case of White, truth) are the most legitimate. And Ghetsis probably just goes along with it because he thinks N is guaranteed to succeed, so even if Reshiram doesn't need to defeat Zekrom in order for Team Plasma to achieve their goals, it definitely won't hurt.

And when I defeated N, I realized that I had in fact understood the plot. N starts his journey with fiercely-set, black-and-white beliefs--that the training/battling system in the Unova region only leads to misery and abuse for Pokémon--because he had only ever met Pokémon that had been abused by humans. But when he meets the player, he's surprised to hear your Pokémon say that it likes you. This is the only time he's ever heard a Pokémon say something like that, so maybe he could write it off as an exception to the rule. However, as he travels across Unova, he finds more and more people and Pokémon who work together, communicate, and enjoy being each other's friends. He sees more and more evidence that he was wrong. When he encourages you to befriend Zekrom and become the other hero, he wants to affirm that he was right for his own benefit, maybe more than any other reason: "That was why I needed to confirm my beliefs by battling with you. [...] I needed that more than anything."

And that was when I had my "I get it" moment (à la Fiona Sangster in her Stardew Valley Sebastian video). Not only did I feel like I understood the game's plot, themes, and messages a lot better than I ever had, I was also very happy that the game had made me think this much about that plot and those themes. I wasn't just picking it apart to decide if I was right or wrong, I was legitimately working to understand a character's experiences and how they informed his beliefs about the world. I used to think the philosophy explored in Black and White was too ham-fisted, but if it's making me think this seriously about its themes it's clearly doing something right.

[ladyappletun]

Pushing the DS to its Limits

I'm kind of surprised by how many 3D models and absolutely MASSIVE set pieces there are in Pokémon Black and White. When people talk about Diamond and Pearl, they often reference a blog post by Junichi Masuda that claims he and his team wanted Gen 4 to be the "ultimate" Pokémon games. But as much as I love Diamond and Pearl, I think they achieved that goal much more closely in Gen 5. There are tons of amazing aspects of this game that I'll get into when I list out my favorite improvements later, but they really did everything they could with the game's environments. The stairs from the Pokémon League to the Champion's room are HUGE, and Team Plasma's castle is large and gorgeous! And that's just 2 areas of the game that you don't even spend tons of time in!

[ladyappletun]

The Shadow Triad are so funny, because most times they show up only to escort you about 3 feet to Ghetsis and then claim they found you as though they'd been scouring the region for you day and night.

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Putting the "Miss" in Mistralton

Mistralton has been the Gym of never attacking this playthrough! Most of the Pokémon know Air Slash, which has a flinch chance. In one battle, my Elgyem fell in love with a Woobat and didn't attack for 4 turns!

[ladyappletun]

Love that the Mistralton Gym puzzle involves you being shot through cannons until you smack into the wall

[ladyappletun]

Clay sucks. When you first arrive in Driftveil City, he basically demands you help him with Team Plasma, only for him to immediately let them go the second he gets any pushback from Ghetsis. Then, after you beat him at the Gym, he refuses to give you his signature TM until you've helped him on Route 6. Like, sir, I just came here for a Gym battle, I didn't ask to be roped into all this.

[ladyappletun]

One thing I absolutely love about playing as the female character (Hilda) in BW is the way her ponytail flows in the wind as she runs. I can practically feel the wind in my own hair

[Image credit: https://www.redbubble.com/i/poster/Black-and-White-Protagonist-Hilda-3-Sprites-Sticker-by-rachxt/88190975.LVTDI]

[ladyappletun]

That's Cold, Cheren

When you're fighting Team Plasma in the Cold Storage, Cheren calls them a "waste of oxygen." Harsh.

[ladyappletun]

Contests, Musicals, and Miscellaneous Side Features

As of right now, I haven't included any side features, like the Contests or Pokéathalon, in my list of favorite improvements. To be honest, I've tried these things as I play through the games again in order to give them a fair shot, but I just can't bring myself to get into them. I've heard that these features do have their fans, but the mechanics have been *just* intimidating enough that I haven't wanted to devote much time to them.

I figured with the Musicals in Pokemon Black & White it would be the same way. And it is, in some ways. Basically, the main reward you get for doing well in the Musicals is more Props to use in future Musicals. I could grind out the Props (and you do get a star on your trainer card for getting them all), but there are only 4 different types of Musicals to choose from, and none of them require much participation in order to win.

On one hand, I appreciate that the Musicals don't have a ton of hidden knowledge behind them, because it's easier to do well without looking up a guide and learning about a bunch of hidden mechanics. On the other, because the Musicals are so uncomplicated, there's really not much to them and they're not as engaging.

I'm sooo tempted to grind for all the Props. I've actually been interested in aspects of a lot of games that I never used to bother with. Part of the reason this playthrough of Pokemon White is taking so long is because I got distracted completing the Scarlet Pokedex, building a living dex in SoulSilver, and revisiting older Animal Crossing titles to achieve goals I never could as a kid (like maxing out my HRA score and paying off all my loans). I feel like grinding for all the Props will scratch a similar itch, but I don't think I want to sit through all the performances required to get all the Props. There are just so many other things I could be doing with my time.

[ladyappletun]

I'm really surprised they don't give you the bike in Castelia City. I know that's when you get it in Black & White 2, but in the original Black & White you don't get it until Nimbasa. It just makes so much more sense to get it in Castelia; it's such a big city to explore even with a bike. I guess the change for B2W2 shows the developers did realize this at some point, and I'm glad they did.

[ladyappletun]

I don't know why, but I've always loved the little playground on Route 3, especially during Autumn/Winter in game. There's something about the gloomy vibes at that time of year that reminds me of rainy days from when I was a kid. Plus, the slide is absolutely incredible! Even though you can't actually slide down it (it's just a ramp that you can walk across), it's such a cute touch. I feel like if the slide was in an older game, you wouldn't have been able to interact with it at all.

Photo credit: https://forums.pokemmo.com/index.php?/topic/77087-phenomenon-locations-guide/

[ladyappletun]

Generation V: Pokémon White

Team: Serperior, Unfezant, Scolipede, Krookodile, Gothitelle, Carracosta

It's time for Gen V, starting with Pokémon White! When I was a kid, this was when I originally stopped playing Pokémon. The pressure to grow up, coupled with all the criticism this game got when it released in Japan, pushed me to give up Pokémon. But don't worry, that didn't last long.

And man, what a game to miss out on! I've since played Black and White a few times, and while they're not my favorite Pokémon games, I definitely agree with a lot of the praise they've gotten in recent years. I have a feeling the list of improvements is going to be pretty long this time around.

By the way, can we talk about the criticism these games got on release? I remember when the games came out in Japan and a bunch of people online were talking about all the changes they made and getting mad about it. There was a lot of commentary on Hilda's design, especially: people thought she looked like Miley Cyrus and that was bad for some reason? Looking back on that, it really didn't age well.

On another random note, does anyone else think the soundtrack in this game sounds a lot like LeapPad music? Something about the soundfont really reminds me of my LeapPad days as a kid 😂

EDIT: Since I started playing, I've had to make a few changes to the team. I realized that Gothitelle is version exclusive to Black, so that one had to go. And I just wasn't that excited about using Scolipede and Carracosta this playthrough. So I've swapped them out for Beheeyem, Jellicent, and Mienshao.

[ladyappletun]

Pokémon Improvements I Loved

Platinum to SoulSilver

The art style: Even though it's the same generation, the graphics and art in HGSS are so much more beautiful than in DPPt. The colors are softer and warmer, and the different textures melt into each other in a much more natural game. I think one reason I love these games so much is because they feel so peaceful and idyllic, especially because of the art. There's also a lot of small touches, like a breeze in New Bark Town.

The music! This is by far one of my favorite soundtracks. Like the graphics, so many of the town and route themes are gentler and more peaceful. You could make a "Pokémon Music to Relax and Study to" playlist with tons of tracks from this game. Plus, Ho-oh's theme is one of my favorite battle themes in the series.

You can hear your footsteps, which are different depending on the terrain. Just a nice little touch that really makes the world come alive.

Following Pokémon! I feel like this doesn't even need to be said, because basically everyone in the fandom agrees that this was one of the greatest additions to the series. And it was implemented so well! The Pokémon sprites usually take up one tile and they follow immediately behind the player, which, even though it's not very realistic, lets them be part of the adventure without getting in your way as you explore. They've brought following Pokémon back in Gen VIII and IX, but it's not quite as seamless. Slower Pokémon struggle to keep up with you, and sometimes the Pokémon can get in your way.

The auto-run button: Why did they never bring this back?! It's so convenient and so easy to toggle on and off. No more mashing the B button for hours on end!

The Pokémon Center's design changes in some cities to better match the vibes: Again, not super essential to the gameplay, but a thoughtful touch that speaks to the themes of Johto (working to remember the past and embrace change at the same time).

Splash screens: Like FRLG, there are splash screens as you enter larger dungeons. But, unlike FRLG, different Pokémon will appear in the splash screen. It's just a fun thing to look for as you wait for the next area to load and it makes the dungeons feel alive with unique Pokémon.

Cameron the photographer: Especially because following Pokémon is a key feature in this game, taking pictures of your team as you progress through the game is a cute way to see how you've grown and changed during your play through. Plus it's cool to see your entire team all at once in the world with you, though it can be a little silly to have HM users in the picture with your main team.

[ladyappletun]

Generation IV: Pokémon SoulSilver

Team: Honchkrow, Abomasnow, Lickilicky, Kingdra, Magmortar, Mr. Mime

It's HGSS time, baby! These are my favorite Pokémon games of all time, and I am so excited to play through them again!

You may have noticed that this team is pretty unique for a Johto game. Because I like to use new Pokémon every time and a lot of the early-game options in Johto are Pokémon I've used in the past, I decided to take advantage of the fact that I have a completed copy of Platinum that I can trade with. I'm especially excited about Magmortar. When I was a kid playing Diamond, Electivire and Magmortar were kind of held up as these really powerful and tough Pokémon that were kind of hard to get. I've used Electivire before, but I've never had the opportunity to use Magmortar. Child-me is gonna feel so badass.

This play through is also going to take a long time, since the post game is so huge and I'll be working on my living dex along the way. I have a Pokéwalker, too, so I'll be using that to help me evolve Pokémon for the living dex when I can't be playing the main game.

Also, can we talk about the "post game"? That's the common way we refer to the Kanto section of the game, but I feel like it's such an essential part of the HGSS experience that it really shouldn't be considered a post game.

[ladyappletun]

Gen IV Living Dex progress: 226/493