Video Game Review: Pokémon Legends: Z-A & Mega Dimensions DLC

Old dog finally learns the trick it should have years ago.

Pokémon Legends: Z-A

Pokémon is undoubtedly the biggest juggernaut in entertainment history. It’s bigger than Star Wars, bigger than Mickey Mouse, bigger than Harry Potter, bigger than the entire MCU. And while I respect a publisher’s fear of altering too much of a known formula for an established IP, no single entry will derail this franchise. When Pokémon Legends: Arceus released, it temporarily assuaged my exhaustion with Pokémon’s turn-based combat. The game, while still turn-based, took some liberties with catching and including the player character in the world, blurring the lines between the trainer’s gameplay and their Pokémon’s. The follow-up games, mainline entries (Scarlet and Violet) reverted to norms with undesirable results. But finally, the toe Game Freak dipped in that pool of live action Pokémon gameplay with Legends: Arceus has become a full dive. Pokémon Legends: Z-A is the step I’ve wanted the franchise to take for the longest time. And while there are still some kinks to work out, there’s a lot to be excited about.

This is the first full action Pokémon game (and no, I’m not counting fighting games with Pokémon characters or Pokémon Unite). That’s right, no more PP. Instead, the game gives each attack a cast time and a cooldown to ensure a balance between the strongest and weakest. Traditionally, a move like Fire Blast would only come with 5 PP before needing to be recharged; now, it simply has a longer cooldown time and a slightly longer cast time than weaker moves. This creates a new dynamic within the gameplay. You could use Fire Blast, but it might not be ready even after your next attack. Do you wait it out, reposition, and use it again, or do you try to get another two attacks during its cool down? (Fire Blast has a higher chance to miss, so I’m not suggesting you use it—just an example). When fighting wild Pokémon, you’ll find that you draw aggro before your mons do. It’s completely possible to get knocked out this way, and adds an extra layer of immersion to the gameplay, especially early on when facing down a powerful alpha Pokémon or rogue mega-evolved mon. Dodging wild Pokémon attacks while commanding your own to unleash on an opponent can be incredibly satisfying and kept me entertained throughout the entirety of my run.

That said, the combat still needs work. The pathfinding system can sometimes be egregious (which rears its head particularly in the Mega Dimensions DLC that I’ll get to later). Sometimes your Pokémon will line itself up behind a wall or a fence before firing off its move (only to hit into the building instead), sometimes the Pokémon will take a weird path to get to another part of the map before unleashing their attack, wasting your precious speed advantage over an enemy while they pelt your Pokémon in the back. Sometimes they’ll fall off a roof mid-attack. Heck, sometimes a Pokémon just won’t attack. I think what happens is they take so long to follow a path that the system just cancels out the attack you selected initially. When you choose to attack again, it works fine, but it wastes time. This mostly occurs when fighting in the city environment; arenas aren’t problematic.

Another issue I have with the battle system is entering my inventory. Most of the time it works well, but sometimes the game simply won’t let you access it when you need to (and this happens in a lot of the intense mega fights). The game essentially puts a freeze on your inventory access if a Pokémon is mega-evolving. I don’t know if it’s because they may or may not show a mega evolution cut scene (which becomes annoying after the first time you see it). Sometimes there is no mega evolving, and I still can’t enter my inventory. I just have to shrug my shoulders and swap my Pokémon out instead of using a potion and heal them later when it works again.

Legends: Z-A takes place in Lumiose City, and while not as large as a traditional Pokémon game world with all its regions, it makes up for that by expanding the city, incorporating rooftop exploration and placing wild Pokémon zones throughout the map. The world is bright and welcoming, even if some environments are underwhelming. Considering that Pokémon games always sell millions upon millions of copies, it’s a shame they won’t put more effort into hiring more people to help make the games look better. Some buildings are simple boxes with textures on them. Look at the screenshot above. I mean come on, Game Freak, you can do better than that. You’re charging full price for these games, so don’t give us a budget effort. Luckily, the Pokémon animations look good, as do the models themselves. It’s fun to watch my hulking alpha Dragonite float around behind me on the map.

One of the main gameplay mechanics of Legends: Z-A is an oldie they introduced over a decade ago with X and Y: Mega Evolution. Most of the Pokémon you’ll find throughout Z-A can mega evolve, which is necessary to help quell the rage of rogue mega evolved Pokémon. At night, you try to climb the Z-A Royale list. You start and rank Z and climb your way up to; you guessed it, rank A! You do this by entering battle zones at night and challenging other NPC trainers. You can pick up cards that give you mini quests to fulfill that fill your challenger ticket bar faster (for instance, land five psychic-type attacks on unaware opponents). Sneaking up on an opponent and landing a critical move is fun, though sometimes the game randomly makes you get caught unaware by an opponent and stuns you momentarily. This would only make sense if you were sneaking, and they caught you, but sometimes I’m running full at them for a battle and I get the de-buff anyway. Once you have a challenger’s ticket, you can face your next ranked opponent. This is the closest thing the game has to gym leaders, and many of the higher-ranked characters get used throughout the narrative and into the DLC.

For those of you worried about EVs and IVs, worry not. They’ve included it all. There are some specific Pokémon moves that have been altered to work in an action-paced setting, so you may find one of your favorite moves isn’t what it used to be. It’s also wonderful to have access to your Pokémon boxes anywhere you go.

There isn’t much going on in the story. It’s a typical “save the city” trope, but with a Pokémon skin. It’s not abysmal by any means, and I thank the heavens there isn’t anything so terrible as Team Star from Scarlet and Violet, but there isn’t too much here that will stick with me in the coming years. The characters are fine; some deliver some well-timed zingers, but mostly just serve the narrative. One thing I find bizarre is that there is absolutely no voice work. Why? This is 2025 (well, 2026 now, but the game released last year), so there is no reason for there not to be. It works in some games, but when characters are moving their mouths and no dialogue comes out, it’s odd.

The side quests are a mixed bag. Some are clever and genuinely made me laugh, while others are quite simple and boring. You never know which one you’ll end up with, unfortunately. A few were long and tedious, while others were engaging and well thought out. I particularly enjoyed engaging in the wild zones and catching everything available; it reminded me of the mainline games, and I always jumped over to a new spot whenever it was introduced.

The game ran smoothly (though I was on Switch 2, so I had a little extra processing power to back me up). Minus the in-game issues, I had no performance problems or stutters like I had with the last few entries in the series. Collecting Pokémon was a breeze, and battling was fun and intense. While there are still many things Game Freak should address with the Pokémon pathfinding, this is a massive step toward creating a more immersive experience with this series. I hope we get more advances in this direction instead of the uninspired Terastallization they introduced in the last games. With the power of the Switch 2, I also hope to see better effort from the developers to make the world look like it’s part of the number one entertainment IP in the world. There is a lot of good here, and I’m hoping it becomes great. If you want to see what a live-action Pokémon game plays like, it’s right here; it’s fun, and it runs well. If you remember wishing you could be more like Ash from the anime, controlling your mons around a battlefield, give this game your support.

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The Math

Objective Assessment: 7.5/10
Bonus: +1 for full-action gameplay. +1 for Pokémon designs and animations.
Penalties: -1 for poor Pokémon pathfinding. -1 for having to watch mega evolution a million times.
Nerd Coefficient: 7.5/10

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Maybe save your money.

Mega Dimensions Review

I purchased Mega Dimensions for two reasons. One; because of my desire for mega evolutions that weren’t in the main game (that I thought were going to be, but I’d been misled by the advertisements), and two; because I had just about finished the main game when the DLC came out and was still enjoying the experience. Plus, I know myself; if I didn’t play it immediately after I finished the game, I would never have gotten to it. And to be honest, I wish I had saved my money.

That’s not to say that this DLC is broken or unplayable. It’s fine if you want something to do, but it is an expensive something to do that feels like a cash grab. At the price of thirty steep dollars (which is the most I’ve ever paid for a piece of DLC) I was hoping for something really neat, maybe an expansion to the map or a completely new zone. Instead, you get to enter the hyperspace Lumiose, which is essentially just recycled pieces of Lumiose with a different skin that you have to visit repeatedly. At first, exploration was interesting, but once I discovered it was simply a grind, it felt more and more like a chore.

They introduce two new characters with the content, one to help you with mega battles, and another that makes donuts to feed Hoopa, which allows the player to traverse hyperspace. The gameplay loop here comprises finding berries to craft donuts, which allows you to enter hyperspace, which allows you to research the other dimension (through minor tasks like catching Pokémon, battling, destroying floating Pokéballs) which allows you to find better berries. Once you progress through the story, you can create better donuts. All the Pokémon in hyperspace Lumiose start out at over level 100, so using your donuts will give you a level buff. You want to be at level 100 to maximize their effects; this content isn’t really feasible without having high-level mons.

The problem is the story is not enticing, and after a while, I simply wandered hyperspace Lumiose for better and better berries, but the whole thing is RNG. You’re not guaranteed the good berries. Worse yet, the donuts you make get random abilities, so if you want a specific ability (which is more important at higher levels) you lose out if you don’t get lucky (unless you save scum it by loading a backup save).

Besides increasing your level a certain amount, the donuts have other perks as well; calories being paramount. The more carbs a donut has, the longer you can stay in hyperspace. That’s right; the player is timed each time they go into hyperspace. The better the donut, the longer you can stay. But the higher the difficulty of the zone, the quicker your calories drain before getting ejected from the other dimension. This wouldn’t normally be a problem, and on the lower levels it isn’t. But on the higher levels, when my energy was draining incredibly fast and every single move counted and I saw my Pokémon take a random, unnecessary path around some area to come to do its move, or worse, whiff the move completely, I lost my mind a bit.

I finished the main part of the Mega Dimensions DLC. There was, as to be expected, a powerful Pokémon at the end of the trail, but the thing is, there’s even a bit more beyond the main DLC storyline. Rayquaza is teased early on, and I know Groudon and Kyogre come first, but I just can’t get myself to care. The donut system is bad, the story isn’t great, the flaws in the gameplay are exacerbated in the timed segments, and it’s expensive. It works mostly, which is fine, but it’s a grind. If you decide to pick this up, do yourself a favor and use Mewtwo and have it use psychic on all the floating Pokéballs in hyperspace. You’ll thank me for it.

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The Math

Objective Assessment: 5/10
Bonus: +1 for cool new mega evolutions.
Penalties: -1 for RNG/Grind. -.5 for high price, repetitive content.
Nerd Coefficient: 4.5/10

Posted by: Joe DelFranco - Fiction writer and lover of most things video games. On most days you can find him writing at his favorite spot in the little state of Rhode Island.

Microreview [Video Game]: Pokémon Legends: Arceus by Game Freak

Ever wanted a Pokémon game to switch it up? Well, here it is!

Introduced as a youth to the Pokémon franchise, there used to always be a special feeling when I’d start up a game and hear the cheery, yet empowering soundtrack play. After playing one game, I knew what was in store; choose your starter, fight your rival, go on an adventure, fight Team whatever their name is, and beat the Elite Four. Eventually, this formula became stale, and though Pokémon games sell themselves without the need for change, core players found themselves not completing some of the games. Over time Game Freak and Nintendo tried to switch things up, but nothing ever created a substantial shift, that is, until now (I hope). Pokémon Legends: Arceus injects some brand new mechanics into the franchise. Though it's only a spinoff, I hope that some of these things will be carried over to the mainline entries.

The most exciting addition to Legends has to be the new capture system. Players can now attempt to capture Pokémon without the aid of their fellow ‘mons in battle. Instead, as the player character, you can directly throw a ball at a wild Pokémon for an attempted catch. Three different types of balls have varying effects: standard Poké/great/ultra balls, feather/wing/jet balls (good for catching flying and fast-moving Pokémon), and heavy/leaden/gigaton balls (extremely effective if you hit an unsuspecting Pokémon from behind). This type of capture system removes the tedium of having to weaken Pokémon in battle every single time. Do you hide in the grass and throw a feather ball from far away and watch it fly across the map? Do you get up close and try for a backstab capture with a heavy ball, knowing the Pokémon can turn around at any second? The game emits a satisfying sound whenever you hit a Pokémon from behind. Or you could always do what I did and hit every Bidoof in the face with an ultra ball. Works every time.

In addition to a revamped capture system, Legends adds a more exciting Pokédex. Considering this game takes place a long time ago, the inhabitants have yet to truly understand Pokémon. Most people are afraid of them (yes, even the lowly Bidoof is feared by all). The game takes place in the Sinnoh region during early settlement, back when it went by the name of Hisui. The diamond and pearl clans are at each other’s throats and Team Galaxy is trying to research Pokémon to ensure that Hisui’s inhabitants have a better understanding of the world around them. Luckily for everyone, the player character drops from a rift in the sky to help out. This is where the new (old?) Pokédex comes in. It’s up to the player to research and help fill out the dex. Every Pokémon requires a different set of tasks to fully research. For instance, some dex objectives will have the player catch a certain amount of a specific Pokémon, some will have them see that ‘mon defeated multiple times, some will want to see them use a certain move, etc.

I spent my first few hours in Legends being a good little Pokémon trainer, catching everything I could find, filling out the Pokédex objectives, and exploring everywhere I could. The initial hours of the game are enticing, especially for an old-school fan of the series. Using the player character to navigate Pokémon battles and having to avoid their attacks was a fun new mechanic. I enjoyed feeling like not only were my Pokémon battling, but I was too. And it makes sense. Not all wild monsters are going to ignore you until you throw out another ‘mon, the more aggressive ones would probably attack you too, and the skittish would run away. Due to different Pokémon natures, some will ignore you, some will watch and wait for you to make a move, some will run, and some will attack on sight. For the record, in absolute Bidoof fashion, Bidoof will ignore you, even when you're directly in front of his face.

Depending on how many new Pokémon are captured and how many Pokédex objectives have been fulfilled on your return from the field, you receive currency and experience toward your Team Galaxy rank. Your rank within Team Galaxy determines your ability to train Pokémon to a certain level, akin to badges in the traditional games, so it’s a good idea to get to level seven so you can get your ‘mons to level one hundred. That is if you make it that far.

Unfortunately, I found that the luster of the new mechanics began to fade after about fifteen hours (out of twenty-five I put in). The quest design is rather uninspiring, with many side missions being simple fetch quests. The main quest is pretty straightforward but eventually becomes rather silly. The diamond and pearl clans who were once at war now seem more like immature siblings. The writing in Pokémon games can be and has been (looking at you Black and White), better. Unfortunately, this title is one of the weaker entries in that regard.

What’s worse, the reward for maxing out a Pokemon’s research in the Pokédex is… wait for it… nothing! That’s right. Of those objectives I mentioned earlier, you only need to achieve ten points worth of research to consider the ‘dex entry filled. In some cases, Pokémon can have over thirty objective squares to achieve. The more diligent player isn't rewarded for the effort. It’s nice that Game Freak catered to the more casual player, but they left the hardcore players in the dust in the process.

The worst offender in Legends is the bland, uninspired world. The game initially felt like such a departure from the standard Pokémon game that I was blinded to how underdeveloped the playable areas were. They hit all the basic biomes with a beach area, grasslands, tundra, a volcano, etc., but it never feels like more than a bland map with variety implemented for the sake of variety.

One of the best additions includes alternate versions of some Pokémon and their evolutions. Scyther gets a cool evolution in the form of Kleavor (bug/rock type) while Growlithe and Arcanine take on a different look and become fire/rock types. Instead of offering a new set of three starters, Legends gives the players a choice between Oshawott, Rowlet, and Cyndaquil. Each of these Pokémon are well known, but to spice it up, each one has a new final evolution. Typhlosion becomes Fire/Ghost, Decidueye becomes grass/fighting, and Samurott becomes a water/dark type. These alternate evolution/versions of the Pokémon were a much welcome addition, with some being silly and others quite well designed.

For players looking to add more challenges to the game, Game Freak implemented alpha Pokémon. You can find these ‘mons in the wild and they put up quite a fight. They are much bigger and stronger than the average Pokémon of its species and re-spawn less frequently, so you have to balance your offense and defense when approaching one if you want to catch them. I thought this was a great addition to a not very challenging game. That is unless we’re talking about the final trainer battle in the main story.

The final human trainer boss battle is a doozy. Completely unbalanced with the rest of the game, and to be honest, quite frustrating considering how the game never offers up much of a challenge in the way of trainer v trainer battles. The inclusion of fast and strong moves adds an extra layer to the turn-based combat (with fast moves letting you attack quicker and with less damage, and strong moves doing the opposite), though I never needed to pay much attention to it until the final battle. I wish the mechanic had been necessary throughout the campaign.

Though Pokémon Legends: Arceus misses the mark on a few important things, it’s never a bad game. It’s an enjoyable experience that becomes a bit easier to put down over time. When I first started the game, I picked it up every night for a few hours. Eventually, I would pick it up every few weeks to make sure I finished it, but once I started playing again, I would appreciate the simple joy of collecting all the little critters around the map. It’s just too bad the innovative ideas aren't supported by the story, characters, and world this entry deserves. That being said, if your favorite aspect of any Pokémon is catching, then this one is absolutely for you. And though there isn’t a huge reward for maxing out your research, there is one for catching them all. The Pokémon god Arceus awaits. Boot up your Switch and start collecting!

The Math

Objective Assessment: 7/10

Bonus: +1 for new and enjoyable capture/battle mechanics. +1 for the addition of alpha Pokémon. +1 for the new alternate Pokémon designs.

Penalties: -1 for poor character/story writing. -1 for a bland and ugly world. -1 lack of satisfying research rewards for more hardcore players.

Nerd Coefficient: 7/10

Posted by: Joe DelFranco - Fiction writer and lover of most things video games. On most days you can find him writing at his favorite spot in the little state of Rhode Island.

Microreview [book]: Steel Crow Saga by Paul Krueger

In Steel Crow Saga, Paul Krueger constructs a one volume epic fantasy with strong inspirations from Pokemon, deconstruction of colonial narratives, and much more.

Gotta Catch em All.

Since the 1990’s, the phrase has come in the English speaking world to be the catch phrase for the Pokemon universe. A universe where esoteric beings, sometimes with startling powers, are used as allies, weapons, surrogates by human trainers in competition with each other. It needs little more introduction from me. Now, as it has been such a fixture in anime, in gaming and in genre culture, it is inevitable that it starts to be inspiration for fantasy writers and their own universes.

In Paul Krueger’s second novel, Steel Crow Saga, he takes the idea of Pokemon and looks at how they might work in a secondary world fantasy setting, specifically one that has just gone through an early 20th century tech level  war and revolution.

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Krueger’s world feels a lot like an East Asia that has just been convulsed by war, conquest, revolution, and then revanchism. The Tomodanese, whose culture and general lines feel a lot like Imperial Japan (or perhaps the Fire Nation for Avatar fans) have the ability to manipulate metal. Being a metal poor set of islands, they have gone on a rampaging war of colonial conquest, and conquered large portions of their neighbors. The Shang feel very much like an Imperial China, the Sanbu Islands feel something like the Philippines . The Jeongsonese feel like an oppressed ethnic minority within Shang, of a Korean bent, especially since they have been battered around by various larger powers. The Dahal (with whom we sadly do not get a viewpoint character) feel like a more distant, mercantile focused Indian nation). After years of conquest, revolutions in all of these lands have overthrown the Tomodanese and their metalpacting army, and, reversing the tide of battle and war, carried the war to the home islands of Tomoda themselves as occupiers.

The story of Steel Crow Saga revolves around one of the viewpoint characters, Jimuro. He is to be the Steel Lord, the head of the aforementioned aggressor in the wars. Tomoda. After years growing up, both as Tomoda strode across the world, and then as a captive of the risen up Shang, he never expected to rise to the throne for years and years. The death of his mother, however, has propelled him into the position to take his mother’s place. However, the trip back to Tomoda’s capital, in a world where the Tomodonese have been humbled and continue to be humbled by the powers they once dominated, is a fraught one. Not everyone wants to see Jimuro to make it to his coronation, or have their own agendas for him before he gets there. His journey to that throne and the other characters around them, and the conflicts they engender with each other, and outside forces (including the novel’s main antagonist, the less said about the better for spoilery reasons) is the meat and drink of the novel.

And so the other characters in the novel, viewpoint and non viewpoint alike are arrayed in relationships with him and his quest.  Jimuro’s quest touches them all, affects them all, and as he even strives to figure out what is right and good to do, his fellow characters struggle with conflict, self doubt, growth, change, and painful truths.

So this novel, for all of its high concept with Pokemon in a secondary world fantasy war torn world, this novel is all about relationships, and even more sharply, all about complex sibling relationships. Take Sergeant Tala, for instance. Sergeant Tala is part of the unit that is escorting Jimuro back to Tomoda. She is indeed a shadepacter  but she is unusual, transgressive in two respects. Almost unprecedented in such pacting, she has managed to pact to two separate “animals.”. The really transgressive part, however, is the fact that one of them is her own brother. The Tala-Dimangan (or Mang) relationship is well developed, poignant, and has a touching arc from a flashback to how this occurred, through the meat of the novel. While regular pact creatures like her Beaky are characters with opinions, even if they don’t talk explicitly, Mang is a very different relationship. He has thoughts, opinions, and is not afraid to use them.

Or take Xiulan, 28th Princess of the House of Shang. Certainly, her relationship with Lee, a thief she rescues from death at the beginning of the book so as to employ her talents to find Jimuro (fearing he is in danger), is a fascinating one, especially as we see it develop and change and grow from both points of view (since Lee is also a viewpoint character, too). Too, Xiulan is fascinating on her own, having modeled her Li Quan job (an agent of the throne not unlike an Imperial Auditor) on a favorite novel inspector character. I found this endearing, how Xiulan modeled herself in this way. But but it is Xiulan’s relationship with her half sister Ruomei, the Second Princess, that really drives a lot of Xiulan’s actions, and it turns out, more plot of the novel that one might originally suspect. It’s an adversarial relationship, to be certain, but it is much more complicated a relationship than Xiulan herself might realize.

As far as promising what is on the gorgeous cover, the novel does deliver. Shadepacting is indeed something inspired by Pokemon, but has its own rules, guidelines and quirks all of its own. Aside from rare people like Tala, shadepacting is a one person to one animal affair, and it is an intimate and very personal bond not understood by cultures that do not engage in it (The Tomodanese, particularly, who deem it to be slavery). The nuances of shadepacting come most strongly in Lee’s arc, since she is the one character at the start of the novel without any such ability, and one of the prices she names to Xiulan to help her is to gain a shadepact of her own. That journey to her shadepacting, and how it ultimately influences the narrative, further binds the characters and their relationships together.

Fear not, though, the novel does give us the shade on shade and shade versus human conflict that you might expect and want from a Pokemon influenced novel. Shadepacted creatures are larger, tougher and stronger versions of their original selves, which means that Xiulan’s rat is much larger than a handful, and Dimangan, after his pacting, is the size of a giant. Shades are relatively hard to take down, with strong regenerative abilities, stopping the person they are bonded to, if possible, is often the most effective way to end a combat. The various shades we see throughout the novel also do have non-combat capabilities that come to the fore at various points in the narrative.

Metalpacting, the ability to manipulate metal, gets far less play in the novel, since Jimuro is the only practitioner we see in much of the narrative and he is in not much of a position to use it. There are some very neat worldbuilding bits, though, as the author explores what a world where most people could manipulate metal might mean for construction of things like doors, and automobiles. We do see some military applications, such as in the use of firearms and guns, in a way reminiscent to me of Brian McClellan’s Powder Mage universe. Shadepacting feels more like an intimate, duel like approach to warfare, something feudal, ancient and pre-modern. Contests of champions, for conflict on a one on one scale. (And in fact formal challenges are still permitted in Shang). Metalpacting feels more industrial and more oriented to war on the scale of armies.

There are a couple of nits I have in the novel. One secondary (non viewpoint) character, Kosuke, who has ties to Jimuro isn’t as fleshed out as much as he might be and there are incompletely developed or utilized aspects of that character as well, which is a bit disappointing. The quartet of four main characters are so strong that oftentimes characters around them do not feel as well fleshed out as they might. Kosuke is the weakest in this regard.

Most of all, though, it is highly entertaining novel. It’s a complete story that while I could see further novels set in the world, the story here is tied off relatively neatly and the reader gets a complete reading experience in one volume.  Steel Crow Saga is a secondary world fantasy novel influenced by Pokemon novel that alternates its strong characters beats with shade combats, it alternates its cultural explorations of food, and societies with thoughts on war, the aftermath of war, colonial and post colonial narratives. There is much here not to say about the novel, to invite the reader to discover for themselves the richness of the narrative and the characters. I heartily recommend readers at all interested in secondary world fantasies to do so.

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The Math

Baseline Assessment: 7/10.

Bonuses: +1 for really well thought out worldbuilding, +1 for an interesting quartet of viewpoint characters

Penalties: -1 for some secondary character problems. 

Nerd Coefficient: 8/10 well worth your time and attention


Reference: Krueger, Paul. Steel Crow Saga [Del Rey, 2019]


POSTED BY: Paul Weimer. Ubiquitous in Shadow, but I’m just this guy, you know? @princejvstin.

Tip of the Hat: Pokemon Go

Occasionally, there's something that comes along that simply reminds you of the joy of fandom. The execution may not be perfect, but it's nevertheless touching, or thought-provoking, or simply fun. "Tip of the Hat" is our occasional series to shine a light on those things when we find them.

I am 38 years old and I am proud to say that I play Pokemon Go on a daily basis. While the initial popularity this game enjoyed early on may have waned, the game has grown and evolved in meaningful ways and has provided my family with a fun activity that we all participate in together. Plus it gets us out of the house and into the beautiful parks that our city has to offer.

Early Days:
When Pokemon Go launched it captured the imagination of millions of Pokemon fans and those who wanted to see what the hype was about. There were issues with servers, distracted walking accidents, and it was nearly impossible to avoid. I didn't plan on downloading the game, but a buddy of mine convinced me to give it a whirl so I created an account for my family and we sided with Team Valor. I didn't fully comprehend how big this game was until a friend invited me to go Pokefarming at a noted Charmander hot spot. We started around 10pm and there were drones of people wandering around in the dark staring at their smart phones. I felt like I was in an episode of The Twilight Zone and a local punk band set up a pop-up show at one of the Pokestops. 

Hitting a Wall:

After playing for a month or so I started to wonder what the point of catching virtual Pokemon was and did it really matter if I won a gym battle. There were rumors of events and legendary Pokemon, but they were only rumors. My interest started to dwindle, but I didn't delete my account or stop playing altogether. It was clear that Niantic needed to deliver on some of its initial promises.

Introducing Raid Bosses:

The first time Pokemon Go really mixed things up, in my opinion, was the addition of raid bosses. Bosses ranged from a measly Magikarp and went all the way up to legendary counters that would typically require at least four trainers. At first I would tackle the occasional solo raid, but I really wanted to try something bigger. When I lucked into finding a good raid, there weren't any players around. I learned that the Pokemon Go community utilized Facebook Groups and Discord channels to organize around the bigger raids. One weekend I gave it a whirl with my son and we were able to take down a couple of legendary Pokemon and had a really enjoyable experience. I finally saw the ability an app like this had to bring a group of people together. 

The Power of Community:

A few months ago Pokemon Go introduced Community Day, a monthly event that features a special Pokemon that will spawn more frequently for a few hours and give players a chance to catch a rare shiny version. For the Bulbasaur Community Day my son and I went to a local wildflower center. We saw some folks from our raiding group, chatted with about 20 other people who were after shiny Pokemon, and enjoyed looking at some flowers. It hit me that a good number of players at the wildflower center probably purchased memberships to take advantage of the gyms and Pokestops housed there. Check out the gallery from the last Pokemon Go Community Day here.  There are dozens of us! 

Research and the Appearance of Mew:

The newest feature brought the addition of research and really changed the way that my family plays the game. Trainers can engage in Field Research, a set of tasks you unlock by spinning Pokestops, or Special Research. You can earn one stamp per day on Field Research and unlock a special prize for completing seven stamps. The first round of Special Research has you helping Professor Willow track down the elusive Mew. You assist him with a series of tasks that become increasingly more difficult and are rewarded with the chance to catch Mew if you make it to the finish line. The story driven element was a lot of fun and my kids are thrilled with our new digital monster. 

I look forward to additional updates that might include the ability to battle other trainers, introduce Pokemon Centers, and whatever else Niantic can come up with. If you gave up on Pokemon Go a while back, you should consider hopping back on the bandwagon. What started as mindless drones wondering around staring at their phones has turned into an actively engaged community who walks around staring at their phones.

POSTED BY MIKE N. aka Victor Domashev -- comic guy, proudly raising nerdy kids, and Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2012.

Thursday Morning Superhero: Halloween Comic Fest Edition

Halloween is next Monday and it can only mean one thing.  Candy!!  Well, that and free comic books!  This Saturday is Halloween Comic Fest and participating comic book stores will be holding costume contests, passing out free mini comics, and some will even have mini comic packs you can purchase to hand out on Halloween.  Handing out comics has become a tradition in my house and I look forward to it every year.  To find a participating location try the store finder here.  Per usual when Halloween Comic Fest rolls around, I am forgoing my normal comic book wrap-up and will highlight some of the great titles you can get for free this weekend.   Just know that Saga remains a must purchase and it would have likely been my pick of the week.

Johnny Boo and the Pumpkin Tiger - We love James Kolchaka in our household and Johnny Boo has been a staple in my kids' lives for the past 7 years!  I am so happy that we get a new Johnny Boo story just in time for Halloween.  Johnny Boo is the coolest ghost in town and goes on wacky adventures with his pet ghost Squiggle.  This title will be fun for the whole family.  Some stores will be selling this in packs of 25 and it is a great title to hand out on Halloween.





Grumpy Cat and Pokey - Grumpy Cat and her brother Pokey have different attitudes when it comes to Halloween.  Pokey is quite excited, but it comes as no surprise that Grumpy isn't too excited about the upcoming holiday.  Having read a few of the Grumpy Cat comics before, you know that you will get hit with a heavy dose of sarcasm and cuteness, in another great all-ages title.  This is one you should be proud to hand out to trick-or-treaters!

Pokemon Pocket Comics XY - While not really keeping in the spirit of the holiday, it is hard to have a more timely comic than this one.  I can only imagine that trick-or-treaters will be trying to catch a Ghastly or two and other spooky Pokemon on Pokemon Go as they trek across the neighborhood collecting actual candy and transferring caught Pokemon into virtual candy.  Imagine how excited they will be to see this title hit their plastic bucket or pillowcase on Halloween night.  You will have the coolest house on the block!





Archie's Madhouse - We all get trick-or-treaters that are a bit too old to be going from house to house collecting candy.  For a reference point see the amazing Freaks and Geeks Halloween episode.  One of the best.  Anyhoo, Archie is a classic and one that will be appropriate to hand out to the older kids who ring your doorbell.  Archie has seen a resurgence as of late and this title collects a variety of stories that are sure to entertain.







In addition to these titles there are other mini-comics and even a handful of full-size comics.  For a full list of comics click here and don't forget to dress up, have fun, and read more comics.  Happy Halloween!

POSTED BY MIKE N. aka Victor Domashev -- comic guy, proudly raising nerdy kids, and Nerds of a Feather contributor since 2012.