This is not a Pokemon Stadium clone. This is not a cheap Tekken rip-off. This is is Pokken Tournament.
One of the best looking Wii U games ever and featuring some of the best fight mechanics on the console to date, Pokken Tournament, at least in a single fight format, is better than Super Smash Bros.
Until you play the story mode.
Ridiculously lengthy and void of a soul, the Pokken Tournament story mode robs the game of its sexiness and ultimately makes it a game only hardcore fans of the series or those looking for a decent fighter will want to partake in.
But to be fair, this game plays great and looks even better. Every Pokemon has two move sets, one for ranged attacks and another for up close and personal. Similar to Tekken, characters even have grapple attacks. Add in special and support attacks and you’ll see some of your favorites not features on the main roster and a bevy of beautiful maneuvers. Those worried about attack diversity need not worry here. In terms of game mechanics and overall playability, Pokken Tournament can stand stall with any fighter.
The biggest issue with Pokken Tournament is that it tries too hard to establish its own unique identity. While each Pokemon’s move set clearly distinguishes itself from its competition, the story mode is kind of being stuck in Diglet’s cave. The battles just keep coming and there’s no emotional connection to keep you playing away from some beautiful cut-scenes. Simply put, the story is supposed to make you feel like you’ve earned the right to become a Pokemon master, but it’s just too much.
Had each character had their own fun story, similar to Tekken, the game would have been a blast to complete with multiple characters. Instead, once you finish, there’s little reason to pick a new Pokemon and start all over.
The main reason why the story falls flat is because of the small roster of fighters. With over 100 battles needed to get to the end of the story, you’re going to fight different trainers, but the same Pokemon over and over. With two versions of Pikachu as well, there’s far less character diversity than there should be. Let’s be fair, though- it would be impossible to have every Pokemon in this game, but 32 would have been perfect, not half. The fact that every final evolution starter from all of the games isn’t featured on the main roster is frustrating. At the very least those guys should have been where the development team started.
Another issue is the lack of real amiibo integration. Using our Charizard and Pikachu amiibos only unlocked outfits for our avatar. At this point, if you can’t make these figurines do more than unlock small items, especially in the game that they are both featured in, what’s the point?
The worst part however is that in spite of all of these qualms, Pokken Tournament is still a blast to play. So much fun that it could get casual gamers interested in the main game and enough to get grizzled vets excited about the upcoming games in the series.
Ultimately Pokken Tournament was a wonderful first edition of the Pokemon fighting game series and a clear step in the right direction that Nintendo did little with-aside from releasing a DX version on the Switch. However, with a lengthy and vanilla story mode and only 16 playable fighters, it’s hard to recommend to anyone but the most dedicated Pokemon masters. While it ultimately tries to make itself more like a Pokemon game that uses the Tekken engine, clearly evidenced by its story mode, which tries hard to emulate the journey of a Pokemon master, it fails to do so. By the end of it all, you’ll wonder why each character didn’t have its own unique story, similar to Tekken’s story mode. With such a solid gameplay engine and fun and frenetic action, the series ws almost where it needs to be. The question is, will Nintendo and Namco ever collaborate again?
