Pokémon Spectrum

Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire Set for November 2014

2014-05-07T12:34:00.000-07:00

Earlier today, the official Pokemon website and youtube channel posted a short video to announce two new Pokemon games: Omega Ruby and Aqua Sapphire. The video doesn't show much, just the games' box art and approximate release date in November 2014, but it's been enough to send Pokemon fans into a cyclone of hype and excitement. Watch the video below, then tell everyone what you think.

Super Smash Bros: Charizard and Greninja Join The Roster

2014-04-08T18:48:00.000-07:00

Just a few hours ago, a 39 minute Nintendo Direct was released, covering the new Super Smash Bros game coming out for 3DS and Wii U. Of note to anyone keeping tabs on this blog, 2 pokemon characters were revealed to be on the roster. The first of these is Charizard. While Charizard previously appeared in Brawl as one of the Pokemon Trainer's selectable pokemon, he is now a standalone character due to the new Smash Bros not featuring any character transformations. The second reveal is Greninja, a newcomer from Pokemon X and Y. Greninja is the final evolution of Froakie, the water starter of X and Y, and also has a large presence in the competitive community of those games. If you want to get a better idea of how Greninja handles in Smash, check out the reveal video below this paragraph

2014 April Friendly Details: Read Up And Start Training!

2014-03-26T14:10:00.002-07:00

Yesterday, the 2014 April Friendly competition for the Pokemon Global Link was announced on the official Pokemon website. Like previous Global Link competitions, the April Friendly will be held online over the course of a few days. First there will be a registration period running from April 17th to 24th. Participants are accepted on a first come first served basis. The competition period lasts from the 25th to 28th.

To participate, one needs a copy of Pokemon X or Y that is synced to a Pokemon Trainer Club account, and a 3DS that can connect to Nintendo Network. Here are the major rules: All particiapants must bring between 3-6 pokemon. All matches conducted will be in singles format, where each player must pick 3 of their pokemon to fight after observing the other player's roster. All pokemon from the Kalos Pokedex are legal for use, including Xerneas, Yveltal, Zygarde, and Mewtwo. In addition, all pokemon in the competition must have been hatched or raised in Kalos, as opposed to being sent over from previous games in the series.

All pokemon will have their levels set to 50, regardless of what they were set to previously. Players are not allowed to use more than 1 pokemon of the same species, or use more than 1 of the same type of item. Participants are allowed to have 20 matches each day. If a participant doesn't use all their matches for any day, the leftover matches are added to the next day's limit.

Now that you know the rules, what are your thoughts? Are you going to enter? Do the rules seem fun, or overwhelming? Have you already concocted a strategy whilst reading this post? Leave a comment with your input. 'Till then, see you on the next post.

Pokemon Battle Trozei Slides Into The e-shop: First Impressions Review

2014-03-21T16:07:00.000-07:00

Pokemon Battle Trozei has just broken into the 3DS e-shop of North America. Priced at a relatively low $8, I decided pick it up and give the tile-swapper a spin. After about an hour of tapping pokemon heads, I begrudgingly separated from my 3DS to begin writing this brief review.

While I have never played the original Pokemon Trozei, which Battle Trozei is a sequel to, I was immediately able to engross myself in Battle Trozei's simplistic gameplay. The game presents stages in which the player must capture several opposing wild pokemon. In order to catch pokemon, the player uses the stylus to drag pokemon heads on the touch screen and match pokemon of the same species into lines of three or more. Matching heads will make them disappear and begin an attack on the wild pokemon to lower its health. Once the pokemon's health hits 0, the payer catches it. Every few seconds the player doesn't act the wild pokemon will attack the player, and lower their own health meter. If the player runs out of health, the pokemon catches them! Just kidding. The player just loses in that case, hence "Battle Trozei".

The player can start a chain by matching up heads consecutively, which will increase the damage of the attack, and the amount of points they receive. Each stage has a secret pokemon that will only appear if the player gets a certain amount of points. Matching up a line of 4 or more will give the player an opportunity to start a "Trozei Chance" where they will only need to match up 2 of the same pokemon to make them disappear. Battle Trozei also includes fundamental pokemon game mechanics such as, super effective attacks from matching heads of pokemon with a type advantage against the current wild pokemon, and unique abilities from certain pokemon that activate when they're matched up.

Unfortunately, while the gameplay is easily understood and incredibly addicting, there isn't really a lot of depth to it. The player matches up heads as quickly as possible to keep the chain going, but doesn't really receive much incentive to think about things like which pokemon head to start the chain with, despite them all having differences. No matter which head the player picks the wild pokemon is essentially a sitting duck as long as the chain keeps going. There is a multiplayer mode, but I did not get a chance to try it out.

The games visuals are decent. The graphics are colorful and easy on the eyes. While there is no 3D or particularly complex animation, those things aren't really required for a game this simple. I found the music to be pretty catchy.

All in all, despite my enjoyment of this game, I wouldn't recommend Battle Trozei to everyone. Hardcore pokemon players may find this title lacking in content, but if you're just looking for mindless fun in short bursts, or something to play with some friends, I'd say you can't go wrong with Battle Trozei.

Twitch Plays Pokemon Emerald - Let the madness begin!

2014-03-21T15:28:00.002-07:00

There's a few hours to go to the next installment of Twitch Plays Pokemon. Just in case you've been asleep under your Snorlax, Twitch Plays Pokemon is a bunch of people playing
Pokemon at the same time by typing commands into the chat box.

Having beaten Pokemon Red and Pokemon Crystal, now its time for the world to take on Pokemon Emerald....together!

To play all you need to do is log in with your Twitch account, wait for the game to begin and then type the name of a button (a, b, left, right, up, down) into the chat box.

There are rules:
No ASCII/unicode artwork - some small emoticons are ok
No automation - no bots, and the like
No referral links - no advertising or non stream related links
No circumvention of R9K - Do not spam non unique messages above 9 characters

Violating the rules will result in a time out or permanent ban if you're really bad. So don't be bad.

Red took 16 days, 7 hours, and 50 minutes. Crystal took 13 days, 8 hours, and 51 minutes. How long do you think it will take to beat Emerald? Leave a comment below.

Pokemon X and Y Bugfix Patch Now on eShop

2013-10-25T14:42:00.001-07:00

A patch for Pokémon X and Pokémon Y just went live on the Nintendo eShop. The patch removes a bug in the which caused player's games to freeze if they saved their file in the streets at Lumiose City, or if they attempted to load their file afterwards, thus making the game inaccessible without starting a new file. The patch prevents this glitch from occurring. Players whose games have already been affected by the bug will have their saved files fixed, and be able to pick up where they left off once they download the patch.

In addition, this new patch fixes an issue with the GTS that caused communications errors if the player used a filter on a search for deposited pokémon.

The patch is free and can be downloaded to any 3DS that's connected to the internet, so if you have X or Y, even if you haven't seen any of these glitches, you should definitely find the time to download it.

How to Raise Pokémon: Riolu/Lucario

2012-10-10T16:03:00.000-07:00

Lucario was one of the most popular pokemon back during 4th gen. He has a pretty cool design, and is very good in battles as well. Since lucario's pre-evolution riolu is accessible very early in Black and White 2 as opposed to having to be hatched out of a mystery egg like in Diamond/Pearl/Platinum I figure it'd be a good idea to give you some tips on raising one up. So let's get started!

Where do I catch Riolu?

Riolu can be found in the tall grass at Floccesy Ranch, and nowhere else. There is a 5% chance of any encounter being riolu. Riolus caught at the ranch range from level 5 to 7.

Is Riolu good?

Heck yes. Even before evolving, riolu is a very good pokemon to have on your team. Having a fighting type at such an early point is very good for beating all the normal types (the first gym), rock types and dark types that are commonplace at the start.

After Riolu evolves into Lucario it gets huge attack as well as special attack, and a plethora of strong moves of various types to take of advantage of. That's not to say you should evolve him immediately though, as riolu can learn a few good attacks that lucario can't after evolving.

How does Riolu evolve?

Riolu evolves into lucario he has a high amount of friendship and then levels up during the day. You can raise a pokemon's friendship by leveling it up, giving it vitamins (protein, carbos, etc.), having someone massage it, feeding it certain berries or even just by walking around.

When riolu evolves into lucario it's type changes from fighting to fighting/steel.

What moves should I teach Riolu/Lucario?

Riolu for the most part only gets access to normal and fighting type attacks while leveling up. Once it evolves into Lucario however you should get a lot more diversity in it's attacks. You should have 3 attacks and one status move preferably.

What you should teach Riolu:
Slot 1:(Level 1) Foresight > (Level 15) Force Palm > (TM) Brick Break/(Level 51 as Lucario) Aura Sphere/(Level 55 as Lucario) Close Combat
Slot 2:(Level 1) Quick Attack > (Level 11) Feint > (Level 65) Extremespeed
Slot 3:(Level 1) Endure > (TM) Work Up/Swords Dance/Bulk Up/(Level 47 or TM)Calm Mind
Slot 4:(Level 6) Counter > (Move Relearner as a Lucario) Dark Pulse/(TM) Shadow Claw

Work up is a great move choice as it powers up Lucario's special and physical attacks so you don't have to choose between one or the other. On the other hand if you want to use mostly physical attacks or special attacks you can swap it out for Swords Dance or Calm Mind respectively. You could also use Nasty Plot for special attacks, but that involves not letting riolu evolve until level 47...

Other attacks to consider:

(Level 1) Endure + (Level 29 as a Riolu) Reversal combo

This strategy involves getting riolu down to 1 HP using endure and then abusing Reversal which deals more damage the less HP the user has. At 1 HP reversal has a whopping 200 base damage. For reference that's basically selfdestruct's base power but without killing the user immediately. And it gets same type attack boost too. Wow.

(Level 60 as a Lucario) Dragon Pulse

This move can let you get a surprise super effective hit on enemy dragon types, but other than that it's pretty useless as your fighting moves are stronger. If you were to teach your Lucario this I would put it in slot 4.

(Level 19) Me First

This attack is weird. If the user moves first it will steal the enemies attack and then use it against him with twice the power. In some situations this can be amazing, but if the enemy doesn't use a damaging attack or they just move before you it is useless. I would put this in slot 2.

In Closing

Lucario's a pretty boss pokemon. As you can see there are a lot of different ways to use in battles, so try getting creative! Leave a comment about how you raised/want to raise your Lucario.

Genesect Wifi Distibution Starting Today

2012-10-07T12:51:00.000-07:00

Also coming with the launch of Black 2 and White 2 (and the end of the Keldeo event) is the release of Genesect! Starting now players of Black 2 and White 2 can download Genesect to their game via wifi connection. The genesect players receive will be at level 15. It knows the moves: Techno Blast, Magnet Bomb, Solarbeam, and Signal Beam. It's ability is Download.

Genesect can also trigger a special event in Black 2 and White 2 and the original Black and White versions. If you take him to the P2 lab you receive all the different drive items, which when given to Genesect, change the type of his Techno Blast move.

Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 North American Launch

2012-10-07T12:36:00.000-07:00

Good news fellow Americans! Today is the North American release date for Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 versions! Finally! If you're not American on the other hand, I'm very sorry about rubbing it in your face like that. It's only a few more days until the games come out in other English-speaking regions though, so keep your chin up.

Anyways, over the next few days, I'm going to play the game, and write some new How to Raise Your Pokemon Guides for the pokemon you couldn't catch in Black and White, and ones that I just neglected to talk about before.

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon 3DS Launch Trailer

2012-09-16T11:54:00.000-07:00

Relating to the post I made a little while ago, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Magnagate and the Infinite Labyrinth has a trailer out in Japan! You can scroll down to watch it. Enjoy watching some gameplay while listening to a Japanese person say things you cannot understand!

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Coming to 3DS

2012-09-12T23:46:00.000-07:00

Good news for Mystery Dungeon fans! CoroCoro magazine just announced a new Pokemon Mystery Dungeon game! The new game is called "Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Magnagate and the Infinite Labyrinth". Worth noting, this is the first title in the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series to be treated as a stand-alone game, as opposed to being released in multiple (identical) versions.

Magnagate and the Infinite Labyrinth is going to be presented in full 3D graphics. Every pokemon from the main series games will be seen including the new pokemon from Black and White versions. The starting pokemon in Infinite Labyrinth are going to be Pikachu, Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott, and Axew.

There is also going to be a brand new feature in this game. Using the 3DS' augmented reality feature, the player will be able to scan real objects, turning them into magnagates in the game. The magnagates will open up access to new dungeons for the player to explore.

Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Magnagate and the Infinite Labyrinth is currently set to be released in Japan during Winter this year. No word on an English release yet.

"Infinite Labyrinth". Oh dear... The game is actually going to have a never-ending dungeon isn't it? And I thought 99 floor dungeons were bad. I'm having flashbacks, this is terrifying.

Pokemon: English Genesect Event Coming Soon!

2012-09-09T19:00:00.001-07:00

A new event pokemon was announced recently! Starting at Black 2 and White 2's release on October 7th, and ending on November 12th, players of the new games will be able to get Genesect via wifi. The event is only available for owners of Black 2 or White 2, so it seems owners of the original Black and White are shafted for the time being. (sigh...)

Anyways, Genesect, when downloaded, is at level 50 and knows Techno Blast, Magnet Bomb, Solar Beam, and Signal beam. It comes in a cherish ball, has no hold item, and has download as its ability.

Gamestop Keldeo Distribution

2012-08-11T00:22:00.000-07:00

Heads up players! Gamestop is going to holding a Keldeo distribution, starting August 4th, and ending October 6th. Keldeo can learn Sacred Sword at the Moor of Iccirus. He can also change into Resolute form if he is traded to Black 2 or White 2.

Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 Animated Trailer: English Dub!

2012-08-11T00:14:00.003-07:00

Recently, the Pokemon Company International released a dubbed video of the Black 2 and White 2 trailers. You can watch the video a bit further down. If you haven't seen the videos in Japanese already, you are going to freak out over how cool this is. If you have seen them, now you finally get to know what everyone is saying!

Pokemon Black 2 and White 2: English Release Dates Announced!

2012-06-28T20:05:00.003-07:00

Amazing news! The official North American and European release dates for Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, and also Dream Radar for the 3DS, were announced today! The games are all going to be released on October 7th in America and October 12th in Europe.

Keldeo Resolution Form Revealed in CoroCoro

2012-06-13T18:15:00.000-07:00

This morning CoroCoro revealed artwork for a new Keldeo form. It's called Resolution Form. Keldeo can go into Resolution Form if it is brought to a new area called Sangi Town. The player must have Terrakion, Virizion, and Cobalion in their party. Keldeo will change after learning Sacred Sword.

Pokémon Black 2 & White 2 Animated Trailer

2012-05-16T16:19:00.000-07:00

Gamefreak just put up a new video for Black 2 and White 2. The video is a neat little animated short that is almost 5 minutes in length, and recreates some of the scenes in the game. But instead of hearing me talk about it why don't you take a look:

May CoroCoro: New Black 2 and White 2 Info

2012-05-12T18:15:00.000-07:00

This month's CoroCoro just came out, and there is a ton of new information on Pokémon Black 2 and White 2. I have a lot to cover so let's get started.

Cheren and Bianca both make a return. Cheren is a gym leader now. He specializes in normal types. Bianca gives the player a starter pokemon as a favor for Professor Juniper. Brycen also reappears as Icirrus City's gym leader.

Speaking of old characters, there is a new event in the game called the Pokémon World Tournament. There it is possible to battle against various gym leaders and champions from previous pokemon games. So far characters confirmed for this feature are: Cynthia, Blue, Brock, Misty, Janine, Blaine, Lieutenant Surge, Giovanni, Lance, Steven, and Volkner.

There is also a new area called Pokéwood. It's a movie theater which is replacing the Music Hall in Nimbasa City. There the player can help make movies based on a scenario, with Brycen, and Homika's father.

The best thing yet however is the new formes that were revealed. Tornadus, Thundurus, and Landorus can now each access a unique 'Sacred Beast' forme. Tornadus' forme is shaped like a bird, and has extra defense, special defense, and speed. Thundurus' forme is shaped like an Asian dragon, and has extra special attack. And Landorus' forme is shaped like a tiger, and has extra attack.

Not all of the issue has been translated yet, so there may be some more info soon. Keep on eye on this blog for updates!

Darkrai Wifi Event Started

2012-05-09T15:19:00.001-07:00

English speaking owners of Pokémon Black and White will be excited to hear that there is a new event running! Game Freak is distributing Darkrai over wifi to anyone with an English copy of Black or White. The darkrai distributed will be at level 50, and know the moves: Dark Void, Ominous Wind, Faint Attack, and Nightmare. It will also be holding an Enigma Berry.

And of course, like other event pokémon, the darkrai will come in a snazzy cherish ball, and have a classic ribbon attached to it. The event starts May 9th, and ends June 10th, so there is about one month for players to get their hands on darkrai.

New Pokemon 3DS Downloads

2012-04-26T18:37:00.001-07:00

Nintendo has recently announced two new Pokemon 3DS eShop downloads. The first one is called Pokémon AR Searcher. In this augmented reality game the player uses the 3DS camera to search his surroundings in real life for pokémon in the game. The game is set for release in Japan on June 23rd but so far there is no information on an English release.

The second game is called Pokédex 3D Pro. This download is, in essence, an upgrade to the previous Pokédex 3D. Pokédex 3D Pro, in addition to the 156 Unova pokémon, will allow the player to view all the pokémon from previous games, as well as the new Black Kyurem, and White Kyurem. Pokédex 3D Pro is set for release in Japan on July 14th, and, much like AR Searcher, has no word on an English translation.

First Black and White 2 Trailer Shown!

2012-04-17T13:57:00.000-07:00

Good news! The first Pokemon Black and White 2 trailer is out. No new information was revealed in the trailer but it does have some high quality game footage for people to fawn over. Take a look:

Pokémon Black & White 2: New Info Revealed!

2012-04-12T16:25:00.000-07:00

CoroCoro magazine came out with some new Black and White 2 content today! The games will take place in the Unova region 2 years after the events of the original Black and White games. Some pokemon from the older games can now be found, raising the size of the Unova pokédex to 300. There are going to be new areas in Unova, as well as some revamps to older areas. The game begins in a place called Hiougi City.

CoroCoro also revealed some new characters. The two new player characters were revealed as well as the new rival, and Akuroma, a pokemon researcher. There are also going to be two new gym leaders. There's Homika, who uses poison type pokemon and has a music club as a gym, and Shizui who uses water types.

It was also revealed the new Kyurem forms will have unique attacks. Black Kyurem will be able to use Freeze Shock, and White Kyurem will be able to use Ice Burn. There may be more information to come yet, so keep an eye out.

Pokémon Black and White 2 Revealed!

2012-02-25T16:00:00.000-08:00

Calming down... Okay! Today, Junichi Masuda revealed two new Pokemon games on a tv show in Japan. The games are called Pokémon Black version 2, and Pokémon White version It was said that the games will be released for the DS in Japan around June 2012.

So far, there isn't much known about the game, except that Kyurem will be getting two new forms. A form reminiscent of Reshiram, and another form more like Zekrom. I'll be posting more information about Black and White 2 as it comes, so be sure to keep your eyes on this blog.

How to Raise Your Pokémon: Drilbur

2012-02-21T18:30:00.000-08:00

Yes! We're finally talking about drilbur. This guy, is a complete bulldozer. Trust me, you are going to be really glad if you catch a drilbur. Drilbur's good at fighting, found relatively early in the game, and evolves into one of the coolest pokemon in Black and White. But that's enough propaganda, let's get started!

Where can I catch a drilbur?

Drilburs can be found in almost every cave area in the game. They only appear on shaking tiles however, so it may take a while to find one. The earliest lace to catch a drilbur is Wellspring Cave. They're found there at level 10 to 13.

Is drilbur good?

Heck yes. Drilbur has huge attack, good HP, and decent speed. Drilbur learns all kinds of strong physical moves, as well as a few good stat boosting moves. When drilbur evolves into excadrill, he will become ground/steel type, which means excadrill will be resistant to nine types and immune to 2. Basically that means only 6 types of attacks can do any worthwhile damage to excadrill.

And then there's drilbur's abilities. Drilbur has 2 abilities: Sand Rush, and Sand Force. Sand Rush doubles drilbur's speed during a sandstorm. Sand Force on the other hand increases the strength of drilbur's rock, steel, and ground type attacks (which he's got plenty of) during a sandstorm. So effectively, if drilbur or another pokémon in your party uses sandstorm drilbur kicks right into overdrive.

How does drilbur evolve?

Drilbur will evolve into excadrill when he reaches level 31. Upon evolving, drilbur will change type from ground, to ground/steel.

What moves should I teach drilbur?

All in all, drilbur's movesets are pretty basic. You want at least 3 damaging moves, and maybe one status move for giving drilbur an advantage right away.

Moves you should teach drilbur:

Slot 1: (Level 1) Scratch > (Level 12) Fury Swipes > (TM) Rock Smash (Level 26) Slash > (Level 29) Rock Slide
Slot 2: (Level 1) Mud Sport > (Level 15) Metal Claw > (TM) Brick Break
Slot 3: (Level 5) Rapid Spin > (Level 19) Dig > (Level 36) Earthquake
Slot 4: (Level 8) Mud-slap > (Level 22) Hone Claws > (Level 42) Swords Dance/(Level 49) Sandstorm

In closing

Drilbur is just great. He's pretty basic, but he does his job well, that being hitting things nice and hard. He fits on just about any team, and can carry you pretty far on his own.

2012 Pokémon International Challenge

2012-02-18T19:05:00.000-08:00

Good news! The Pokémon Global Link is holding a tournament next month! It's called the Pokémon International Challenge. As the name implies, it's a global event. Anyone with a copy of Pokémon Black or White versions, and an internet connection, can participate.

The rules are nearly identical to the rules used for VGCs. All the battles will be double battles. The Wonder Launcher will be disabled. Trainers need to bring between 4 to 6 pokémon, and choose 4 of them to use in each battle. The pokémon a trainer uses has to be stored in the battle box. Additionally each battle will have a time limit of 30 minutes, and 1 minute for trainers to choose their attacks.

Trainers are allowed to use any pokémon in the National Pokedex except for the following: Mewtwo, Mew, Ho-oh, Lugia, Celebi, Kyogre, Groudon, Rayquaza, Jirachi, Deoxys, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Phione, Manaphy, Darkrai, Shaymin, Arceus, Victini, Reshiram, Zekrom, and Kyurem. Hacked pokémon are, of course, not eligible.

Registration for the tournament begins March 15th. I will be posting information about the tournament as it comes, so keep your eyes on this blog if you aren't already doing so.