As you might have already realized from the title of this review, Pokémon videogames have been around for 13 years. It’s a startling fact for those old enough to remember when the first games burst onto the scene. It was a time when Pokémon trading cards were banned from school yards, the T.V. show induced seizures and parents wondered why their kids could remember all the names and weaknesses of 100 Pokémon but couldn’t learn their times tables. Now the franchise is older than some of the kids who play it. But all this reminiscing does have a point, as it inevitably leads me to two conclusions: I’m old and (on a more relevant note) Pokémon is one of the most conservative videogame series I can think of.

Few titles hit the 13-year mark and even fewer do so without major changes to its core mechanics. Published by Nintendo, Pokémon Platinum is the latest in the fourth generation of Pokémon RPGs and yet, anyone who has ever played any of its predecessors could pick it up with little hassle. The basic premise is still the same: command pokémon in turned based combat revolving around a complex weakness/strength system; battle and capture wild pokémon to add to your collection; defeat gym leaders and save the land for some kind of evil threat.

Here it’s important to note that Platinum is a “special edition” or “director’s cut” version of Diamond and Pearl so between them the content is about 95% identical. Essentially the changes made boil down to a slightly different story; more pokémon obtainable without trading or transferring from other games (150 to 210) and a Battle Recorder feature that allows you to record vs. matches and share them via Nintendo Wi-Fi. While nice additions, those already owning a copy of Diamond or Pearl would be hard pressed to justify another purchase.

That being said, the game still contains all of the major features of the fourth generation of Pokémon games, which includes connectivity to just about every other Pokémon game including all the GBA RPGs, Ranger, Battle Revolution and My Pokémon Ranch. Also, transferring or trading can enable the use of all 493 pokémon created to date. You can chat, trade and battle with friends locally or through an Internet connection using friend codes. But most impressive of all is how extensively Wi-Fi is utilized. There is a simple random match up system to allow battles with players around the world and a Global Trading System. It allows you to upload a pokémon and set which you’d like to receive in return, including a possible level range. These go into a global database searchable by all players. When you see a trade you like you can upload your offer and if the other guy approves you get your new addition the next time you log onto Nintendo Wi-Fi, all without either party having to be online at the same time.

So What I’m Really Trying To Say Is…

Love it or hate it, it’s still the same old Pokémon at heart but with some great new additions including the possibility to use all 493 pokémon, connectivity to nearly every Pokémon game and great local and Wi-Fi support for trades, matches and chat. There are also a slew of things to do other than battle including breeding, collecting accessories to dress up pokémon and The Underground (a strange combination of a mining mini-game and capture the flag). There’s a whole lot of game here and definitely a good buy for those who haven’t played a Pokémon game in a while. But those owners of Diamond or Pearl should save their cash.

Pokémon Platinum was provided courtesy of Nintendo and is currently available for $39.99 CND. Game played for 18+ hours.