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With Pokémon X and Y now just a month or so away, it won’t be very long until the entire world gets to discover a whole new region, with all new Pokémon – as well as all the old guard – on a 3D hand-held console for the first time. Surprisingly however, with so little time to go until the launch of the games, there’s still a huge amount we don’t know about the content of the games and the Pokédex within them – and of course, that makes the hardcore fans ever more impatient. Thanks to new leaks published by CoroCoro two days ago and since confirmed by Nintendo, however, we now have some more details to go on – so sit tight as we bring you up to speed:
Pokémon with multiple appearances
Although genders of Pokémon go back as far as the second generation of Pokémon games (and arguably to the very beginning of the whole franchise if you consider the Nidoran family), it wasn’t until Generation IV – with Diamond and Pearl entering the scene – that Pokémon of different genders started taking on different appearances. However, in nine games up to now, very few Pokémon have taken advantage of this mechanic; many either appearing exactly the same in both genders; or having such subtle changes as to be almost indistinguishable.
While it’s still possible for this to remain the case for the bulk of Pokémon being introduced in X and Y, two of the latest leaked Pokémon suggest some attempt to put more emphasis on gender differences. First, take a look at Meowstics:
Not only are the genders physically different, they learn different powers based on their gender as well. Male Meowstic learns the psychic-type move Miracle Eye, while the female version learns Extrasensory. It’s not known if the same is true of this next example, however:
Male (left) and Female (right) Pyroar
Pyroar is a lion-like Pokémon in appearance; and like real lions, male specimens sport hair all around their neck. Unlike real lions, however, the female’s hair grows merely from its head in a long, flowing line.
Then there’s Furfrou, a Pokémon players can groom to their liking. Starting off as a basic white dog, different grooming techniques can turn it into one of two poodle-like variants; or cause its legs to grow orange fur:
(Ungroomed Furfrou extreme left)
Mewtwo’s X Forme
Now here’s a shocker. Newly revealed by Nintendo is a Mega Evolution for Pokémon’s oldest legendary, Mewtwo. “But wait!”, I hear you cry, “wasn’t that revealed MONTHS ago?” Yes, but here’s the kicker: there’s TWO forms of Mega Evolution for Mewtwo! The one we’ve known about for a long time will only be available in Pokémon Y. However, for those of you who ignored Yveltal and have chosen to get Pokémon X instead, your Mega Evolution for Mewtwo has a very different look:
“Sorry, Pokémon Y Players! You can only get THIS version of me with Mewtonite X!”
Apparently, the revelation of this new Forme has already caused many fans to re-evaluate their choice of game just weeks before the worldwide launch – go figure, huh?
Other Mega Evolutions
A surprise new entry to the list of Pokémon getting Mega Evolution is Garchomp – if only because some fans believe it to be already a highly overpowered Pokémon. Like many Mega Evolutions, the appearance change is subtle, but very noticeable:
Garchomp (left) and Mega Garchomp (right)
Starter Evolutions
Finally, the Generation 6 starters of Chespin, Fennekin and Froakie have grown up; and we’ve finally got to see their first evolutions. Froakie becomes a longer and slimmer frog with human-like arms, called Frogadier; Chespin becomes a chubby hedgehog called Quilladin (after the “quills” – or spikes – of a hedgehog) and has been compared to a grass version of either Emboar or Darumakka; while Fennekin becomes a more human-shape fox called Braixen.
Ok, Tuesday 17th was a BIG day for the Guild wars 2 community
Not only was Tequatl the Skinless being redone as an encounter to something that even the Dev team find hard to do, but was also the release for the long awaited Looking For Group Tool (something most of the community expected in the release last year…)
However, we just got this on the official forum…
Hey everyone,
With Tuesday’s release we are gearing up to launch the new Looking For Group tool for Guild Wars 2. As the system comes online, our primary focus is with the quality and the stability. To ensure a solid rollout, we’ll turn on the LFG tool in beta form to a subset of players. As the week goes on, we’ll periodically unlock the system to additional groups of players.
In Tuesday’s release notes, you’ll see the complete list of what the feature will do once we’ve fully unlocked the system. However, during the beta rollout not everyone will be able to use the LFG tool and the World vs. World subcategories will be disabled.
The Looking for Group feature has been highly requested and we’re excited to be this close to its final release, but quality is paramount. Therefore, we ask for your patience and understanding while we work through this phased beta rollout and with any problems we encounter.
Thanks,
Mike Zadorojny
& the Looking For Group team
Sony double-slapped surprise on many people’s faces yesterday in a Press Conference hosted by Sony Japan. First was the revelation of production issues delaying the launch of the PS4, meaning the PS4 will release late in eight territories – including its native Japan. The shock here was the revelation that US and UK launches are so far unaffected, so PS4 pre-order customers can start feeling even more smug.
However, the big news came in hand-held form. Sony announced the Playstation Vita is about to be revitalised with a brand-new redesigned model. Called the Vita 2000, the new Vita is functionally similar to the existing Vita hand-held console and will support the same software; but is even more portable with a 15% thinner and 20% lighter build. Additionally, Sony has ditched the old OLED screen for a 5-inch LCD display and extended the device’s battery life by one hour, for a total of six.
Launching in Japan on October 10th (worldwide release dates not yet discussed) at a retail price of 18,980 yen (US$190), the PS Vita 2000 will also be available in six colours, with three pastel shades – pink, orange and pale blue – joining the “every console has them” varieties of black, white and grey. The original version will also include Wi-Fi connectivity. Even more interesting is the new consoles will have 1GB free memory on-board, meaning external storage will no longer be required – however, should 1GB not be enough (and let’s face it, if you’re serious about gaming, it won’t be), how about adding 64GB external memory with the new 64GB Memory Stick? Twice the size of the current highest 32GB, these higher memory sticks will also hit the market soon alongside all existing capacities.
Finally, to give you something to play on the new console, Sony has announced they expect about 100 Vita titles by the end of the year; with some brand new ones releasing very soon for all Vita consoles. These include God Eater 2, Gundam Breaker, Final Fantasy 10 and Phantasy Star Nova. There will also be limited-edition bundles of the Vita with some of the upcoming games.
In just 20 minutes, Nintendo delivered a Pokémon conference that answered many questions those nostalgic about their current crop of Pokémon have longed to hear – with a little extra Pokémon news to boot – when they live broadcast a Pokémon Direct conference earlier at noon today. If you missed it, you can catch up with the video below – our summary is after the break.
Pokémon Bank
Satoru Iwata started the Direct with a nostalgia trip; before then moving on to what he feels is one of the biggest limitations in Pokémon games: Lack of storage. While all Pokémon games have always featured enough storage to have one of every Pokémon available at the time, they don’t accommodate well those who store multiple of the same Pokémon or like to specifically arrange their Pokémon due to the amount and sizes of boxes on offer. As mentioned later in the Direct, previous attempts to rectify this include Pokémon Box: Ruby & Sapphire, which provided larger boxes stored to Gamecube if you connected up your GBA via a GBA-to-GC link cable; and for Gen IV, the probably best-forgotten My Pokémon Ranch.
For the newest generation, Nintendo is going one better. 3DS users will be able to download a software called Pokémon Bank. With this new software, players can register to have online storage – Nintendo are setting up dedicated servers by which players can store their Pokémon online. Pokémon Bank gives you the tools to deposit and withdraw your Pokémon between X & Y and your online storage boxes and arrange them as you like, freeing up space in your game for catching new Pokémon as well as giving you the means to show off your collection on the internet. Though box sizes remain at 30 Pokémon per box, Pokémon bank will at launch offer 100 boxes, for a total of 3,000(!!!) storage slots – allowing you to make HUGE collections.
Unfortunately, although it was not mentioned by anyone in the Direct, small print shown in the video overlay suggests this will NOT be a free feature; and instead will require an annual fee. While this is understandable to support the service, as the dedicated servers will need to be maintained, this change may outrage certain Pokémon players who may feel this brings Pokémon too close to a subscription-based model, rather than the pay once, play any time game-play that has defined Pokémon to date.
Poké Transfer
But what of you who want to keep your Pokémon from previous generations? After I heard some months back of the technical incompatibilities that prevent DS and 3DS consoles from communicating directly with each other, the question of how Nintendo would provide transfers for Pokémon from your Gen V games (Black, White, Black 2 and White 2) to X and Y is one that I’ve constantly wanted an answer for – and luckily, Nintendo have provided it today.
In addition to Pokémon Bank, Nintendo will be providing a second downloadable app for 3DS consoles called Poké Transfer. This app connects to a Gen V game you insert into the 3DS and acts as the bridge between it and X and Y. Simply put, using this app, you can transfer Pokémon from your Gen V Pokémon games to your Pokémon Bank in a similar means to using the Pokémon Bank itself. Later, you can withdraw the Pokémon using the Pokémon Bank software to bring them into your game of Pokémon X or Y. As you may expect from previous generation-skip functions, these transfers are one way; but also requires you have an active Pokémon Bank account to transfer the Pokémon to.
Now, this is where Nintendo could potentially be seen as being evil. If Pokémon Bank requires an annual fee to utilise the storage; but having one is required to transfer your Pokémon from previous generations – then nostalgia fans are likely going to find themselves forced into making at least one additional payment to Nintendo for a feature they got for free on previous generation games. Yes, maybe the technology is different and Nintendo need to support their servers – but I can see such a move polarizing a lot of the community.
Reintroduction of Kanto Starters
What might make nostalgia fans happier, though, is if they had the ability to get one of the very first Pokémon from the entire franchise directly from the game. Well, you can!
In a rare departure from tradition, it was made known a while ago that in X and Y, your choice of starter Pokémon is NOT given to you by the Professor of the game, but by a NPC described as your “friend”. Your friend’s bag contains three Poké Balls, each containing one of Chespin, Fenikkin or Froakie; and he gives you the option of taking one of your own. Many assumed that with this change, the game’s professor would no longer offer Pokémon at all, instead being simply a major storyline feature.
Oh, how we were wrong. As revealed today, the Professor WILL offer Pokémon to the Trainer, but it will be an additional starter Pokémon from a different set. What set is that? Why, only Charmander, Bulbasaur and Squirtle! So each player will get to start their game with starters from Gen VI AND Gen I – bringing the old and new together in a perfect harmony.
But don’t think Charizard, Venusaur and Blastoise will be the ultimate goal for your new Kanto starter, oh no. All three of the original Starter Pokémon will feature their own Mega Evolution in X & Y, which pleasingly makes very little change to their actual appearance when used – Blastoise just gets a head cannon; Charizard an extra horn, that sort of thing – but offers them enhanced strength and secret skills temporarily for that battle.
Mega Evolutions are triggered by a Mega Bracelet worn by the Player Character; and a Mega Stone held by the Pokémon that’s compatible with their species. With the two in combination, during a battle an animation plays with the Player Character lifting their arm, which reveals the bracelet with its gem glowing. The Pokémon in question then also glows and is then covered in a ball cocoon, from which the Mega Pokémon bursts out. Satoru implied during the Pokémon Direct that forming a bond with your Pokémon will be essential for its Mega Evolution; as greater friendship between you will strengthen the power of the Mega Evolution and bring out more of your Pokémon’s untapped potential.
New 3DS XL designs
To commemorate the launch of X and Y, some time ago Nintendo announced an exclusive 3DS LL (as the XL is know in Japan) design to be sold in Japan soon, which has a blue faceplate emblazoned with a black Xerneas and white Yveltal sketching atop the faint capital letters X and Y. To finish the Pokémon Direct, Nintendo announced that Western players weren’t going to miss out on this exclusive – the same 3DS XL design, as well as a Red faceplate variant, will both be available in North America and Europe on September 27th.
