(October 17, 2012) — 2012 has been a great year for video games. Even with so many great games coming out this year, none have a history as good as that of the Pokemon franchise. For those of you who have been living under a rock for the past 10 years, Pokemon, created by Nintendo, is one of the biggest video game franchises of all time, spawning five generations of games, many spin offs, a TV show and loads of merchandise. The newest addition to the list of games are Pokemon Black 2 and Pokemon White 2, sequels to the first games Pokemon Black and White. Considering that a single series will become stale if not improved upon, the question here is “Do Black and White 2 make unique additions to the series without changing the core mechanics?” Let’s find out. The game starts out in a small city called Aspertia City where the player is introduced to the story of the game. The basic story is that you, the player, are a Pokemon trainer and have been given the task to collect information on Pokemon in all of the Unova region, which is the entire area where the game takes place in. Along the way, there are gyms where the player can battle very strong opponents in order to get badges, which are items that help you progress through the game. Upon receiving eight badges, the player can then challenge the Elite Four, which are the four strongest trainers in all of Unova. There are, however, obstacles that the trainer must overcome. In the game, there is a criminal organization known as Team Plasma, which makes a return from the previous games. Team Plasma claims to want to rescue all Pokemon from being abused by people, but try to achieve this goal in very dangerous ways. In general, the story is great because it branches out from the traditional Pokemon storylines and delves into some very dark themes. It does a very good job of keeping the player interested enough to motivate them to play the game. As good as the story may be, almost all of the focus in the game is given to the gameplay. Pokemon Black and White 2 follows the same formula as that of its predecessors, which is to catch Pokemon, train them, and build a balanced and powerful team. This game does not tread too far from the formula of the previous games, but it doesn’t have to: all of the great aspects that make Pokemon fun are kept intact while adding small details. The Pokemon themselves are very interesting and creative and, while this game does not offer any new Pokemon, it does include Pokemon from the past four generations of Pokemon games. This adds a nostalgic value for veteran players while introducing a wide range of Pokemon for newcomers. Each Pokemon is unique and well designed and, with over 200 Pokemon in the main game alone, offering many possibilities for players to create their own custom teams. In terms of graphics, Pokemon Black and White 2 are the greatest looking games on the DS console to date. All towns include stunning 3D houses and building, and the look and feel of roads and passages makes the player feel as If they’re in the game. All of the Pokemon have very nice looking pallets and look more lifelike than the past Pokemon games. As for sound, Nintendo has gone all out and added orchestral themes. All battles and cutscenes include music that really amplifies the effect of each battle. Every town has its own theme, some of which are better than others. Overall, the aesthetics of the game add a lot to the experience and adds a whole new layer of creativity to the game. Although this game tends to stick to the same formula as the old games, Pokemon Black and White 2 adds something that completely changes the experience of the game: sidequests. This game is chock full of bonuses and extras that makes the game feel much more developed and adds a ton of replay value. First off, this game introduces two new extras: the Pokestar Studio and the Pokemon World Championship. Pokestar Studios is a new type of game implemented into Black and White 2. It involves creating movies with your Pokemon. This isn’t an after-thought little minigame, however; it’s an entirely fleshed out new mode of gameplay. In this mode, you can create movies using your Pokemon and affecting the story based on your actions. Because this is introduced quite early in the game, it can really distract the player from the story as they put hours into this very addictive mode. The other new addition is the Pokemon World Championship. Basically, in this mode, the player can battle the best of the best; the ultimate challenge where skill is required. All of the opponents in this mode are opponents from past games, which adds nostalgic value to the veteran players. Besides these modes, there are also achievements that the player could obtain. The game has achievements for almost everything in the game; from beating 50 trainers to catching all the Pokemon available in the game. Although there are more extras, such as the Battle Subway, which is a mode where the player must win consecutive battles without breaks, listing all of them could take hours. Basically, the extras and sidequests in Black and White 2 add a lot to the whole experience, and completing the game 100% could take more than 100 hours! Even if you were to complete the game 100%, the game still offers more in the form of online battles. Pokemon has always had a very large competitive fanbase, as the gameplay is easy to understand and play, but difficult to master. Improving greatly on the online capabilities of the previous games, Black and White 2 push this area of the game to the next level by adding dozens of modes for online play. Players can built their most powerful teams, arming them with the most powerful moves, and pit their teams against others in order to see how skilled they actually are. What’s great about the online mode is that, with so many Pokemon and other details to choose from, almost every team is unique to the player that’s using it, making battling a new experience every time. Besides battling, players can also trade Pokemon with other players around the world in order to get Pokemon that they could not obtain before. The game encourages trading by having certain Pokemon available only in Black 2, while others are only available in White 2. So, if you want to complete the game, you’ll have to trade. Thankfully, the trading system is very good and allows players to trade with anyone in the world just by searching up the Pokemon that they want to trade for. Overall, Pokemon Black 2 and White 2 are exceptional games. They offer many new advancements in the Pokemon series while still sticking to the core mechanics that make the games fun. It does a great job of offering new experiences to veteran players while teaching the basics to newer players. I would recommend this game to anyone that owns a Nintendo DS (and with over 90 million DS sold in the world, I’m sure that most people already own one). This game is definitely worth its $35 price tag and offers so much to explore, see, and do. I would give this game a 9.5/10. Whether a veteran of 15 years or a brand new player with absolutely no prior experience in the previous games, Black and White 2 offers something for everyone.