Introduction
Most people will know what Pokemon is and what it's all about. Some will have played it in one form or another. For those who haven't, the game is a cutesy japanese RPG-alike which basically involves catching one of each type of Pokemon. There's far more to it than that though, and for a game that's aimed at kids it's pretty involving and very long.
Gameplay
Most of the game is spent in a top-down view, with your little character wandering around the region interacting with people. It plays much like many other RPGs in that respect, and as you progress through the game you develop the abilities needed to access more and more of the region. Often you will find yourself in battle, but this is a kids game and so the combat is fairly lighthearted. During battles, either with an NPC or a wild Pokemon, you face off your Pokemon against another and select moves for them to use to weaken or damage your opponent, or to strengthen themselves. Up to six Pokemon can be carried, and the same goes for NPCs, and there is a convoluted rock-scissor-paper system where different types of Pokemon are more or less effective against others.
There are a good many things to do, far more than just fighting for the sake of it. As previously mentioned, the biggest objective seems to be to catch one of each sort of Pokemon, but there are hundreds of them and some are very rare. There's also the storyline objective of becoming the greates Pokemon trainer in the region, and many little missions and quests along the way. Those who have played a Pokemon game before will recognise it as the exact same plot as all the others. Indeed, the game is almost the same as the last version I played (Pokemon Grass Green on the GBA). Almost.
There are differences here that are unique to the DS though. Existing components, such as competitions and berries, have been improved and use the stylus for effect. There is now a world trade system that I haven't tried out yet. Then there's the underground. The underground is a network of tunnels underneath the region that can be accessed from pretty much anywhere in the game by digging. Within them there are no Pokemon, but your DS will activate its wireless connection so that you share the tunnels with anyone else who is playing within range. Around the walls are areas where you can use the stylus to dig for little jewels and items, some of which are only useful for buying stuff in the tunnels, others can be used above ground. Finally, you can build a secret base down there and furnish it with stuff bought with your gems. You can also set traps, Spy Vs Spy style, that usually need to be cleared in a novel way (such as blowing leaves away or popping bubbles with your stylus). It's not essential to the game, but it is a novel little distraction.
Sights and Sounds
The graphics are now in a sort of pseudo-3D, created by parallax effects. They work fine for their purpose and are better looking than other Pokemon games due to the DS being more powerful than other Gameboys. The sound, however, remains just as bleepy amd midi-esque. I usually turn it off.
Stuff that sucks
Well, from the point of view of someone who likes Pokemon games, not much really. The only thing I'd improve if I could would be to allow the player to scroll through the dialogue faster, and to make the guys who sell stuff underground to be a bit easier to find, as looking for them is pretty dull. If, however, you don't like Pokemon games you probably won't like much. Still, if you don't like this style of game a DS might have been a bad purchase.
Conclusion
Very much more of the same, with a little DS goodness added to keep old players interested. Easily played for any amount of time, and will take many hours to complete. A good step forwards for the series.
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