Pokemon: Trading Card Game for Game Boy Color

I recently rented the Pokemon Trading Card Game (Pokemon TRG), because I'd played the game with actual cards, and I wanted to see how a Game Boy translation would compare to the real thing. I was quite impressed.

First of all, the interface is about as good as it possibly could be given the Game Boy Color's limitations (e.g. the small screen, only four buttons, etc). All of the screen is put to good use and playing the Game Boy version is almost as intuitive as playing with the cards themselves. Of course, there are a couple of problems with the interface. First, there is no way to undo a move. Since there is no way for an opponent to do anything in the middle of a player's turn, there is no reason why something as innocent as a misplaced energy card couldn't be taken back and redone. More often than not, mistakes like these are results of pressing the A button one too many times, not changing one's mind, and there's no reason to lose a game over a misplaced button. Also, there is no way to concede a game in the middle. Honestly, if you see yourself in a severely losing situation, your only options shouldn't be to stick it out or turn off the game, especially when games can last for a decent length.

As for the "quest" portion of the game, this is where the game really begins to falter. The quest is simply too short; all that is involved is to go to a gym/club, fight four people, get a badge, lather, rinse, repeat. I finished the game in about 10 hours of playing, which is nothing compared to the 40 hours the original Pokemon game took me. Plus, after you're done, there's really not so much left to do, aside from going back and dueling people you've already fought. The game needs more replay value; what they have just isn't enough. Granted, there's always multiplayer, but that shouldn't be relied upon.

Graphically, this game is quite impressive. The card art is almost exactly reproduced, though somewhat pixelated, which is more a result of the Game Boy Color's limitations rather than anything else. Sound is also decent; it's not spectacular, but not horrible either. If you want music, leave it on; otherwise, you're not missing anything by turning it off.

To sum up, Pokemon TRG is nearly flawless as a reproduction of the card game, which is obviously what it is intended as. As an adventure game/RPG, however, there's quite a bit lacking. All in all, though, the $30 you'll spend on this is nothing compared to what you'd spend on the cards. So, if you want to play the game casually, and don't mind that you're limited to the card set in the game, buy Pokemon TRG. It's a much better value than the cards. Besides, you can't play by yourself with the cards.