Pokémon HeartGold (Nintendo DS) - Review by Chris

Introduction

Celebrating 10 years since their original release on the Game Boy Colour, Pokémon Gold and Silver are still regarded by many fans of the franchise as the best that Nintendo and Game Freak have created. Bringing in big and significant gameplay additions and new Pokémon which complimented everything appearing in the original games, Gold and Silver set a high standard which many feel hasn't quite been met with preceding titles. However, in light of their 10 year anniversary, remakes have been commissioned, bringing these games to both new and established Pokéfans the world over. But are they worthy of holding the Gold and Silver monikers?

Gameplay

Pokémon Heart Gold returns you to the region of Johto, first explored 10 years ago in the original Gold and Silver games. The story from those games is the exact same here, with a few slight tweaks to the formula. You'll be asked by Professor Elm to meet with and retrieve a Pokémon egg from one of his colleagues. Upon accepting to undertake this task, Elm will let you choose from one of three rare starter Pokémon to help you reach his colleague and return. Returning with the egg, however, you are confronted by a strange looking character that has stolen one of Elm's Pokémon and claimed it as his own. From this point onwards, Elm and others suggest that you head out into the region of Johto to see as many Pokémon as you can and also to take on the gym challenge before ultimately attempting to conquer the Elite Four. As mentioned, it is the exact same story as that from the original games so those who played those games will instantly feel at home yet newcomers won't feel alienated for not having played them.

As with prior games, you head out into Johto to take on the region's 8 gym leaders, with the occasional run in with the newly resurrected Team Rocket and the legendary dog trio Entei, Raikou and Suicune. The game sticks very much to the form of the original games in terms of the people you'll meet and battle as well as the places you'll go. Elements of Pokémon Crystal have even been implemented, with Suicune taking a leading role for the legendary dog trio just as it did in that title.

Yet while Heart Gold mainly cribs off of the originals, there are some new elements that change things for the better. Gyms have been completely redesigned to match up with the respective type of Pokémon being used at each gym, adding an element of puzzle solving to the proceedings of reaching and battling the gym leader. Additionally, a new area known as the Pokéathlon Dome has been included, where you can choose a team of Pokémon to take part in various Olympic style events for points that can be spent on special items, as well as the now standard Battle Frontier. Finally, perhaps the biggest inclusion is a new Safari Zone, relocated to Cianwood, completed with two new routes. The Safari Zone, once fully unlocked, has the ability to have each of its 6 areas moved around into a custom layout meaning you'll be able to get to certain areas and find certain Pokémon faster.

The original games were loved for one particular feature and that was that once finished with the Gym quest in Johto and having beaten the Elite Four, you could head to the original Kanto region and take on the gym leaders there. Where more modern iterations have failed to provide the same level of content, Gold and Silver nailed the longevity years ago and this remains the same in this remake, meaning that where many Pokémon games would end, there is still an entirely new game awaiting you in Kanto, complete with new Pokémon, including many of the original legendaries and some from the Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald games for those who don't have those cartridges to transfer them over. And after all that, you can head back to the Elite Four to take on a much stronger line up, pushing you all the way. On top of all of this, you have the standard battle format, remaining largely unchanged from its original conception over a decade ago along with all of the online options seen in Platinum, such as the online mini-games and the Global Trading Station for trading world wide as well as the online functions for trading and battling with friends. The sheer amount of content in the game, from the main Johto quest to what awaits afterwards, means that there is always something to do and plenty here to keep you coming back for months to come.

One final new feature comes in the form of the packed in Pokéwalker. Although looking like a standard pedometer, the Pokéwalker allows you to send Pokémon from your main game to the device, thanks to the in-built infra-red in the game's cartridge and the device, and level up, catch new Pokémon or even find items to be transferred back to the main game. It's a simple inclusion with the game but one that really adds a new level to the proceedings and can definitely help in the levelling of some of the more difficult Pokémon.

Controls

Controls remain unchanged from Diamond, Platinum and Pearl with the game being controlled in its entirety through the d-pad and face buttons. Touch screen inputs can be used in battle situations, making for easier navigation through the on screen options but again, as with the previous titles, with the game being controlled outside of battles through the d-pad and face buttons, many will simply opt to use these in battle as they work just as well as the touch screen controls. The touch screen controls do come in handy, however, for use outside of battle where the touch screen now houses the options menu and while accessible with the face buttons, some of the options can be a little cumbersome using this method but are thankfully easily navigated by the stylus and touch inputs.

Further implementation of touch elements into the game have come thanks to the Pokéathlon events whereby you'll need to tap and slide the stylus across the touch screen to undertake various actions. They work well for the most part although there are slight occasions where the inputs aren't always detected.

Graphics

As a remake of the original titles, many of the substantial pieces of scenery remain intact for this upgrade, with town and route layouts remaining largely untouched. Everything, however, has been remade visually to the meet same spec of the other DS titles, pushing some good 3D work for town buildings and scenery as well as using a plentiful colour palette to establish each and every area as one unique within the game world. In doing so, the titles manage to ably step aside their DS counterparts and look marginally better, with slight visual issues in those titles now being completely abolished. Areas originally looking dull in the original games have now been brought to life with a good use of colour and design work and although it may look different to what many will remember, it still feels very much like the original games and gladly doesn't alienate the fans of those games.

Visually, the biggest upgrades that the game has received come in the form of the new gym layouts. Primarily, each of these follows a similar formula to their older counterparts but each has been outfitted with a completely different layout for working your way to the boss, from having to ride bug shaped platforms across webs to having to turn off a man made waterfall to be able to speak to the gym leader. They all look great and add something to the standard formula of having to fight your way to gaining the gym badge. Yet these aren't the only upgrades as major town landmarks and buildings have been redesigned to make for a more visually enticing surrounding.

Battle wise, the game is largely unchanged from Diamond, Pearl and Platinum with all applicable battle animations from those titles being carried over here. The sprite work for the Pokémon has changed slightly, with each having a new sprite for their standard pose in battle. It's a margin change which doesn't affect the gameplay in anyway but makes the game at least distinct, although not all of the new sprites do the Pokémon justice with that of Steelix being a prime example of where it has gone wrong with the Pokémon looking like it's suffering from a severe under bite.

Sound

Fans of the original Gold and Silver titles will relish in the ability to hear tunes and tracks from the original games given a new lease of life here. Some return in their original guise, redone to match today's standards, while others have been given a complete overall, remixing them to provide something new but still ably capable of producing a feeling of nostalgia. It builds upon and continues one of the more memorable soundtracks from a Pokémon game in the franchise and one that is a joy to listen to.

Sound effects, particularly those within the environments and those of the Pokémon and the battles themselves, are unchanged from the previous DS games and while they manage to fit in with the gameplay, the lack of improvement in these areas over the last few years is beginning to show, with some of the sound effects beginning to sound a bit dated by standards previously set on the DS by other titles.

Dual screen

As with previous DS Pokémon titles, the top screen houses all of the in game action yet this time, the options menu takes up residence on the touch screen to allow for easier accessibility for switching your team or checking your inventory of items. It's a simple yet welcome inclusion this time around which should really have been included prior to now. For the most part though, the interactions between the two screens are minimal outside of the Pokéathlon events and using the touch screen to select commands in battle. Still, it worked well enough before and it works well here too.

Final comments

It may have been 10 years since the originals were released but Pokémon Heart Gold easily recaptures and embodies why the original games were so good. With a vast amount of new and established content to delve into, covering two regions of the franchise's world, a spruced up presentation which even manages to outdo the previous DS Pokémon titles and the ability to relive the days of some of the best Pokémon moments in gaming history, Heart Gold is a must own not only for continuing fans of the franchise but also for those who gave up on Pokémon long ago. Catching them all again hasn't felt this good for a long time.

Pro: Vast amount of content that will keep you going for months, updated presentation is superb, Pokéwalker is a fantastic asset to the franchise
Con: Battle animations and sound effects are beginning to feel dated, 4 way movement is similarly feeling dated
Final score: 9.1

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