Pokken Tournament, a game recently released by Nintendo, has found its place in my collection. It is similar to the Super Smash Brothers games in that it is a fighting-based game but among the differences is that all the playable characters are the lovable little creatures called Pokemon. Most people should be quite familiar with the Pokemon franchise, as it has been around for decades and its fanbase continues to grow.

Overall, I was very impressed by the game. The graphics and animation were stunning, the mechanics were great and of course the character customization features were fantastic. Making personal characters has always appealed greatly to me, and to see the trend continue in this game definitely bumps up its rating for me. The selection of playable characters, while small, is well-spread and offers a variety of playstyles with which to experiment.

Another factor that adds to my praise of this is how easy it is to understand how to play. There are great tutorials and an easy to navigate main screen that shows you everything that you need to access. All the different modes: single-player campaign, multiplayer, daily challenges and more are all available when you open the game, a feature not present in any game. It is a bit annoying when trying to find a certain mode and having to cycle through numerous screens or menus. A minor detail yet one I appreciate all the same.

There is only one real issue I have with the game and really, it is just a matter of personal preference. It is that the complex attack combos are ridiculously difficult to remember. I always resort to “button mashing ” [pressing random keys and hoping for a favorable outcome] when actually playing. While it is still somewhat fun to do, it is not as satisfying as performing a fully-fledged inescapable combo that devastates the opponent and guarantees a victory. When executed flawlessly, the attack combinations look visually astounding.

I would recommend this game to anyone. Although it might seem as though it is for kids because of those fantastical cute creatures, it is a game for a wide variety of ages.