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Ashenlock · May 3rd, 2012, 2:35:58 AM

I had a very complicated relationship with PBR. What ultimately prevented me from really enjoying it was the announcer, who I might not have even disliked had I not been spoiled on the beauty of the Stadiums' announcer. (To give you an example of the power the announcer had on my childhood: my brother and I still regularly call one another up out of the blue and start in a serious tone: "I have an important question to ask..." followed by "WHAT IS THE POINT OF SPLASHING?")

However, there were elements of PBR that I think the handheld games would really benefit in emulating. The chief one involves post-game battling, or whatever equivalent the Pokemon games can have to typical RPG superbosses.

To start, I'll explain my thoughts on the Battle Tower: while it is enjoyable for many people, and gives many people an opportunity to think creatively, it is also very aggravating, time-consuming, and, as far as I have seen after hundreds of lost hours, does not give a proportionate yield to the effort invested in it. With the Battle Tower, hundreds of opponents are thrown at the player with somewhat randomly put together teams, and the player will often lose not because of a defect in the team but because, statistically speaking, it is becoming likelier and likelier that he will encounter a team his modest 3-Pokemon-team just could not prepare for without sacrificing something. On top of that, a large amount of effort is lost when, say, the player has spent his whole day getting to battle 76 and has to start all over.

PBR's system, specifically in the Stargazer Colosseum (Round 2), makes much more sense to me. The player is pit against teams that are determined and can thus be reliably prepared for, and since the player does not expend a huge amount of time on those four battles, the opponents can be made more challenging. Less time is lost than in the tower, the battles can be researched and planned, and, in my opinion, victory is sweeter over more "competent" opponents.

This doesn't counterbalance all of PBR's bad, but it at least supplies something that the other games can use. Not that the tower/subway should be replaced, but rather have an alternative, as I'd much rather be able to get my trainer card star from the PBR sort of format than the Battle Tower system.

Kay, jumping back into sabbatical-mode.

May 3rd, 2012, 2:35:58 AM	#26
Ashenlock Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 954 Drinking more Coca-Cola than all the polar bears combined.	I had a very complicated relationship with PBR. What ultimately prevented me from really enjoying it was the announcer, who I might not have even disliked had I not been spoiled on the beauty of the Stadiums' announcer. (To give you an example of the power the announcer had on my childhood: my brother and I still regularly call one another up out of the blue and start in a serious tone: "I have an important question to ask..." followed by "WHAT IS THE POINT OF SPLASHING?") However, there were elements of PBR that I think the handheld games would really benefit in emulating. The chief one involves post-game battling, or whatever equivalent the Pokemon games can have to typical RPG superbosses. To start, I'll explain my thoughts on the Battle Tower: while it is enjoyable for many people, and gives many people an opportunity to think creatively, it is also very aggravating, time-consuming, and, as far as I have seen after hundreds of lost hours, does not give a proportionate yield to the effort invested in it. With the Battle Tower, hundreds of opponents are thrown at the player with somewhat randomly put together teams, and the player will often lose not because of a defect in the team but because, statistically speaking, it is becoming likelier and likelier that he will encounter a team his modest 3-Pokemon-team just could not prepare for without sacrificing something. On top of that, a large amount of effort is lost when, say, the player has spent his whole day getting to battle 76 and has to start all over. PBR's system, specifically in the Stargazer Colosseum (Round 2), makes much more sense to me. The player is pit against teams that are determined and can thus be reliably prepared for, and since the player does not expend a huge amount of time on those four battles, the opponents can be made more challenging. Less time is lost than in the tower, the battles can be researched and planned, and, in my opinion, victory is sweeter over more "competent" opponents. This doesn't counterbalance all of PBR's bad, but it at least supplies something that the other games can use. Not that the tower/subway should be replaced, but rather have an alternative, as I'd much rather be able to get my trainer card star from the PBR sort of format than the Battle Tower system. Kay, jumping back into sabbatical-mode. __________________ 441 D/Cs and counting, baby! The Jerk Store* <- For reference only Contrary to popular belief, this is not a compendium of people who disconnect on Wi-Fi. See: Seinfeld*, "The Comeback."