Pokémon CCG Review

The very first incarnation of Pokémon was a monochrome Game Boy game (or actually two Game Boy games), way back in the early months of 1996. Released in Japan as 'Pocket Monsters', Pokémon took nearly three years to reach America - undergoing a name change along the way due to the fact that Pocket Monsters was already a registered trademark belonging to another company - and yet another year to reach Europe. These first games, released initially in Japan as Pocket Monsters Red and Pocket Monsters Green (with an enhanced Pocket Monsters Blue released at a later date), were released in the US and Europe, confusingly, as Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue (and both including the enhancements featured in the Japanese Pocket Monsters Blue).

The Pokémon games quickly became known for their deep and rewarding gameplay, with emphasis on capturing and nurturing dozens of different types of Pokémon. The focus on trading with friends also helped the game to become a true playground phenomenon - as it is impossible to collect all available creatures alone, co-operation and social interaction is actively encouraged, and actually essential to fully complete the games. The games were a hit with all ages and all types of gamers, although many did (and still do) ignore the games due to their cute, childish image.

Since the initial release, the Pokémon series has continued in the form of sequels and spin-offs on various formats, and the Pokémon franchise even spawned its own console in the form of the tiny Pokémon Mini. The Pokémon series became a true global phenomenon in the space of a few years, with the cute little critters seemingly becoming omnipresent, appearing everywhere on huge amounts of licensed products.

One of the many licensed products to appear at the height of Pokémon fever was the Pokémon Trading Card Game. The game itself focuses on the battling aspect of Pokémon, with players as Pokémon Trainers using their creatures to fight each other in an attempt to prove themselves as the superior trainer. Like the video game, the surface gameplay is simple but has surprising depth - thus attaining true cross-generational appeal in the same way that the video game does. Collecting extra cards in the booster packs is akin to finding Pokémon through random encounters in the video game - just as satisfying but quite a bit more expensive. The object of the game is to either:

a) Collect all six prize cards by knocking out six of your opponent's Pokémon,
b) Make your opponent run out of useable, in play Pokémon or
c) Run your opponent out of cards in his/her deck.

Set up is simple, with players shuffling their decks (they can use either pre-constructed, standard 60 card decks or use the cards they have collected to create their own 60 card deck) and then dealing themselves a hand of seven cards. They then set aside six prize cards face down in front of them (playmats are packaged with Theme Decks which list all necessary information on special rules and turn options, and also have areas for placing the deck as well as prize cards). They then choose their starter Pokémon from their hands - one is placed face down as their active Pokémon and up to five more can be placed in their 'bench' area (face down in a row below the active Pokémon). Starter Pokémon must be Basic - there are certain Pokémon that evolve either once or twice, and they evolve in stages: from Basic to Stage One, then Stage Two. Stage One Pokémon can be placed on Basic Pokémon to evolve them, and Stage Two on Stage One.

The game is played as follows: on a turn, players draw a card and add it to their hand. They can then perform any of the following actions in any order:

a) Put as many Basic Pokémon cards on the Bench as you want (up to a maximum of six in-play Pokémon including the active Pokémon)
b) Evolve as many Pokémon as you want (place a Stage 1 card of the correct type onto a Basic card or Stage 2 onto a Stage 1)
c) Attach one Energy card to any in-play Pokémon (only once per turn)
d) Play as many Trainer cards as you want (but only one Supporter card and one Stadium card per turn)
e) Retreat the active Pokémon (only once per turn)
f) Use as many Poké-Powers as you want

After a player has performed as many of these actions as they can (or as many as they want to do!), they can then attack the opponent's active Pokémon. Attacks require differing levels of energy to be used, and certain attacks require specific types of energy to be attached to the active Pokémon. Calculating damage is simple - simply check the number next to the attack and factor in any special effects relevant to that attack, then apply any resistance of weakness modifiers (most Pokémon have a weakness to a certain type of Pokémon, which allows double the listed damage to be done - resistance is checked in the same way but instead of halving damage, a standard 30 points is subtracted from the relevant attack). Once modifiers and effects have been calculated, damage counters are added to the defending Pokémon - if this number exceeds the defending Pokémon's hit points, it is removed from play along with any special cards attached to it, and the defending player must choose a new active Pokémon from their Bench if possible. If the Pokémon survives the attack, play continues. Other effects can be applied to Pokémon with certain attacks - including poisoning, confusion, paralysis, burns and sleep.

For such a simple game, it proves to be surprisingly addictive - it plays quickly and simply, and also there is the added attraction of customisation which is very enjoyable indeed. Unlike most CCGs, there are no ‘timing’ issues – it’s always clear when you can or can’t play cards, and turn order is clearly laid out on the play mat to avoid any confusion. One problem that Pokémon does have in common with many CCGs is that sometimes players may find themselves without any Energy cards in their hand, or at least without any that they can use, which severely limits their options and can be very frustrating. This problem usually only occurs when a player has constructed a deck without enough energy, so it can be attributed to the player’s lack of skill in deck construction – but it’s much worse if it happens with a pre-constructed theme deck, although it is very rare.

Buying new cards and customising your deck is expensive - but this is true of any CCG, so it does seem unfair to level this criticism directly at Pokémon. You aren't necessarily forced into buying new cards, and Theme Decks are well constructed and well balanced against others in the same series, so unless you are totally serious about customising decks for tournaments it is easy to get started and stick with one or two decks. Theme decks often come with one or two very powerful cards, a nice balance of energy cards and some complete Pokémon evolutions (so a Basic, Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the same Pokémon for instance), so it is entirely possible to construct a nicely balanced, reasonably powerful deck from a couple of Theme Decks.

Even so, the attraction of buying new cards for deck construction or collecting purposes is hard to resist - as with anything of this nature collecting and constructing new decks is incredibly addictive and provides a lot of excitement in itself.

As a fan of the Pokémon video games for many years, it has been a great pleasure for me to see the beautifully illustrated cards and well integrated powers of each creature in the card game. I have enjoyed collecting the cards and playing the game, and would wholeheartedly recommend the game to any Pokémon fan. Despite the fact that it is a simple game that children can play, it is still a very well designed game that is enjoyable for gamers of all ages. I do find it hard to recommend Pokémon to experienced CCG players used to deeper game experiences and more complex play mechanics, but players new to CCGs as well as Pokémon fans will have an absolute blast with this faithful representation of the well known digital menagerie.

Summary

Presentation: Theme decks are packaged in nicely designed and compact boxes. Playmats are well designed around the theme of the deck that they are packaged with. Cards are on nicely sturdy stock and illustrations are consistently excellent. 9.1/10

Clarity of Rules: The game is easy to learn due to the turn order and special effects being printed on the playmat, but the rule book does not set up the detailed rules in a very logical manner. 7.1/10

Game Length: Games are usually over in less than half an hour, which always leaves time for more! 9.2/10

Value: Theme decks are excellent value considering what is contained – a nicely balanced deck along with damage counters, playmat and plastic game coin. Packs such as the Battle Stadium or EX Trainer Kit contain enough for two players with no need to buy more packs. To construct competitive tournament decks does take a significant time and financial investment however. 7.6/10

Overall: As Pokémon is a lot simpler than most CCGs, it plays quickly and without any of the timing issues that plague more complex card games. Lots of fun, especially for Pokémon fans – but the simplicity can work against it for more mature players, who may find that the game becomes repetitive after a short while. 7.8/10 (not an average)

Review by Jason M. Brown