"Hmmm..."

Pokemon Channel is one of those games that can be hit or miss with the usual Pokemon fan. It has all the elements that were present in the series. With a variety of programmes to view and report, however not much else to do bar a few miniature games to check out, the overall aim of the game is very simple, so simple in fact, that some would find it boring and turn it away at first glance, but if you can grasp the concept, you really wouldn't find it that bad...

Ok, so here's how it works. You, the main character, have been chosen by the main man for all our Pokemon needs, Professor Oak, to watch several programmes that are now airing on a new channel (hence the game's name). Some Magnemites will fly in a television for you, and what you must do is watch (or endure if you really can't be bothered viewing an entire programme) the first episode spin-off of the infamous Pichu Bros. cartoon. After this, you get some new channels to watch, new things to experience, et cetera. You then file reports on these channels and job done. So let's look at some of this in a little more detail...

Aside the Pichu Bros. cartoon, there are also some interactive channels, like a shopping channel for you to buy some new Pokemon accessories to dot around your bedroom, a Smeargle Art channel to view your artwork (if you decide to have a play around with the Smeargle 2 toy you are given later on), a fortune channel, or a Quiz Channel to gamble on some new prizes. However, you aren't only restricted to your bedroom watching TV, there is also another major feature of the game.

When you are done with your TV work, you and your Pikachu friend can leave the house and search around the outside world, meeting and interacting with other Pokemon. You can answer questions they provide you to try to win things called "Nice Cards". Like Packages in Grand Theft Auto or Dog Tags in Metal Gear Solid, there are 101 of these to collect by doing different things in the game, so you have an added playtime feature if you want to collect every Nice Card in the game, just for the satisfaction of it. You can also use a cool little game-player known as the Pokemon Mini and games you can buy for it if you want some extra fun.

Well, that's the features of the game, but now onto the review, and what I personally think of it. I have pointed out a number of positive attributes about the game, but it does also have its negative flaws. Well, most Pokemon fans are used to that Role-Playing action game with capturing new beasts and taming them to fight others. Not here. Pokemon Snap saw another slightly different concept with taking photos. Here, you control your movements in a third-person view and interacting with your surroundings. You can play with Pikachu too, but to the point here - it's a bit different from the Pokemon games that we know and love. The experience might not be as enjoyable to some - I personally found it a bit dull with this control method, and at times I got tired with having to watch so many boring repetitive programmes (as well as a few interesting ones) while I wrote a guide for this game. That was a bit of a blow to the game.

Graphically, the game is sound. It shows off the GameCube's power with 3-dimensional surroundings and well-created Pokemon models, and smooth anime on some of the programmes. The music, too, is fair enough. This game is very colourful and lively, and one of those things vital to make it an enjoyable experience in a Pokemon game, so that it can appeal to an audience of all ages - although it does seem aimed towards a younger children audience.

However, that does not mean that only the kids have to enjoy it. At the ripe old age of 18, it does seem I'm getting beyond the age to be enjoying Pokemon as a hobby (well, we all have to mature at some point), but I have to admit, I did dig the game quite a bit when I first played it. It did seem interesting and I did get it at a rather cheap price, but my recommendation to those who are just wondering out of curiosity - you should definitely rent this game first before you think of buying. You may like it, you may not. I've had a couple of friends play this game who enjoyed previous Pokemon games that got fed up of Pokemon Channel rather quickly.

So, to wrap up this review (I wanted to get this done rather quickly as it's my first in over a year...wow), this is an enjoyable experience at first but as time goes by, you might be lucky to go through it again. There are some good, fun features, but overall it's a bit short. For any Pokemon fan, it's worth a try-out, as it is a bright, colourful, cute, and overall easy game, but if you're only into the more direct Pokemon games, get the Game Boy titles.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 10/31/05