Pokemon Stadium 2

"Enter the Pokemon Arena!"

Well, the sequel to the original Pokemon Stadium is here, is it better? And does it live up to the original? It sure has alot of gameplay variety, and alot of secrets and bonuses, but will it hold your attention for a good while? Is this game only for the Pokemon fanatic?

Read up!

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Graphics
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 Well, this is definitely one of the better parts of the game, the Pokemon character models really stand out, they're animated with grace, and every little detail of the Pokemon is there, from Pikachu's red cheeks, to Lugia's wings, everything is there, and done with good notion. Although the only problem with one part of the graphics are the stadium backgrounds, they're decent but they could be better, but of course, with all the high quality models of the pokemon, and all the other things in the game, I shouldn't be nitpicking.

9/10

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Gameplay
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Another factor in Pokemon Stadium 2, the whole gameplay mechanics are integrated into the game, and battle flow flawlessly. In battles, each action is assigned a button, say, you want to attack, you would press A first, then choose an attack, which each are assigned to a C button, you would choose C-Up, and then the action is carried out. There are also alot of tutorials, and information in the game for beginners, and/or people who want to hone their skills. There's also an option for when you want to play your pokemon game on the big screen, it emulates either Red/Blue/Yellow/Gold and Silver flawlessly, there's even a secret option in the game to make the game speed up faster while playing, definitely good stuff here.

10/10
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Sound
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Er, I personally didn't like the sound department, the music in the game mostly consists of simple monotonous melodies, they get old fast. And the in game battle sounds, such as the cry of Pikachu or any other character, is just an upgraded version of its Gameboy counterpart, none of the familiar TV show sounds, such as ''Pikachuuu~!'', just weird screeches and bleeps. Oh.. and that announcer, he's pretty cool in the beginning, but then he starts to get irritating in the heat of the battles.

7/10
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Replay
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Well, there are some added bonuses, which will make you want to come back, such as the Doduo, Dodrios, Gameboy modes, or the gift Pokemon you get by passing certain rounds. There are also those mini-games, pretty fun diversion, and adds more variety to the game, but after a while, they lose their fun, unless you got some friends, and decide to hold a little mini-game fest. But you'll get more replay, especially, if you own a Pokemon game, oh, and Transfer, which this doesn't include, you should either go out and buy one, or buy the original Pokemon Stadium, which included the Transfer Pak.

8/10
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Overral
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Pokemon Stadium 2 is a fun game, but this is mostly for those people who love battles, or are Pokemon fanatics. And as I said, to get maximum enjoyment out of it, you need, emphasize on need, A transfer pack, and any of the Pokemon games. If you're a casual gamer, and have small interest in Pokemon, rent this one. But if you're a Pokemon fan, and own any one of the games, and have a Transfer Pack, go out, and pick this one up.

8/10

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 04/01/01, Updated 04/01/01