Top 5 Games of 2011

Ah, 2011… As we all know this year was pretty busy when it came to gaming. There were lots of great games, we got the Nintendo 3DS, it was the Wii’s final year as a main console, and we were given so much to look forward to! What was there to hate about this year? *Well, a lot I guess but like any year you’ll have your good points and bad points but I’m not here to dwell on the negative.

With that being said I think we can all agree that this year had a lot of great and memorable games that will keep us playing for a very long time… or at least until the highly anticipated games of 2012 are released. As a gamer this year was a lot of fun for me because there was just so much to look forward and so many games to play, especially as we reached the holiday season. But as always there were some games I enjoyed far more than others. What were these games you ask? Well, I decided to choose my top 5 games of 2011. It should be said that this is just my personal opinion and is not to be taken as fact. So if you see a game you liked that wasn’t on the list or you disagreed with something I put on this list, please feel free to put your own list down in the comments and stay tuned for later on when I release the “Best Games of 2011” countdown that was voted on by you guys. I should also mention that I do not own a PS3 and I just got an Xbox 360 for Christmas so games on these consoles will not really make too many appearances.  So, without further ado let’s get on with the countdown.

5. Sonic Generations/Kirby’s Return to Dreamland

Yes, I know the first part of the countdown and it’s a tie but just hear me out. When it came down to these two plat-formers I honestly couldn’t pick between the two because I had so much fun with both of them.  Sonic Generations was one of the best games I played this year and it really felt like it was a nostalgic love letter from Sega to Sonic fans young and old. With select old levels from nearly every Sonic game making a fresh new comeback it was hard to not have a fun time. While the game was exceedingly short and the story was kind of bland, but what else would you expect from a Sonic game, it may not seem like the game would be worth your time. However, this really isn’t the case. Being a Sonic fan myself I can say that it felt really good playing through levels from Sonic 2 again, it made me feel like  a little kid again and that in itself is enough to make me put this game on the list. So you can relax people, Sonic is finally good again… although in my opinion his games haven’t been really bad in years…

As for Kirby’s Return to Dreamland, this game too was a lot of fun and personally might just be my new favorite Kirby game if not high up on the list. This game was traditional Kirby through and through and I loved seeing that again after Epic Yarn. Levels were fun to play, mini games were really addicting, the visuals really stood out, and as an overall game I didn’t find it to be a “disappointment”… what now IGN? However, it did lack challenge and the game can be completed 100% in about 9 hours or so. Either way, these two plat formers kept me entertained with their classic charm and for that they deserve a spot on my list.

However, before we move on I feel that I should give special mention to Super Mario 3D Land as it was replaced in the tie for the Number 5 spot by Sonic Generations at the very last minute.  While I felt this was a really fun game I didn’t have as much fun with it as I did other 3D Mario titles and sometimes it felt way too easy. It also began to feel like I was playing another Galaxy game after awhile which was kind of a disappointment. By regardless, I still really like the game and it was a lot of fun. So consider it at #6 as an 

honorable mention. Now on with the show…

4. Pokémon Black/White

If you couldn’t tell by now, I’m a Nintendo fan and as such Pokémon has been a big part of my life and remains one of my favorite franchises and my favorite RPG. So when Pokémon Black and White came out this year I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it and experience the magic of the Unova region. While the 3^rd generation of Pokémon remains my favorite if not for a biased nostalgic opinion, I’d say so far 5^th generation comes in a close second with Kanto trailing not far behind. This game really did live up to the hype. Environments were memorable, the Pokémon were designed amazingly this generation… well almost all of them… and the story. YES, you heard me right people, STORY in a Pokémon game. For the past few generations the Pokémon franchise has been trying to make a great story and I can honestly say that this one finally hit the mark. Honestly, I didn’t have a huge list of things wrong with this game but I will say that the endgame is a bit disappointing with its lack of rematches and Battle Frontier brains (though I suppose the Battle Subway counts but it’s not as fun…), some characters played way too big a role while others were completely unforgettable or unlikeable, and triples battles were completely unnecessary. I swear to God, Nintendo if you make a sequel to Pokémon XD and try to push triple battling on me for the whole game like you did with double battles in that game I will kill you!

Anyway, if you’re a big Pokémon fan this game is a must have. It will keep you coming back for more and will offer you hours of great fun… especially if you were crazy like me and tried to catch all 649 Pokémon.

3. Portal 2

Yes, I have a steam account and yes I like Valve games, my favorites being Team Fortress 2, the original Portal, and of course Portal 2. After the success of the original game fans were screaming at Valve to make a sequel. What we got was a yummy little cake known as Portal 2 and this was certainly not a lie. Portal 2 has everything to like in a puzzle game and just in a game in general. Portal 2 has smoother controls than Portal and also had far more challenging puzzles which if you haven’t figured out by now, I like a challenge and this was such a challenge. It also added in a few new concepts to the original such as the Repulsion, Propulsion, and Conversion gels as well as plenty of new hazards. The story in this game was amazing and kept the same dark charm that the original game had and expanded on it. At times the game was mysterious, dark, and even sad toward the end; yes you all know what part I’m referring to. And of course the reason I love this series is the dialogue with its dark and sometimes dry humor and this game certainly didn’t fail to give us that. Plus we had likeable new characters like Cave Johnson and Wheatley; I rest my case end of story—

2. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

Ok, be honest who all was surprised to see this come in at #2? This game was probably one of the games that had the most hype and to be completely honest I feel that it didn’t completely deliver. However, that doesn’t mean I felt it was a flop otherwise I wouldn’t have included it on this list or at least I wouldn’t have put it as high as I did. With this year being the 25^th anniversary to The Legend of Zelda series, Nintendo certainly did give us something to celebrate about. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword was indeed a magical experience and certainly brought a lot to the series and to modern gaming in general. Most notably the use of Wii Motion Plus which allowed combat to feel like you were Link. Graphics of course were something of huge debate as they were back when Wind Waker was announced. I enjoyed the style that Nintendo gave to this game. It was a pleasurable blend of the expressive, colorful, and cartoony cel-shaded graphics that Wind Waker had but it also kept the darker and more realistic style of Twilight Princess. In terms of it being a Zelda game I felt the game did fall flat at parts but at other parts it soared… heh, see what I did there? Hehe, Soared? Haaaaaaa…. moving on. A few new items were added to Link’s arsenal while others made a comeback and dungeons, while I felt to be a bit short where enjoyable and to be honest it took me a long time to actually pick a dungeon I didn’t like (which is something I’ve always been able to do before in the past). I did like the story however I did feel that at some parts were lacking. This might be a bit off topic but I also felt that at times the Wii Motion Plus controls had a hard time responding to movements but when it did work well (which was most of the time) it worked WELL. And also at times I did have to remind myself that I was playing a Zelda game because some parts of the game just seemed like a really different experience than given previously (6 hearts at the beginning of the game is a good example of this). But what I really enjoyed was the music. Like the Galaxy series, Nintendo brought in an orchestra to perform the music for this game and I gotta say that was a great move on their part. Overall, I did like Skyward Sword… a lot… but it did have a few issues that put in a bit lower on this list for me. But either way, Skyward Sword was an amazing game that does deserve to be counted as one of the greatest of the year. But that only begs the question, what did I put at #1? Well you’re about to find out…

1. Okamiden

Surprised? Well, you shouldn’t be. This game really is an amazing treat! Released in March of this year the sequel to Okami was I feel overlooked due to the release of other games at the time and of course the 3DS launch. And it’s a shame because this game really was an amazing experience. As we know Okami and Zelda share a lot in common so when it comes to what this game is like I don’t need to go into too much detail. The story of this game really was superb and much like the first game kept the mythological Japan motif going strong. It takes off 9 months after the first game and Chibiterasu, son of Amaterasu from the original, must save the land of Nippon from darkness once again while making plenty of friends along the way. This game really did have a story that kept you guessing and really kept you wanting more. At times I really lost myself in the atmosphere… It was funny, it was dark, the game made you feel anger and betrayal, and even sadness. As for controls I’ll admit when ever companies take their games off of a main console which has analog control, to a portable system with a D-pad it usually means trouble. This game did maneuver quite well but sometimes controls did feel off. Perhaps it would have been more suited toward the game and its style if they had waited to put it on the 3DS for its release. Regardless of that, for a DS game it had stunning graphics that were in the same style as its predecessor and of course like the original music is always a delight to listen to. A lot of characters from the first game return but also a lot of very enjoyable and likeable characters were added into the mix each with their own stories and traits which aid Chibi on this adventure. And of course new powers are a part of Chibi’s arsenal which I’ll be honest I did prefer the abilities in the first game overall but this one did have some unique ideas. Dungeons were pretty difficult but still remained a fun challenge. Overall, as a whole the experience you’ll get from this game is magical and it is a shame that it was overlooked by many because in my opinion this was the best game of the year.

Well, that does it for my Top 5 games of the year. Thank you all for watching and be sure to stick around for the next part of this video which features the games you all though were the best of 2011. Have a great New Year everyone and let’s look forward to all the great games we have to look forward to in 2012. Take care everyone, this is TheLightningspirit78, signing out.

Top 5 Games of 2011 -Viewer's Choice-

5. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Portal 2, Mario Kart 7 -3 way tie-
4. Super Mario 3D Land
3. Sonic Generations
2. Pokemon Black and White
1. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Finale

For this I decided that it would be best to actually show what happened. So for those reading I hope you enjoyed this project and enjoy the following videos. 

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 22

            On the way out of Sunyshore I run into Barry. He is surprised that I got all eight badges and to be honest I am too. He says that he isn’t going to challenge me just yet and actually acknowledges that I’m tougher than him at the moment. But he says that he’ll be ready to challenge me soon and that his Pokémon won’t fail him. He runs off to continue his training. As I’m about to leave, a lady walks up to me saying she heard out conversation and was moved by our friendship. Turns out she is Jasmine, the steel type gym leader from the Johto region (I love how many hints this game gave to HG/SS =P). Out of compassion, she gives me the final TM that I’m missing; HM07 Waterfall. She leaves and allows me to head up to Route 223. I actually run into a wild Lv. 43 Tentacruel as my first encounter. I catch it and name him “Kraken”. I don’t think I’ll use him but if worse comes to worse; a Pokémon like him will be handy since he’s almost Lv. 50 already. After a bit of training, I make my way up a Waterfall using my new HM and enter Victory Road; the final test for trainers before the Elite Four at the Pokémon League. I decide to leave Giratina behind for a bit and take my HM slave to help me get through the cave. I enter and begin to fight the trainers.

            I run into a Steelix as my first encounter here in Victory Road. However, I’m forced to run in order to safe members of my team from dying. It kept using the move Curse over and over again to max out its attack and defense. It got to the point where my Pokémon almost went down in one shot. So I fleed keeping the members I have.

            On my way, I meet a trainer with a Torterra. This Torterra nearly wipes out my entire team leaving almost everyone in low to red health. Unfortunately, Lucario went down trying to stop it…. at this point I’m shocked and frustrated. I release Lucario sadly and send in Tentacruel to take its place. During Tentacruel’s training I decide to evolve Porygon2 and with the help of my friend SolarPrimal, I get a Porygon-Z to help out with the final fights. Frustratingly enough, I got Tentacruel to Lv. 51 but he went down after missing an attack and losing to a Graveler’s Explosion attack. I release him and move on with the game. I guess I’m doing this with 5 Pokémon now…

            After about 3 hours of pure heck, I finally make it through Victory Road with my 5 remaining Pokémon. I enter the Pokemon League and heal the team up. However, one more challenge stands in the way… Barry! He has all the badges and challenges me to one final fight.

            He begins the fight with his Lv. 48 Staraptor and I take it out with Porygon-Z’s Discharge. Next up he sends in his Heracross and I send in Giratina. His Close Combat does nothing to me and I use AncientPower. He gets a super effective hit on me with Night Slash and I fight back with Dragon Claw. Giratina takes another Night Slash and finishes this with one final AncientPower. He then sends in his Torterra; now Lv. 51. I send in Porygon-Z again to fight him off. I use Magnet Rise to evade his Earthquake. I try Psybeam to defeat him but he uses Leaf Storm which nearly defeats me. I switch into Umbreon who can take some hits. He heals with Synthesis after my Assurance. I decide to use Bite to see if I can get lucky with “flinch” status. We both heal this turn and then he goes for another Earthquake. Eventually, I switch to Mespirit to evade Earthquake and set up a Lucky Chant and Future Sight. After a lot of turns and many close calls, a critical hit from Mespirit’s Extrasensory takes out Torterra. Out comes his Floatzel. I send in Empoleon to take some hits while I heal up the team. Then I see that his Floatzel has Brick Break… of all things… why that!? I go for Giratina to take some hits. Giratina’s Shadow Force destroys it. Now here comes his fully evolved Snorlax at Lv. 49. I use Dragon Claw a few times but he uses Rest to heal up. Fearing a critical hit Cruch from this thing I need to finish this fast… Lucky for me, he stays asleep long enough for me to take it out. His final Pokemon is Rapidash at Lv. 47. I send in Empoleon to finish this. It uses Sunny Day to weaken my Water moves and raise his firy moves. He uses Fire Blast and almost takes Empoleon out. I manage to defeat the Rapidash with Surf dispite the Sunny day and I win the battle with no losses. I’ll admit, that had to be the worst battle yet….. besides the Victory Road Trainer and his Torterra which almost wiped everyone out. Barry leaves to train his team which allows me to take on the Elite Four whenever I wish. So next time in the finale of this project, we hopefully beat the Elite Four and win the game and this Pokémon Platinum Nuzlocke Challenge!       

   

In honor of Tifa the Lucario and Kraken the Tentacruel… hopefully we will beat the Elite Four in your memories. 

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 21

           After a bit of training on Route 222 I get all my Pokémon to Lv. 52. I then decide to enter the gates of Sunyshore City. After entering, I run into a man named Flint who is actually a member of the Elite Four who resides at the Pokémon League. He tells me about the gym leader of this town who is so good that he hasn’t had an exciting battle in so long that he’s considering abandoning the title of Gym Leader. He sends me off to the Sunyshore Lighthouse where the gym leader is relaxing. Well, time to go see if I can give him that battle he’s been craving.

            After taking a tour of the two, I make my way to the Lighthouse. I find the gym leader there just as Flint said. His name is Volkner and he is the Electric type gym leader of Sunyshore, the last one I need to defeat. I convince him to try one last battle to see if he gets his love of Pokémon battling back. He agrees and goes off to meet me at the gym. I head to the gym where Flint is waiting for me. He tells me to give it my all in the next battle and that he’ll see me at the Pokémon League.

               After defeating the trainers of the gym, it’s now time to fight Volkner. Truth be told, I’m quite worried about this battle. I almost lost Lucario and a few others in the trainer fights due to low Sp. Defense so I’m wondering how my team will do. So, the battle with Sinnoh’s top gym leader begins!

            He sends out his Jolteon a Lv. 46 Electric type and I send in Umbreon (Hooray for Eeveelution battle!). Jolteon is faster as to be expected and gets a Sp. Attack boost from Charge Beam and I use Dig and take out half its HP. Jolteon uses Charge Beam again and gets another Sp. Attack Boost. Lucky for me, my next Dig attack defeats it. Here comes his next Pokemon; Raichu a Lv. 46 Electric type. I know he has Signal Beam, a bug type move; so I decide to get Umbreon out of there and send in Giratina. Raichu goes for Focus Blast (completely forgot he had that…. good thing I got Umbreon out of there…) but it does nothing to a Ghost type like Giratina. I use Shadow Force and defeat the Raichu. However, it’s Static ability paralyzes me so that’s not nice. His next Pokemon Luxray (I miss Sparkrai…) is a Lv. 48 Electric type. He has the moves Fire, Ice, Thunder Fangs and Crunch. Since Lucario has nice defense I send him out. I use Aura Sphere to start out but he uses a super effective Fire Fang. I live it just fine though and defeat him with ExtremeSpeed. His final Pokemon is his Lv. 50 Electric type (no duh..) Electivire. I send in Umbreon and his high defenses to deal with this. Umbreon takes Fire Fang just fine. I heal up just to be safe and he uses ThunderPunch. He uses another ThunderPunch and I use Dig. Dig, being super effective, takes him down to half of his HP. After another ThunderPunch I use Assurance to weaken it a bit more but it’s Sitrus Berry activates and heals up 30 HP. To be safe, I use some healing of my own. After a few more ThunderPunches, I use Assurance and almost take him out. He paralyzes me but thanks to my ability he gets some of his own medience. I heal up yet again and he uses Giga Impact, a very powerful move! I live just fine but he is unable to move for a turn while he recharges. This is my chance to finish this! Umbreon, use Assurance! Just like that it goes down, and to a critical hit as well. Volkner goes down but he gets his love of battling back after our intense match. I get the Beacon Badge along with the TM for Charge Beam and head out of the city with my sight set to the north. Pokemon Leauge, here I come!

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 20

            Cynthia and I arrive safely in the Distortion world. There are no Pokemon here except Giratina and the Lake Trio. Time and Space is completely distorted in this world and all is dark and shadowy. Basically, all the rules of physics are broken here. Giratina flys past us and we begin to follow. We run into the 3 Lake Pokemon who deside to test us with small tests to see if we really can face a powerful Pokemon like Giratina. We pass and the Lake Trio leave the distortion world to slow the destruction of Sinnoh knowing that we can handle the threat.

            We eventually find Cyrus near the end of the world. Cynthia and Cyrus begin a long discussion about how our world is and why Cyrus would want to destroy it. After their discussion I step in to take charge of the situation. Cyrus and I prepare for our final battle.

            [Karen] Emploeon – Water/Steel Lv. 51

            Item: Quick Claw

            ~Surf ~Blizzard ~Brine ~Metal Claw

            [Tifa] Lucario – Fighting/Steel Lv. 51

            Item: Fist Plate

            ~Close Combat ~Dragon Pulse ~Aura Sphere ~ExtremeSpeed

            [Toshiba] Porygon2 – Normal Lv. 51

            Item: Magnet

            ~Psybeam ~Discharge ~Recover ~Magnet Rise

            [Eon] Umbreon – Dark Lv. 51

            Item: BlackGlasses

            ~Bite ~Quick Attack ~Sand-Attack ~Assurance

            The final battle between Cyrus and I begins! He starts the fight with his Lv. 45 Houndoom; a Dark/Fire type. I send out Empoleon who takes his Flamethrower attack pretty well and defeats it with one Surf attack. Next comes his Lv. 46 Water/Flying type; Gyarados. I know this thing has Earthquake so I get Emploeon out of there and send in Porygon2. Earthquake hits but Porygon2 takes it well. Gyarados uses Waterfall which does some decent damage but my Porygon2’s Discharge finishes it in one shot. Out comes his Honchkrow a Lv. 47 Dark/Flying type. I heal up Porygon2 since I need to take this thing out with Discharge. He uses Night Slash which does some damage. I out speed the Honchkrow and almost take it out with Discharge. He follows up with a Drill Peck which almost takes Porygon2 out. We both heal our Pokémon this turn. I tell Porygon2 to use Discharge yet again and Honchkrow still lives it even though he gets paralyzed. One final Discharge finishes it off. In comes his Weavile; a Lv. 48 Ice/Dark type. I send in Lucario this turn since Fighting will demolish this thing. Lucario takes a Fake Out just fine. He also handles and Ice Punch with ease and defeats it with Close Combat. Next up is his Lv. 46 Crobat; a Poison/Flying type. This thing is known to be trouble since it likes to use Toxic and then stacks up the Double Teams so you can’t hit it. I decide to send in Porygon2 who gets confused by Crobat’s Confuse Ray. Porygon2 takes a Cross Poison attack from Crobat and almost finishes it off with Psybeam but it just wasn’t strong enough. I heal up this turn fearing a critical hit and Cyrus does the same for his Crobat. Crobat then uses Toxic but misses. Porygon2 is still confused but manages to get off a Discharge, not leaving any chance of this thing surviving. Crobat goes down and Cyrus is defeated. Cyrus leaves saying that if we beat Giratina, this world and ours will cease to exist and that we will be doing his job for him. Cynthia tells me to not listen to him. She says that as long as I believe in the people I care for and my Pokémon, the world will never seem as bad as Cyrus made it to be. She says that this world won’t disappear and neither will ours. That being said, she heals up my Pokémon and we get ready to meet Giratina…

            I walk up to the Pokemon of the shadows and the fight begins. I send in Empoleon and Lucario to weaken it enough to catch it. I then start throwing Dusk Balls and Ultra Balls. If all else fails I will use my Master Ball to get this thing. After a lot of Dusk Balls and some praying I actually manage to get Giratina in a Dusk Ball on my first attempt of catching it! Cynthia congratulates me on the achievement but Cyrus is confused as to why the worlds still exist and what it is that compels us to protect  out “pathetic” world. After going completely insane (I think?) Cyrus leaves us to live his life on in the Distortion World and to create a new universe here… He is never to be seen again. Cynthia and I then head through the closing portal back to our world. The portal drops us off at Sendoff Spring just north of Pastoria. Cynthia tells me to go to Rowan’s lab to tell him what happened.

            I fly back to Sandgem Town where I go see Rowan. He thanks me for protecting the world from harm and tells me to go to Sunyshore City for my final badge. Before that, I decide that with Giratina in tow I’ll take a trip to Lake Verity. Now, I know that the rules of Nuzlocke say you can use Legendaries as long as you follow the other rules. As much as I despise using legendaries in normal playthough, in order to survive the rest of the game I need to use Giratina and the next Pokémon I decide to go after. I take my Ghost/Dragon type Giratina named “Hades” out of storage and head for the Lake.

            At Lake Verity, I pick up the TM for Fire Blast and head into the cave of Mespirit. I find Mespirit inside but it quickly flys off somewhere. This begins the hunt for Mespirit. You see, Mespirit is a “roaming Pokemon” who will randomly appear on routes in Sinnoh and you need to find it in order to catch it. However, if you don’t have a move that will keep it from fleeing a battle then this will take a long time. However, I have a trick up my sleeve.

            I take a quick detour to Jubilife City to pick up an app for my Poketch that will allow me to see what route Mespirit is on. Now, I head to Route 222 which is just west of Sunyshore City. This is a brand new route and given the nature of the run, I need to get Mespirit on a new route. Now the Pokemon here are Lv. 38-42. Mespirit is Lv. 50. Since Giratina is Lv. 47, if I use a repel it will keep the wild Pokemon under Lv. 47 away and will allow Mespirit who is above Lv. 47 to show up. I put my plan into action and it works perfectly! Mespirit is the first Pokemon I find on Route 222. To prevent it from running, I use my Master Ball to catch it in one go. Success! I catch Mespirit and name it “Zelda” since it reminds me of Princess Zelda for some stupid reason. I decide it would be best to train them both up to Lv. 52 or so to meet the levels of the rest of the team.    

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 19

           Well, I have to admit the last segment was a big travesty and to be honest the future of this run looks really bleak. But I won’t give up until I win or get a game over. So on to Lake Acuity… *sigh* God help me….

            I find Barry and Team Galactic Commander Jupiter who already has the Pokémon of Lake Acuity. So that means Barry lost the battle and devastated by the loss he runs off vowing to make his team stronger. Jupiter gives me a nice piece of info and which leads me to their main HQ in Veilstone City.

            Back in Veilstone, we make our way to Team Galactic HQ where I meet up with Looker. He tells me to meet him at the Warehouse of the group instead of the main HQ since we will have the element of surprise if we enter in the back. Inside we fight a lot of Galactic grunts before making any real progress. Eventually, I find the key which allows us access to the main Galactic HQ. After awhile of exploring the place, I catch up with Looker who is spying on a Team Galactic meeting while Cyrus is making a speech about changing the universe and destroying the current world or something like that. After the speech I head to the top parts of the HQ to see if I can find the Lake Pokémon. Instead, I find Cyrus. He challenges me to another fight to test the strength of my Pokémon and my resolve.

            He begins the fight with his Sneasel and I lead with Emploeon. Sneasel uses Slash and I do some nice damage to it with Metal Claw. Another Slash and another Metal Claw and Sneasel goes down. He sends out his Crobat and I send out Porygon2 to be safe. However, he confuses me with Supersonic. He hits me with Poison Fang but I get off the Discharge. He uses Poison Fang again and Porygon2 shakes off the confusion and defeats it with Psybeam. Finally, he sends out his Lv. 46 Dark/Flying type Honchkrow. I am faster surprisingly and almost take it out in one shot with Discharge. He uses Drill Peck and brings me to low health. I use another Discharge and finish the fight. He allows me access to the room where the Lake Pokémon are being held and says that if I want to stop him to come to the Spear Pillar atop Mt. Coronet. He also gives me the Master Ball which I can use to catch any Pokémon without fail. I already have a few Pokémon in mind I can use this on. I head into the chamber where the Pokemon are being held but both Command Saturn and Charon are waiting for me.

            Saturn challenges me to a rematch for what happened at Lake Valor. He starts out with Golbat and I send in Porygon2. Golbat uses Air Cutter to try and damage me but I defeat it with a Discharge attack. Next is his Lv. 44 Toxicroak which uses Brick Break on me. Porygon2 lives with just 18 HP and is able to take it out in one shot with Psybeam. That was close… His Bronzor is the last up to fight and I send in Empoleon to finish this fight. Two surf attacks are all it takes to end this battle. Saturn steps aside defeated allowing me to set from Mespirit, Azelf, and Uxie. Cyrus needed them to create the Red Chain needed for calling forth the legendary Pokémon of Space and Time which will allow him to create a new universe, destroying this one. I need to head up to the Spear Pillar as quick as possible and stop them.  

            Back inside Mt. Coronet Looker and I discover that Team Galactic has already passed us up and are heading for the summit. Looker realizes that in battle I’m far superior to him and even most of Team Galactic and sends me up alone to stop them as a test of strength… thanks Looker… *sigh* I climb up the caves of the mountain fighting many Team Galactic grunts along the way. Eventually, I make my way to the snowy parts of the mountain where I encounter an Absol as my first encounter of Mt. Coronet (yes, I’ve been using Repels until I go to this point of the mountain). I finally catch it after a REALLY long struggle. I name the female Absol “Gale” since it is known to create wind storms in the anime and it’s also a female name.

            I finally make my way to the top of Mt. Coronet; I’ve made it to the Spear Pillar. However, I’m soon stopped by both Commanders Jupiter and Mars. They are both ready to challenge me to a 2 vs 1 battle but just in the nick of time, Barry comes to my side and makes this a fair 2 vs 2 fight. He says he’s trained his Pokémon to be much stronger and is here for revenge on Team Galactic for beating him at Lake Acuity. The battle begins and they both send out their Bronzors and I send out Umbreon whereas Barry sends out his new Pokémon Munchlax. After a long fight; Barry’s Munchlax lower’s their defenses with Screech so I can finally go in and defeat them with Umbreon’s Bite attacks. Next come out both Skuntank and Purugly at Lv. 46. I decide to send in my Lucario to beat them. Lucario, being Fighting/Steel takes Purugly out with ease and is not affected at all by Skuntank’s Dark and Poison attacks. After a few attacks they both go down to Lucario’s Close Combat and Aura Sphere moves. However, Barry’s Munchlax goes down in the process leaving him to send out his Staraptor. Next they send in both of their Golbats and I switch out Lucario for Porygon2. Staraptor’s Take Down attack defeats both of the Golbats thanks to a few critical hits. With that, Mars and Jupiter are defeated. Barry heals my Pokémon and then runs off and leaves the battle with Cyrus to me.

            Cyrus begins using the power of the Red Chain he forged from the Lake Pokémon and calls for the Pokémon of Time and Space; Dialga and Palkia. The two emerge from their slumber now under the command of Cyrus and the Red Chain, ready to create a new universe which means destroying the old one. This awakes the 3 Lake Pokémon who I freed earlier. They come to the Spear Pillar to try and stop this madness and keep the world in balance. However, they are not the only ones awakened by this. A dark and shadowy figure rises from the ground behind Cyrus. To stop him this shadow Pokémon takes him away to another dimension and they both disappear with the Lake Pokémon following behind them. Cynthia shows up just in time to see what has happened. She tells me that Dialga and Palkia aren’t the only Pokémon that are in control of Time and Space. We just witnessed the Pokémon of the shadows… Giratina. Because of the portal that Giratina left behind, Sinnoh is beginning to become distorted much like the shadows Giratina lives in. We decide that we should enter the portal and stop both Cyrus and Giratina. Cynthia and I enter… the Distortion World.    

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 18

          

           After healing up, I head back into Mt. Coronet to head up to the northern routes to Lake Acuity and Snowpoint City. After getting out of the cave I make it to Route 216, the first of the snow covered routes of the north. The problems with these routes are that with the constant snow, all battles have Hail as a weather condition which means all Pokémon take a bit of damage each turn. Also, walking through the snow can take a really long time since it gets so high up. Now enough complaining, time to take on the challenge at hand. The first Pokemon I run into on Route 216 is a Sneasel. I decide to catch it since I may train it later. I catch him, name him Midnite and continue on my way. As I make my way on to Route 217, I run into Maylene who is heading to Snowpoint as well to see Candice, the gym leader. As she runs off the blizzard that was on the previous route gets much harder and the snow is much deeper.

            After awhile of walking really slowly through the snow, I find a small cabin. Inside is a man who says he lost his special HM08 which is used to Climb Rocks. I go outside to find it and because I’m honest and give it back to him instead of stealing it, he gives it to me and I get HM08 Rock Climb and an Icicle Plate which I can use to raise Ice type moves.

            Eventually, I run into a Swinub here on Route 217 and this is something that if it comes down to it, I would like to train up. I name him Manny from “Ice Age” and then move on further to Snowpoint.

            At the Acuity Lakefront, I find Barry is on a high ledge that I can’t reach. He tells me that I need the next badge to use Rock Climb to get up to him so now I really need to get that next badge. Lucky me, I run into a Snowrunt here at Lake Acuity and a female one at that! This is something that I really should train up if I manage to catch it. I catch her and name her Jadis (after the White Witch from the Chronicles of Narnia). I finally make my way to Snowpoint City and begin the training for Jadis the Snowrunt (soon to be Froslass). Hooray for another Pokemon that has no weakness to Fighting types!   

            Unfortuately, getting to use a Froslass didn’t end well. She was defeated by a Graveler at Iron Island who Rock Blasted her to death. I am upset about this but knowing that Froslasses aren’t the most defensive, I had a feeling this would happen and planned ahead. I still have Manny the Swinub if needed but for now I’ll continue the game as normal.

            Back at Snowpoint City I release Jadis and heal everyone up. At the counter of the Pokemon Center I run into Maylene who made it through the blizzard safely. She tells me that the key to victory against Candice is to use Fighting types or Fire types. Lucky for me, I have Lucario. With that in mind, I heal up and head into the gym.

            Ok, to be honest midway through the gym I decided that it would be best to try and train up Swinub to replace Froslass even if it is temporary. However, it ends badly due to a Graveler using Selfdestruct. This also sucks because I used up my 2 heart scales on Manny to get him to evolve into Mamoswine and have a good physical ice move. However, he went down as a Piloswine so I have to say that it’s not a good day for Ice type Pokémon.

            Back in the gym, it’s time to face Candice the Ice type gym leader of Snowpoint City. We begin the fight as she sends out her Sneasel at Lv. 40 and I go for Lucario. Lucario’s Aura Sphere takes it down easily. Now she goes for Piloswine a Lv. 40 Ice/Ground type. I send in Empoleon and Piloswine wastes a move setting up hail, something one of her Pokémon does automatically. A Surf from Empoleon defeats it easily. Out comes her next Pokemon a Lv. 42 Ice/Grass type; Abomasnow. As odd as it sounds, I send in Crobat even though it’s weak to Ice. He takes an Avolance fine and gets of a Poison Fang which does Poison Abomasnow. However, bad luck strikes again as the next Avalance gets a critical hit and defeats Crobat. Now I’m in real trouble since my whole team of 4 is now weak to fighting. I really should not have tried to give Crobat experience in on this fight. That was a really dumb move but I thought he could take a few hits… Umbreon comes in to finish the job. Finally, she sends out her final Pokémon; Froslass a Lv. 44 Ice/Ghost type. Umbreon takes a blizzard attack from it just fine and weakens it with Assurance. Another Blizzard attack; followed by my Bite attack missing. I heal up Umbreon since I don’t want to take anymore really stupid risks. After a few more Blizzards, she heals up Froslass when she gets weak in HP. I do the same and eventually after taking a few more beatings from Shadow Ball, Blizzard, and having her stall me out with Double Team. I defeat Candice and receive the Icicle Badge and TM72 Avalanche. I exit the gym and go to release Woobat the Crobat…   


In honor of Jadis the Froslass, Manny the Piloswine, and of course Woobat the Crobat. You'll all be missed. 

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 17

             Where do I begin to start talking about all I did between segments? First off, I hatch the Riolu egg and got a female Riolu who I named Tifa (a character from Final Fantasy who is also from Kingdom Hearts 2). She has a Timid nature which lowers Attack but raises speed. I also decided to train up my Lv. 5 Woobat the Zubat along with Riolu so I can get a Pokémon that can handle my team’s immense weakness to fighting types. Many hours later, with the help of my 2 Soothe Bells and many random encounters, I raise these two Pokémon from Lvs. 1-5 to Lv. 45 fully evolved beasts, ready to help with the rest of the team. I get ready for the Canalave City gym and since Lucario (my fully evolved Riolu) is best against Steel, she will be getting a lot of action here.

            After defeating the gym trainers, I make my way to Byron the Steel type gym leader of Canalave City and Roark’s father (Remember him from way back when?). We prepare for battle as he sends in his Lv. 37 Steel/Electric type Magneton and I go for my Lv. 46 Lucario. I go first and use Aura Sphere and completely destroy it! Out comes Byron’s Steelix a Lv. 38 Steel/Ground type. Another Aura Sphere destroys it thanks to its very low Sp. Defense. Lucario gains a level and learns Dragon Pulse which I do teach to it. Now here comes his final Pokémon, his Lv. 41 Steel/Rock type Bastiodon! I go first again and completely devastate it with Close Combat, my strongest fighting type move. Having a x4 weakness to fighting types, Bastidon goes down without a fight, I came victory without taking any damage, and Byron doesn’t know what hit him. I get the Mine Badge and TM91 Flash Cannon and leave the gym on my marry way. Only 2 more badges to go before the Pokémon League!

            Barry meets me outside the gym and tells me to come to the Canalave Library where he and Professor Rowan are waiting. We go to meet Rowan, who tells us that he needs help with his research. To do so, he wants us to go to the 3 lakes of Sinnoh and see if we can find and study the legendary Pokémon who reside there. He sends Lucas to Lake Verity, Barry to Lake Acuity to the north near Snowpoint City, and I will be sent to Lake Valor which we’ve seen and heard of before. Just then something unexpected happens. BOOOOOOOOM A huge rumble shakes Sinnoh to its core. Was it an Earthquake or something else? We soon learn that a massive explosion has gone off at Lake Valor and that the shockwave of the huge blast could be felt all around Sinnoh. It has to be Team Galactic, no doubt about it. Being careful of aftershocks, we make it outside of the Library and into the main city again. Barry runs off, having a bad feeling that one of the other lakes is the next target of attack. Rowan sends me off to Lake Valor to inspect the damage while he and Lucas go to Lake Verity to protect the Pokémon there from Galactic. I hop on Woobat the Crobat and Fly off to Pastoria City, next stop is Lake Valor.

                We make it to Lake Valor to see the complete destruction of the blast. All the water has been drained from the Lake, the Magikarp of the lake are seen flapping about without water, and everything looks like a scorched mess. I soon find out my hunch was correct… Team Galactic is here looking for the legendary Pokémon of the lake’s home. I soon find out that their next stop is Lake Verity which will endanger our hometown of Twinleaf. We’ll have to leave that to Rowan and Lucas for now because the Pokemon of the lake are in a lot of trouble here. Inside of the Lake Pokémon’s home I do not find it, but instead a commander of Team Galactic whom I’ve had yet to encounter. His name is Commander Saturn, the second in command and he and his team have already captured the legendary Pokémon of Lake Valor, Azelf. Wanting to put a stop to me interfering with Team Galactic, he challenges me to a battle.

            He starts out with his Lv. 38 Golbat and I send in Umbreon. He uses Toxic on me which could prove troublesome and I go for the Assurance attack. He confuses me with Supersonic but I get off another Assurance to win the fight. He sends in his Lv. 40 Toxicroak, a Poison/Fighting type. I send in Porygon2 to give Umbreon a rest. He goes for the Mud Bomb and misses while I finish him off with one Psybeam. Out comes his final Pokémon; Bronzor at Lv. 38. I keep in Porygon2 and use Discharge which paralyzes it. He has it use Rock Tomb to my surprise (didn’t know that Bronzor/Bronzong could learn that) and I finish this with another Discharge. Team Galactic and Saturn retreat knowing that Commander Mars is at Lake Verity taking the 2^nd of the 3 Lake Pokémon. With no time to lose, I make my way to Twinleaf Town and Lake Verity.

               After stopping by my house to visit my “virtual” Mom and heal the team I make my way to Lake Verity to find Team Galactic grunts surrounding Professor Rowan and Lucas. I defeat them and make my way to Commander Mars who challenges me to a rematch after her defeat at the Windworks.

            She starts out with her Golbat at Lv. 38 and I defeat it with Porygon2’s Discharge. She sends in her Lv. 38 Bronzor and I keep up the Discharge attack with Porygon2. Finally, she sends in her Lv. 40 normal type; Purugly and I send in Lucario to take it down. She goes for a Fake Out attack which effects are completely wasted since I spent that turn switching anyway. A Close Combat takes it down and Mars retreats with Mespirit; the Pokémon of Lake Verity in tow. Professor Rowan, worried about Uxie the Pokémon of Lake Acuity and Barry; sends me to Lake Acuity to the north. So next segment we make the long trek up to the north.    

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 16

             The team recovers well after the intense battle with Barry and we get ready for training on Iron Island. I bring many Repels with me because I do NOT want to run into any Pokémon on this Island yet until I get to the end. You’ll see why hopefully. At the entrance to the cave, I find a man dressed in blue. His name is Riley and is a trainer also wishing to train. He gives me HM04 Strength which he says will help me get to the end of the cave… good to know! But in order to use it, I need to receive the Mine Badge from the Canalave City gym. He goes into train and I follow up behind him.

            After a bit more training, I catch up with Riley and his Lucario who asks to team up with me, much like Cheryl did before him. I say yes and we go throughout the rest of the cave as a team. However, disaster strikes during our travels. In a battle with 2 Ace Trainers I almost lose both Empoleon and Porygon2 but they hold on by a string. However, one isn’t so lucky. Roselia goes down to a Lopunny’s critical hit Dizzy Punch. The worst part is that you get Shiny Stones in this cave; the same evolutionary stones that allow Roselia to evolve. However, Bud the Roselia won’t get to become a Roserade.

            At the end of the cave, Riely and I find 2 Team Galactic grunts up to no good and put a stop to them. After the grunts run off Riley pays me pack for helping him by giving me a free Pokémon Egg and inside this egg, is out first team member and the first Pokémon I will see on Iron Island; a Riolu. Now this will take a very long time but I need to hatch this egg and raise this Riolu from Lv. 1 to being a Lv. 45 Lucario. Now since the team also has a really bad weakness to fighting, I’m going to need a Pokemon to help with this. I think my Zubat that I’ve been using for HM’s or the Togepi will be my best choice. So next time, I’ll see you guys for the gym battle when all my guys are Lv. 45 and ready to take Sinnoh by storm!

In honor of Bud the Roselia, a great team member through and through. Really wish I could have seen you evolve but when I do use that Shiny Stone on another Pokémon I’ll think of you. 

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 15

            After training up Magmar to Lv. 40 and having a lot of close encounters of losing him along the way, I figure it’s time to train the team as a whole at the Fuego Ironworks.

            After a bit of time, I defeat all the trainers you find here and pick up some nice items like TM35 Flamethrower and a Fire Stone. And speaking of Flamethrower, Magmar learned Flamethrower which will be very handy!

            I make my way to Jubilife City again and head off to the watery Route 218 to the west. Next stop, Canalave City! Along the way, I run into a wild Tenacool and decide to catch it. I don’t know if I’ll use her but Tentacool is a valuable asset to have. I name her Azul (Spanish for Blue… not sure why but I liked it) and store her away in the Pokémon Storage box.

            I finally enter the gate into Canalave City but before I can enter the city, I’m stopped by Lucas’ father who is also one of Professor Rowan’s assistants. He upgrades my Pokedex so I can record the physical differences of male and female Pokémon when I encounter them. I don’t really even notice half of the differences between features anyway so I won’t really be caring for this too much. He also states that Rowan is concerned about Team Galactic and asks me to keep an eye on their activities (something I’ve been doing from the beginning whether I wanted to or not…). He leaves and I finally get a chance to enter the city! Before I do, I want to point out the guard at the gate that states “I’m thirsty”. I thought that was a clever little shoutout to Kanto that I’m surprised I’ve never seen before. Anyway, to Cavalave we go!

            I explore Canalave for a bit but I don’t find anything too interesting other than the TM for Skill Swap. I decide to cross the bridge to explore the other side of the city when… BAM! Here’s Barry…. crap… I forgot about this… Yes, Barry is back for another fight on the Canalave Bridge. Not the safest of spots to fight but I’m game.

            He starts out with his now fully evolved; Lv. 36 Staraptor a Normal/Flying type and I start out with Magmar completely forgetting this fight. I switch into Porygon2, hoping it does not know Close Combat yet but all it does is Double Team to raise evasion. He goes for another Double Team and I got for a Discharge that actually hits and defeats it in one shot. Out comes his Lv. 37 Heracross, a Bug/Fightning type. I get Porygon2 out of there and switch to Magmar, the only one who wont die to this thing… I’m wrong… Magmar goes down to 2 Brick Breaks thanks to a critical hit… CRAP! Now who will I use for the upcoming gyms!? At this point I’m SO ticked off so I go into Empoleon for some payback. I make a bad move… he goes first and gets a super effective Brick Break off on me. Lucky for me it does about half of my HP and it is defeated. In comes his starter a Lv. 38 Torterra a Grass/Ground type. I this point, I’m panicking. There is a good chance I could lose this. His Pokémon are way stronger than I remember them being from previous save files and there are no Pokémon on my team that can take this thing out easily.  I can’t leave Empoleon in there knowing it will Earthquake him and more than likely kill him so I go into Roselia for a Toxic. Oddly enough, he goes for Leech Seed which does not affect Roselia. Toxic time! This will slowly kill him off. He gets off a Bite attack and it does way more damage than I expected.  I use Giga Drain to heal up and he goes for another Bite. Toxic is starting to take affect… another Giga Drain… he has low health… another Bit… CRITICAL HIT!? Roselia lives with 18 HP and Torterra goes down to Toxic damage. Now here comes his fully evolved Rapidash a Lv. 35 Fire type. Not taking any chances I sent in Empoleon to absorb some hits. 2 Take Downs do nothing to my Empoleon! Take a Surf attack Barry! Rapidash is down in a single hit. Now for his final Pokémon, his fully evolved; Lv. 35 Water type; Floatzel. I go into Porygon2 so I can get off a Discharge. He uses Aqua Jet but has no luck. Another Aqua Jet but it does him no good. Floatzel goes down in one shot to Porygon2’s Discharge. He is again shocked that he lost and I’m again ticked that he took another Pokémon from me… He runs off telling me to get stronger training at Iron Island and I know I do need the extra levels. After all, had Vesuvius the Magmar’s Lava Plume attack been just a bit stronger, I wouldn’t have lost him to that Heracross. I release him and have my eyes set to Iron Island.

In honor of Vesuvius the Magmar… you were a great Fire type and had I trained you just another level or two; you would have been even greater in the fights to come…

Only after this part do I finally remember that Magmar’s strongest move was Flamethrower. I had completely forgotten about it thinking he still had a Physical Move like Fire Punch. Had I used that, Magmar would have defeated that Heracross, no doubt…

[Text Only] Let’s Play: Pokémon Platinum [Nuzlocke Challenge] – Part 14

            

            And welcome back to more Pokemon Platinum. Let’s get started here with Route 212. This is a really long gauntlet of trainers so this will take a long time. Another bad thing about this Route is that it rains 24/7 which creates a lot of muddy spots for you and your Pokémon to get stuck in. I do pick up a few important items like TM06 Toxic, TM 62 Silver Wind, and a few useful vitamins. I make my way to Pokémon Mansion, owned by Mr. Backlot. Inside I get a few gifts from his maids (a Luxury Ball and another Soothe Bell to be exact) and I even battle some of them. I find Mr. Backlot who nicely allows me to take a look at his Trophy Garden which gives me a chance to try and get a new Pokémon. I actually run across a Pikachu as my first Pokémon but I’m unable to catch it thanks to critical hits… lame… I decide to head back to Route 212 finish fighting the trainers, stop at Hearthome and then fly back to Solaceon Town and continue my adventures on Route 210 to save the Psyduck in the morning.     

   

*16 ½ hours later*

            Ok, it is another bright and sunny day in the Sinnoh region… though it is really rainy in real life… but that doesn’t matter because we have work to do. We need to save those Psyduck. I give the “SecretPotion” to the Psyduck and it cures them of their chronic headaches just like Cynthia said it would. And speak of the devil, here is Cynthia now! She thanks me for helping the Psyduck and clearing the path to the northern part of Route 210 and rewards me with… another favor… yay! She wants me to travel to Celestic Town, which is just to the northwest of this route, to deliver an “Old Charm” to her grandma. I take the charm and the two of us go our separate ways. Now, the way to Celestic Town is extremely long and is full of trainers and fog. The fog is easy to deal with since I have a Zubat with Defog but the trainers are really difficult the further you go along this route so I’ll need to be extra careful. Especially since I can never seem to get to Celestic Town without having at least one Pokémon faint… wish me luck…

            We over all… the route was bad… but one part could have been disastrous. It was in a double battle with a Gyarados and Raichu. I send out Porygon2 and Roselia. I had no idea that the Gyarados had Ice Fang and almost destroyed my Roselia. He lived but with about 20 HP and got frozen by the attack. My Discharge attack goes off from Porygon2 hitting everyone on the field including Roselia and he lives with 4 HP!!! He’s fine now and so is the rest of the team. Everyone is chilling out, all healed up, in Celestic Town.

            I look around town trying to find Cynthia’s grandma and I eventually find her near the shrine in the middle of the town. Unfortunately, I also find a Galactic grunt here with her. Cynthia’s grandma tells me that his intents are to blow up the town and its ruins… well I can’t let that happen. After I beat him and save the town, I give the Old Charm to Cynthia’s grandma and she escorts me to the ruins and informs me about the legendary Pokémon that protect the lakes of Sinnoh. Just then, that weird blue haired man that I’ve been seeing on my journey every now and again comes into the ruins wanting to know more about the legends of these Pokémon and how they created this world. It turns out that he is Cyrus, the leader of Team Galactic, who wishes to create a more perfect world. He threatens that if he does not receive the information the town and ruins will be destroyed. His eyes turn to me as he immediately recognizes me from Mr. Coronet. I get in his way of trying to destroy the ruins and he challenges me to a battle.

            He starts out with his Sneasel a Lv. 34 Ice/Dark type and I go into Empoleon. Sneasel goes for Slash but it does nothing even with a critical hit. I go for Brine which gets Sneasel down to low health. I use Aqua Jet to out speed it but it lasts with 1 HP and goes for Slash again. He heals it up and I use Aqua Jet again. Sneasel uses Screech to lower my defense but I get off Brine followed by and Aqua Jet and that is that. He goes into Golbat (a Lv. 34 Poison/Flying type) and I switch into Porygon2 for the rest of the fight. After Golbat uses Bite and trys to Confuse me with Supersonic, I get off a Psybeam for super effective damage. Golbat goes for Poison Fang and I finish this with another Psybeam. His last Pokemon is Murkrow, a Lv. 36 Dark/Flying type. After a Drill Peck from the Murkrow, I defeat it with just one Discharge. Cyrus retreats saying he knows enough for now. After chatting with Cynthia’s grandma a bit she gives me HM03 Surf as a reward. We can use this to get across the sea to new parts of Sinnoh and Canalave City.

            After these events, Cynthia shows up to check on the town and makes sure the Galactic bomb set here was deactivated. She tells me that Team Galactic is a much bigger threat than she originally thought and tells me I should go to Canalave City to read up on some Sinnoh history at their famous library. Maybe then we can see exactly what they want to achieve and how. After finishing my business here, I decide to fly down to Floaroma Town and surf my way to the Fuego Ironworks for a new Pokemon.

I give HM03 Surf to Empoleon since he needed a really good water move and I head to the Fuego Ironworks. I have about 2 Pokémon in mind that I could have worked with and the game is actually merciful this time! The Pokémon that I get is Magmar. I catch him in a Great ball and name him “Vesuvius” after the famous volcano. Now I need to get ready to train him up from Lv. 29 to about Lv. 42 to match the team. I should note he is a fire type with a Jolly nature, so that means more speed and lower Sp. Attack. That is actually not good but I can deal with that. Anyway, time for training!