Pokemon - Black Version ($29.99) at Amazon
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A Happy Panda
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Costco is selling both versions for $29.99 regularly if you have one around you as well and don't want to wait for shipping. Sorry, don't mean to hijack the thread.
w7w7w7w7w7
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I'm going to hold out for at least another $5 off.
Thanks for the heads up though OP!
Thanks for the heads up though OP!
hypertails02
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What's the consensus on which version is better?
I mean, I know it's the same game with different Pokemon (I owned Blue, Gold, FireRed), but is there one that has a better selection of Pokemon over the other?
I mean, I know it's the same game with different Pokemon (I owned Blue, Gold, FireRed), but is there one that has a better selection of Pokemon over the other?
A Happy Panda
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[quote name='hypertails02']What's the consensus on which version is better?
I mean, I know it's the same game with different Pokemon (I owned Blue, Gold, FireRed), but is there one that has a better selection of Pokemon over the other?[/QUOTE]
Stole from an Amazon.com Customer review:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Differences -- Pokemon - White Version vs Pokemon - Black Version
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Normally, it really doesn't matter which Pokemon version you get, because both are essentially the same thing, except for minor pokemon differences. However, surprisingly, for the first time in a Pokemon game, there are actually significant differences between the games. This time, there are unique regions to each game and the visual theme of each game is quite different.
~~~ Visual Theme ~~~
So, what do I mean by the visual theme? Well, Pokemon Black has more urbanized, industrial locations, whereas Pokemon White shows a more natural world. This can be seen throughout the game. You will see small differences such as a gardening patch in Mistralton city in Pokemon White compared to a building in the same spot in Pokemon Black. Most of the cities give off a natural atmosphere in White. In White, the cities have more grass, plants, and trees, and in Black the cities have more concrete, asphalt, and buildings. The cities in Black are more developed, and in some cases slightly futuristic-looking. Opelucid (Souryuu) City is the most notable; the city look almost entirely different between the two versions.
~~~~ White City / Black Forest ~~~~
Pokemon Black has Black City and white has the White Forest. These are the version exclusive regions I mentioned earlier. They fit the visual themes set forth by each game: Black City is a heavily urbanized area with several trainers to battle with Pokemon from lvl 40 to the mid 60s. There are also many item shops with items that can you help you in game. White City, on the other hand, is a natural forest with low leveled, unevolved Pokemon that you can catch. Black City will definitely help you more in terms of raising your own Pokemon's levels and getting supplies for future battles. However, White City will cater more to people who plan to collect Pokemon and try to complete their pokedex.
~~~~~ Special Battles - Triple and Rotational ~~~~
In both Pokemon White and Black, there are 5 special battles. Pokemon White has 4 Triple Battles and 1 Rotational Battle. Pokemon Black has 4 Rotational Battles and 1 Triple Battle. In both of these special battles, both trainers send out 3 pokemon. These special battles are a bit hard to explain without visuals. The mechanics the battles will be better explained in a simple way during game.
Triple Battle:
It is a 3 on 3 battle, however, the order you place your pokemon matters. The pokemon in the middle is can attack the enemy's middle, left, or right pokemon, but your pokemon on the left can only attack the enemy's pokemon on the left and the middle. Similarly, your pokemon on the right can only attack the enemy's pokemon on the right and the middle. So, your pokemon on the left cannot attack the opponent's pokemon on the right, and your pokemon on the right cannot attack the opponent's pokemon to the left. To further complicate things, attacks that damage all pokemon such as explosion or earthquake cause more damage when done by the pokemon in the middle, but also inflicts more damage to the pokemon in the middle.
** When I say left or right, I am saying it from the perspective of behind your trainer.
Rotational Battle:
Like the triple battle, both trainers send out three pokemon. However, this time, the pokemon are not fighting against each other all at the same time. Even though all three are sent out, the battle appears like a 1 vs 1 match. Each trainer sends one pokemon forward to battle as one would in a normal battle. But here's the twist: at the start of your turn, you can rotate between any of the three to send forward. You can think of this as basically a pokemon switch without wasting a turn. This adds to the battle strategy when considering types. For example, if your opponent has a grass type forward and you have a water type forward, you would rotate your water type to put a fire type in front.
Hopefully, my explanations made sense. If not, don't worry, they are far less complicated when the game explains it to you. If you like the Rotational Battles better, then you might want to gt Pokemon Black since it has 4 of those and only 1 Triple Battle. Maybe rotational battles aren't your thing and you want to do Triple Battles. Then, you should consider Pokemon White.
~~~~ Trainer Differences ~~~~
There are sometimes minute differences in the pokemon line up of different trainers. I don't really feel that this is significant to talk about. However, one somewhat large change is the gym leader in the 8th gym. Pokemon Black features a stern old man, whereas Pokemon White shows a young girl. These gym leaders have the same pokemon, the only thing different is their appearances/avatar.
~~~~~~~~Legendaries~~~~~~~
Pokemon Black has the white Legendary Pokemon, Reshiram, which is a Dragon/Fire type.
Pokemon White has the black Legendary Pokemon, Zekrom, which is a Dragon/Electric Type.
Strategic Note: The sum of the base stats for both legendaries is 680, however, the spread is slightly different. Both have base 100 hp and 90 speed. Reshiram has 120 attack, 100 defense, 150 special attack, 120 special defense. Zekrom has 150 attack, 120 defense, 120 special attack, 100 special defense. This means that Reshiram is better suited to deal and take special attacks, while Zekrom is more suited to deal and take physical attacks.
In my honest opinion, I think the Dragon/Electric legendary will be far more useful for competitive battling. One of the best electric type pokemon is Zapdos. However, Zapdos is stunted by its flying type, leaving it vulnerable to devastating attacks such as a 50% health loss from Stealth Rock. This new legendary should easily be able to replace that spot. Plus, the versatility of a dragon type may put it ahead of other notable electric types such as Electivire.
~~~~~~~~Version Exclusives~~~~~~~~~~~
And of course, like all previous pokemon games. Each version has a few pokemon exclusive to only that version. I wouldn't stress out at the loss these pokemon though. You can get all of them through online trades later, if you really want to complete your pokedex and catch 'em all. Check the bottom of the review for a list.
~~~~ Conclusion ~~~~
Pokemon Black/White is definitely one of the best pokemon games to come out. I definitely recommend it to anyone of any age. Don't waste time deciding whether or not to get the game: get it. Now, the only decision you have is whether to get Black or White. I decided to go with Pokemon White. White version just appealed more to me and seemed more "open". Black version looked cluttered, in my opinion. Also, I feel that the Black Legendary (found in white version) would be more useful in battle. Try checking out a few screenshots online to help you decide which visual style you like better, then get whichever version you like better!
Pokemon - Black Version
- urbanized theme
- Black City (battle trainers and buy items)
- Dragon/Fire Legendary
- minor trainer differences (Old guy as 8th gym leader)
- more Rotational Battles
Pokemon - White Version
- natural theme
- White City (catch low level pokemon)
- Dragon Electric Legendary
- minor trainer differences (young girl as 8th gym leader)
- more Triple Battles
List of version exclusives:
Pokémon Black
#13. Weedle
#14. Kakuna
#15. Beedrill
#198. Murkrow
#228. Houndour
#229. Houndoom
#285. Shroomish
#286. Breloom
#311. Plusle
#313. Volbeat
#430. Honchkrow
#546. Mommen
#547. Whimsicott
#574. Gothita
#575. Gothorita
#576. Gothitelle
#629. Vullaby
#630. Mandibuzz
#641. Tornadus (legendary flying)
#643. Reshiram (legendary dragon/fire)
Pokémon White
#10. Caterpie
#11. Metapod
#12. Butterfree
#46. Paras
#47. Parasect
#200. Misdreavus
#261. Poochyena
#262. Mightyena
#312. Minun
#314. Illumise
#429. Mismagius
#548. Petilil
#549. Lilligant
#577. Solosis
#578. Duosion
#579. Reuniclus
#627. Rufflet
#628. Braviary
#642. Thundurus (legendary electric/flying)
#644. Zekrom (legendary dragon/electric)
+ Several Unevolved Pokemon you can catch in the White Forest:
- Pidgey
- Nidoran
- Abra
- Machop
- Bellsprout
- Gastly
- Rhyhorn
- Porygon
- Togepi
- Hoppip
- Magby
- Wurmple
- Seedot
- Ralts
- Slakoths
- Aron
- Trapinch
- Shinux
- Happiny
- Surskit
I mean, I know it's the same game with different Pokemon (I owned Blue, Gold, FireRed), but is there one that has a better selection of Pokemon over the other?[/QUOTE]
Stole from an Amazon.com Customer review:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Differences -- Pokemon - White Version vs Pokemon - Black Version
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Normally, it really doesn't matter which Pokemon version you get, because both are essentially the same thing, except for minor pokemon differences. However, surprisingly, for the first time in a Pokemon game, there are actually significant differences between the games. This time, there are unique regions to each game and the visual theme of each game is quite different.
~~~ Visual Theme ~~~
So, what do I mean by the visual theme? Well, Pokemon Black has more urbanized, industrial locations, whereas Pokemon White shows a more natural world. This can be seen throughout the game. You will see small differences such as a gardening patch in Mistralton city in Pokemon White compared to a building in the same spot in Pokemon Black. Most of the cities give off a natural atmosphere in White. In White, the cities have more grass, plants, and trees, and in Black the cities have more concrete, asphalt, and buildings. The cities in Black are more developed, and in some cases slightly futuristic-looking. Opelucid (Souryuu) City is the most notable; the city look almost entirely different between the two versions.
~~~~ White City / Black Forest ~~~~
Pokemon Black has Black City and white has the White Forest. These are the version exclusive regions I mentioned earlier. They fit the visual themes set forth by each game: Black City is a heavily urbanized area with several trainers to battle with Pokemon from lvl 40 to the mid 60s. There are also many item shops with items that can you help you in game. White City, on the other hand, is a natural forest with low leveled, unevolved Pokemon that you can catch. Black City will definitely help you more in terms of raising your own Pokemon's levels and getting supplies for future battles. However, White City will cater more to people who plan to collect Pokemon and try to complete their pokedex.
~~~~~ Special Battles - Triple and Rotational ~~~~
In both Pokemon White and Black, there are 5 special battles. Pokemon White has 4 Triple Battles and 1 Rotational Battle. Pokemon Black has 4 Rotational Battles and 1 Triple Battle. In both of these special battles, both trainers send out 3 pokemon. These special battles are a bit hard to explain without visuals. The mechanics the battles will be better explained in a simple way during game.
Triple Battle:
It is a 3 on 3 battle, however, the order you place your pokemon matters. The pokemon in the middle is can attack the enemy's middle, left, or right pokemon, but your pokemon on the left can only attack the enemy's pokemon on the left and the middle. Similarly, your pokemon on the right can only attack the enemy's pokemon on the right and the middle. So, your pokemon on the left cannot attack the opponent's pokemon on the right, and your pokemon on the right cannot attack the opponent's pokemon to the left. To further complicate things, attacks that damage all pokemon such as explosion or earthquake cause more damage when done by the pokemon in the middle, but also inflicts more damage to the pokemon in the middle.
** When I say left or right, I am saying it from the perspective of behind your trainer.
Rotational Battle:
Like the triple battle, both trainers send out three pokemon. However, this time, the pokemon are not fighting against each other all at the same time. Even though all three are sent out, the battle appears like a 1 vs 1 match. Each trainer sends one pokemon forward to battle as one would in a normal battle. But here's the twist: at the start of your turn, you can rotate between any of the three to send forward. You can think of this as basically a pokemon switch without wasting a turn. This adds to the battle strategy when considering types. For example, if your opponent has a grass type forward and you have a water type forward, you would rotate your water type to put a fire type in front.
Hopefully, my explanations made sense. If not, don't worry, they are far less complicated when the game explains it to you. If you like the Rotational Battles better, then you might want to gt Pokemon Black since it has 4 of those and only 1 Triple Battle. Maybe rotational battles aren't your thing and you want to do Triple Battles. Then, you should consider Pokemon White.
~~~~ Trainer Differences ~~~~
There are sometimes minute differences in the pokemon line up of different trainers. I don't really feel that this is significant to talk about. However, one somewhat large change is the gym leader in the 8th gym. Pokemon Black features a stern old man, whereas Pokemon White shows a young girl. These gym leaders have the same pokemon, the only thing different is their appearances/avatar.
~~~~~~~~Legendaries~~~~~~~
Pokemon Black has the white Legendary Pokemon, Reshiram, which is a Dragon/Fire type.
Pokemon White has the black Legendary Pokemon, Zekrom, which is a Dragon/Electric Type.
Strategic Note: The sum of the base stats for both legendaries is 680, however, the spread is slightly different. Both have base 100 hp and 90 speed. Reshiram has 120 attack, 100 defense, 150 special attack, 120 special defense. Zekrom has 150 attack, 120 defense, 120 special attack, 100 special defense. This means that Reshiram is better suited to deal and take special attacks, while Zekrom is more suited to deal and take physical attacks.
In my honest opinion, I think the Dragon/Electric legendary will be far more useful for competitive battling. One of the best electric type pokemon is Zapdos. However, Zapdos is stunted by its flying type, leaving it vulnerable to devastating attacks such as a 50% health loss from Stealth Rock. This new legendary should easily be able to replace that spot. Plus, the versatility of a dragon type may put it ahead of other notable electric types such as Electivire.
~~~~~~~~Version Exclusives~~~~~~~~~~~
And of course, like all previous pokemon games. Each version has a few pokemon exclusive to only that version. I wouldn't stress out at the loss these pokemon though. You can get all of them through online trades later, if you really want to complete your pokedex and catch 'em all. Check the bottom of the review for a list.
~~~~ Conclusion ~~~~
Pokemon Black/White is definitely one of the best pokemon games to come out. I definitely recommend it to anyone of any age. Don't waste time deciding whether or not to get the game: get it. Now, the only decision you have is whether to get Black or White. I decided to go with Pokemon White. White version just appealed more to me and seemed more "open". Black version looked cluttered, in my opinion. Also, I feel that the Black Legendary (found in white version) would be more useful in battle. Try checking out a few screenshots online to help you decide which visual style you like better, then get whichever version you like better!
Pokemon - Black Version
- urbanized theme
- Black City (battle trainers and buy items)
- Dragon/Fire Legendary
- minor trainer differences (Old guy as 8th gym leader)
- more Rotational Battles
Pokemon - White Version
- natural theme
- White City (catch low level pokemon)
- Dragon Electric Legendary
- minor trainer differences (young girl as 8th gym leader)
- more Triple Battles
List of version exclusives:
Pokémon Black
#13. Weedle
#14. Kakuna
#15. Beedrill
#198. Murkrow
#228. Houndour
#229. Houndoom
#285. Shroomish
#286. Breloom
#311. Plusle
#313. Volbeat
#430. Honchkrow
#546. Mommen
#547. Whimsicott
#574. Gothita
#575. Gothorita
#576. Gothitelle
#629. Vullaby
#630. Mandibuzz
#641. Tornadus (legendary flying)
#643. Reshiram (legendary dragon/fire)
Pokémon White
#10. Caterpie
#11. Metapod
#12. Butterfree
#46. Paras
#47. Parasect
#200. Misdreavus
#261. Poochyena
#262. Mightyena
#312. Minun
#314. Illumise
#429. Mismagius
#548. Petilil
#549. Lilligant
#577. Solosis
#578. Duosion
#579. Reuniclus
#627. Rufflet
#628. Braviary
#642. Thundurus (legendary electric/flying)
#644. Zekrom (legendary dragon/electric)
+ Several Unevolved Pokemon you can catch in the White Forest:
- Pidgey
- Nidoran
- Abra
- Machop
- Bellsprout
- Gastly
- Rhyhorn
- Porygon
- Togepi
- Hoppip
- Magby
- Wurmple
- Seedot
- Ralts
- Slakoths
- Aron
- Trapinch
- Shinux
- Happiny
- Surskit
DieGo2SHAE
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Damn it if this was White I'd jump on it without hesitation.
I got both version for $17.99 each + $5 GC = $12.99 each after GC at Bestbuy 2 weeks ago (after pricematch with TRU BOG1 1/2 off all DS games). The manager overide 2 games down $17.99 instead 1. I just shut my mouth up, swiped my credit card and thanks you very much and out the door 
NYGIANTSFANFOREVER
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Dead. I'm going to assume amazon was simply trying to offload excess launch supplies, although who knows.
hypertails02
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Well that certainly helped me out! I honestly didn't know about the aesthetic differences between versions - I thought the city landscape was in both versions, and it's a good thing you mentioned about the Black City/White Forest. I'm thinking I'll eventually buy Pokemon White now, mainly for having the White Forest to catch more pokemon. Also, a Dragon/Electric Pokemon sounds badass, and probably has a more flexible palette of moves than the other Legendary.
Thanks very much for the info, A Happy Panda and ifacebook!
Thanks very much for the info, A Happy Panda and ifacebook!
hypertails02
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[quote name='jkimrey']Great info on the version differences - thanks for posting that.
BTW - does anyone know whether you can perform multiple trades for the same Pokemon? For example, could a Pokemon be traded from White to Black and then later back to White?
Thanks[/QUOTE]
Yeah, you can do that as long as its between black and white. Or I'm sure you can bring pokemon from Diamond/Pearl/Platinum into Black/White as long as you're trading a pokemon from a previous generation.
Also, if it's anything like the good 'ol days of Pokemon, aren't you required to trade in order to evolve some pokemon? So you'll have to do multiple trades anyway.
BTW - does anyone know whether you can perform multiple trades for the same Pokemon? For example, could a Pokemon be traded from White to Black and then later back to White?
Thanks[/QUOTE]
Yeah, you can do that as long as its between black and white. Or I'm sure you can bring pokemon from Diamond/Pearl/Platinum into Black/White as long as you're trading a pokemon from a previous generation.
Also, if it's anything like the good 'ol days of Pokemon, aren't you required to trade in order to evolve some pokemon? So you'll have to do multiple trades anyway.
bread's done