As a kid, battling was always my favorite part of Pokemon. Even more than catching ‘em all, building my party and carefully selecting a strategy was what got me hooked on the games (and eventually even the Trading Card Game) in the first place. When Pokemon Stadium came around on N64, it was like a dream come true to finally see those battles in 3D, but it was always missing a key element for me: portability.
With Pokken Tournament DX on Switch, I feel like I finally have the portable Pokemon fighting game I’ve always wanted. While I spent some time with Pokken on Wii U, it looks even better on Switch, and, at least for me personally, I can’t overstate the appeal of being able to play it on the go.
In a demo at PAX West, I tried out Pokemon Sun and Moon’s Decidueye, a new Switch-exclusive fighter and a brutal long-range attacker. Decidueye is brand new for Switch and didn’t appear on Wii U or in arcades, but Pokken Tournament DX also features Darkrai, Scizor, Croagunk, and Empoleon, fighters who have been available in arcades but never appeared on Wii U.
As a casual fighting game player at best, I found Pokken’s battle system surprisingly easy to learn, with a few different types of standard attacks building up a Synergy Gauge that allows you to perform stronger, more impressive moves once it’s maxed out. Battles begin in a 3D-roaming “field phase” but can transform to a locked 2D perspective “duel phase” after certain attacks are used.
You also have pairs of support Pokemon that will join you in battle, sort of like Assist Trophies in Smash Bros. Each support Pokemon has its own special attack or buff to assist you, but moves need to charge before they can be used. At PAX West, Nintendo showed off Litten and Popplio, two support Pokemon that are new for the Switch version.
With additional fighters from the arcade version and new modes including 3v3 fights, this really feels like it could be the definitive edition of a game I already enjoyed quite a bit on Wii U, and the added portability makes me so much more excited to sink some time into learning to be a better fighter.
I’m really looking forward to having this installed on my Switch to just jump in for a few battles every so often. With Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon coming so soon and more Pokemon coming to Pokemon Go all summer, I’m really hoping Nintendo will continue to expand the roster, too. Pokken Tournament DX feels like it fulfills the promise of a Pokemon fighting game that’s been 20 years in the making, and I can’t wait to dive in deeper.
Andrew is IGN’s executive editor of news and would be lying if he said he’s going to main anyone other than Pikachu. You can find him rambling about Persona and cute animals on Twitter.
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