Pokemon Channel

Is it possible for a game to be both completely boring and yet engaging at the same time? You would think that the answer to that would be no, but somehow Nintendo has managed to make the impossible happen within the confines of the latest entry into the Pokemon franchise, Pokemon Channel.

What is Pokemon Channel? Call it, "Hey, You! Pikachu 2" and you're on the right track, except make it slightly less frustrating in that you don't have to go yelling at Pikachu through a microphone to do something he can't seem to understand. Like, "No don't eat that poisonous mushroom!" In this game, with graphics that seem only about one step up from those of the N64, some wild Pikachu arrives at your door from out of nowhere and wants to watch your TV which has all of about five channels to start. It doesn't want to go outside and play or do anything else, just watch TV. Well, at least at first. Eventually you'll end up outside, but the premise of this game is to watch TV with Pikachu. That's it.

You know, I would really liked to have been there when the genius who came up with this idea pitched it to the company. "I've got a great idea for a new Pokemon game! Let's make a game where you don't actually do anything but watch Pikachu watch TV! We can throw a few other crappy things in there to break up the monotony, but the TV thing...people love TV! We can't lose!" Well I suppose it worked. I own a copy of the thing...paid actual money for it. Still playing it, too. But I don't want to!

The thing about this game is that they actually suck you in to starting it and once you've been sucked in they keep bringing up these TV channels that you don't have. You're constantly hoping that something that is actually good might come on the next day. And I mean the actual next day because the game is ruled by the GCs internal clock which was such a very evil thing to do. You keep playing. I'm still playing. The games been beat, but there are still two empty channels and I don't know what it is that's going to turn them on, but it's something and I will find out eventually. How long can they let this go on anyway?

Oh yeah. You probably want to know something about the gameplay. You watch TV. You turn channels. Maybe Pikachu will want to go outside and look in a hole or talk to some other Pokemon or do something stupid like jump into you and knock himself dizzy. Some Pokemon might give you a collector's card that you can look at. Oh boy. You might (insert "will") find a Pokemon-Mini in your room and you can play some crappy 2-bit game that might be fun. You have to buy most of them though. Oh yeah. You can shop on the shopping channel. Answer two questions per episode on the quiz channel. You can watch Mareep which are like sheep, jump over a fence and count them. There's just so much fun (insert "boring") stuff to do in this game.

Pokemon Channel's only saving grace is the chance to watch what must be the first ever Japanese language episode of Pokemon ever released here in the US as far as I know. Actually it's the same Pichu Bros. show you've watched throught the whole game, except it's voiceover is done by Kasumi (The Japanese version of Misty). This is unlocked after you beat the game and unlock all of the individual episodes of the very same show. Can't you just feel the fun?

I can't see playing this thing for more than two weeks. Maybe one week if you just get a FAQ and figure out what in the world you have to do to open up all of the channels. More than likely you won't even bother doing that and just leave it on the store shelf. You might be better off. That said, this is a great game for little kids and toddlers. Great if you consider that the game is counter-productive in that it teaches little kids that it's more fun to stay inside and watch TV than to go outside in the fresh air and sunshine to play. You'll have to counteract that one yourself. If you have kids you might want to give it a shot and if you don't, don't bother.

-Cynthia Threadgill

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