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P
okémon Sun
and
Pokémon Moon
are the two most recent additions
to the Pokémon franchise. The new
titles are set in the island archipelago of Alola
– Nintendo’s reimagining of Hawaii. Alola is
comprised of five islands – four naturally-
occurring and one man-made. Set 12 hours
apart from one another, the new islands contain
new forms of pre-existing Pokémon, so keep an
eye out for some old favourites with a haircut.
The new games introduce a new generation
of the little pocket monsters, so catching ‘em all
just got even more difficult, and will, of course,
feature version exclusives. At least 55 new
Pokémon in total have been officially revealed at
the time of writing, with more to come before
release no doubt.
Most people will – understandably – be
looking forward to seeing the new starters
and legendaries. This year, you’ll be looking at
choosing between the cute, purry Litten (Fire),
the bubbly Popplio (Water), and the flightful,
fluffy Rowlett (Grass/Flying). The two new
legendaries – Solgaleo for Sun and Lunala for
Moon – look out of this world, and there are
also a couple of “Ultra Beasts” introduced
in these games that could pose a threat to
humans and Pokémon alike. One of them even
takes an alternate form depending on which
game you’ve got.
Additionally, like the Jesse, James and
Meowth of the past, these two games will
bring with them a new team of baddies after
your Pokémon – Team Skull, whose leader
actually looks a lot like Doc from
Back to the
Future
. You won’t be alone, however – an
organisation known as the Aether Foundation
will help you out, vying to protect all Pokémon
from harm.
As if dealing with the baddies
wasn’t enough, if you truly wanna be
the very best, you’re going to have to
tackle Alola’s Island Challenges. Each of
the four naturally occurring islands will host a
bunch of different tasks, from battling Pokémon
to finding items and everything in between,
with a Totem Pokémon at the end for you to
battle. You’ll then have to take on each island’s
Kahuna, and besting them will lead you onto the
next island and its challenges.
If training Pokémon is what you’ve come to
Sun
and
Moon
to do, there are a whole bunch
of new ways to improve your pocket brawlers.
Sun
and
Moon
introduces Hyper Training; even
if your Pokémon have already hit the level 100
cap, you can still boost their stats, which will
come in handy to blindside trainers online.
Pokemon Sun
and
Moon
also implement
Z-Moves – ridiculously powerful, type-specific
(and sometimes even Pokémon-specific)
moves that can only be used once a
battle. There are even version-exclusive
Z-Moves. Mega Evolution also returns,
so look forward to enjoying ridiculous
forms of new Pokémon.
You’ll even have a new
way to care for your
Pokémon, with
Sun
and
Moon
introducing
Pokémon Refresh –
think of it as a kind
of Nintendogs for
Pokémon. They’re
also bringing back
Pokémon Snap –
there’s a new
feature in
these games
visit
stack.net.au16
jbhifi.com.auNOVEMBER
2016
GAMES
FEATURE
called Poké
Finder. You can
use it to take pics
of Pokémon; the
more you use it,
the better features you get.
Possibly the most appealing addition to
the Pokémon games in this generation is Poké
Ride – yeah, you can take your Pokémon out for
a cruise. Whether you’re taking to the skies on
the back of your Charizard, or shredding up the
seas on a Sharpedo, there are now even more
ways to traverse the Pokémon world.
With a Safari Zone's worth of new Pokémon
to discover, capture and befriend,
Pokémon Sun
and
Moon
are the
next step in your Pokémon
journey.
•
Pokémon
Sun/Moon
is out now
Dark side
of
the
moon
2016 marks 20 years of Pokémon.With
the release of
Pokémon GO
earlier in
the year, nostalgia is at an all-time
high – what better time to release
two new core Pokémon titles?
Exeggutor
Dugtrio
Some of the
strangest
Alolan
Pokemon
forms
Marowak
Raichu