Pokémon Puzzle League
Encyclopedia
Pokémon Puzzle League is a puzzle game for the Nintendo 64
console. It is based on Nintendo
's Panel de Pon
puzzle games, but with Pokémon
likenesses. It was only available in North America
starting in 2000, and in Europe
in 2001, making it the first Pokémon game produced for North America first. The game was not available in Japan
because it is based on the English
dub of the anime; the Japanese received the game's Game Boy Color
counterpart, Pokémon Puzzle Challenge
. It is the only Pokémon game to be based on the Pokémon anime
universe
, and to feature Ash Ketchum
, the anime's protagonist. The game was released on the Virtual Console
on May 5, 2008, in the North America region, and on May 30, 2008, in the European region.
. The objective is to clear blocks from the playfield by arranging them in horizontal or vertical lines of three or more blocks. A continuous stream of new blocks pushes up from the bottom of the playfield, causing the entire playfield to rise continuously. If the blocks reach the top of the playfield, the player loses. The player can temporarily stop the progression of blocks by scoring combos and chains, and in two-player battles, these actions also cause garbage blocks to stack on top of the opponent's playfield.
Unlike its predecessors, Pokémon Puzzle League features a 3D mode in addition to the traditional 2D mode. In this mode, gameplay takes place on a cylinder with an effective width of 18 blocks, compared to the six-block width of the flat 2D field. It also features the original block design from Panel de Pon and Tetris Attack, as well as a Pokémon-oriented design (which is selected by default).
In two-player games, players can select one of fourteen Pokémon trainers to play as. Unlike most Pokémon games, trainer and Pokémon selection are purely cosmetic and do not affect gameplay whatsoever.
, Tracey Sketchit, and Gary Oak or have appeared in previous Pokémon games but appear in the game as they do in the anime like Misty
, Brock
, and Giovanni. There are 16 playable characters in the game. In the 1P Stadium, only Ash is playable and Gary's Pokémon, Nidoran♀, Growlithe, and Krabby, will fully be evolved into Nidoqueen, Arcanine
, and Kingler, respectively, in Hard mode, Very Hard mode, and Super Hard mode when challenging him the second time. These fully evolved Pokémon are not playable with Gary.
Stages start in 2D mode, but eventually switch to 3D about halfway through the game. Spa Service Mode is equivalent to Stage Clear Mode in Panel de Pon.
Players can also play in Spa Service Mode, in which the objective is to clear blocks down to the clear line before the other player does, or Time Zone Mode, in which the objective is to score more points than the other player in two minutes.
All two-player modes can be played in 2D and 3D, and each player chooses a trainer to play as. By default, games are played in best-of-5 matches, though this can be changed in the Options menu.
Mimic Mansion also provides a "Super Easy" gameplay mode which plays identically to Marathon Mode, except that gameplay is overall much slower than normal, and the speed level never increases beyond 1. Scores are not stored from this mode.
for this game is based on the Pokémon 2BA Master CD, and the song "Catch Me if You Can" from Pokémon: The First Movie
s short feature Pikachu's Vacation (as well as the score for the movie itself). Some music also comes from the anime.
and Wheel of Fortune, had the videos shown either in tiny boxes in the corner of the screen or in widescreen format, and the quality was usually very grainy).
drastically changed the single and multiplayer experiences. The immediate upgrade in pure processing power allows players to navigate between blocks much faster, leading to elite play both on the console as well as on computer emulators where users can take advantage of a much speedier keyboard. Though never massively widespread, the emulators led to high level online play when there was no such online support for the console.
In addition, the Nintendo 64's
more powerful processor allowed for a much more sophisticated computer AI for the 1P Stadium mode. This AI combined the faster navigation with such complex attack and defense routines that developers added not just one, but two extra difficulty levels for advanced players.
There is one notable absence however, and that is the lack of play against a computer player in 3D mode for 1P stadium. If a player wants to face a computer player in 3D mode, they must do so by changing the second player to a computer one via the options mode, so that in the 2P stadium mode, the opponent faced will be CPU. Note that all selections usually made by the second player, such as character selection will still have to be entered via the second controller.
This is great for practicing against level 10 computer players.
The player can then select to face the computer in 3D mode if they wish. However, when facing the computer in any 3D mode, the AI becomes erratic, and usually self defeats. There is a small note in the instruction manual explaining the lack of AI for 3D mode. Its engine was later used in the Nintendo Puzzle Collection
version of Panel de Pon.
, and 82% on GameRankings. Electronic Gaming Monthly
gave the game a 9.2/10, noting it's similarity to Tetris Attack
, and calling it "highly addictive". IGN
rated the game 8.9/10, stating "I'm totally addicted and thrilled with Pokémon Puzzle League."
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
console. It is based on Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
's Panel de Pon
Panel de Pon
, also known as Panel de Pon: Action Puzzle Game, is a puzzle video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Super Famicom home video game console. It was released on October 27, 1995 in Japan, and was later ported to the North American and European markets as Tetris...
puzzle games, but with Pokémon
Pokémon
is a media franchise published and owned by the video game company Nintendo and created by Satoshi Tajiri in 1996. Originally released as a pair of interlinkable Game Boy role-playing video games developed by Game Freak, Pokémon has since become the second most successful and lucrative video...
likenesses. It was only available in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
starting in 2000, and in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in 2001, making it the first Pokémon game produced for North America first. The game was not available in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
because it is based on the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
dub of the anime; the Japanese received the game's Game Boy Color
Game Boy Color
The is Nintendo's successor to the 8-bit Game Boy handheld game console, and was released on October 21, 1998 in Japan, November 19, 1998 in North America, November 23, 1998 in Europe and November 27, 1998 in the United Kingdom. It features a color screen and is slightly thicker and taller than...
counterpart, Pokémon Puzzle Challenge
Pokémon Puzzle Challenge
, is a video game for the Game Boy Color. It was based on the game Panel de Pon, only with characters from the Pokémon franchise. The characters in Pokémon Puzzle Challenge were based on those in the Gold and Silver games, while those in Pokémon Puzzle League—its Nintendo 64 equivalent-were based...
. It is the only Pokémon game to be based on the Pokémon anime
Pokémon (anime)
, abbreviated from , is a children's TV anime series, which has since been adapted for the North and South American, Australian and European television markets...
universe
Fictional universe
A fictional universe is a self-consistent fictional setting with elements that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed or fictional realm ....
, and to feature Ash Ketchum
Ash Ketchum
Ash Ketchum, known as for all appearances in Japan, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise owned by Nintendo. He was created by, and named after, Satoshi Tajiri as the protagonist of the anime and manga series, as well as on various merchandise related to the franchise...
, the anime's protagonist. The game was released on the Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
on May 5, 2008, in the North America region, and on May 30, 2008, in the European region.
Gameplay
Pokémon Puzzle League features the same gameplay as in Panel de PonPanel de Pon
, also known as Panel de Pon: Action Puzzle Game, is a puzzle video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Super Famicom home video game console. It was released on October 27, 1995 in Japan, and was later ported to the North American and European markets as Tetris...
. The objective is to clear blocks from the playfield by arranging them in horizontal or vertical lines of three or more blocks. A continuous stream of new blocks pushes up from the bottom of the playfield, causing the entire playfield to rise continuously. If the blocks reach the top of the playfield, the player loses. The player can temporarily stop the progression of blocks by scoring combos and chains, and in two-player battles, these actions also cause garbage blocks to stack on top of the opponent's playfield.
Unlike its predecessors, Pokémon Puzzle League features a 3D mode in addition to the traditional 2D mode. In this mode, gameplay takes place on a cylinder with an effective width of 18 blocks, compared to the six-block width of the flat 2D field. It also features the original block design from Panel de Pon and Tetris Attack, as well as a Pokémon-oriented design (which is selected by default).
In two-player games, players can select one of fourteen Pokémon trainers to play as. Unlike most Pokémon games, trainer and Pokémon selection are purely cosmetic and do not affect gameplay whatsoever.
Characters
The characters in Pokémon Puzzle League either come from the anime and were once exclusive to it, like Ash KetchumAsh Ketchum
Ash Ketchum, known as for all appearances in Japan, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise owned by Nintendo. He was created by, and named after, Satoshi Tajiri as the protagonist of the anime and manga series, as well as on various merchandise related to the franchise...
, Tracey Sketchit, and Gary Oak or have appeared in previous Pokémon games but appear in the game as they do in the anime like Misty
Misty (Pokémon)
Misty, known as in Japanese versions, is a fictional character in the Pokémon franchise. She has appeared as a Gym Leader in the Pokémon video games, several seasons of the Pokémon anime, The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga, the Ash & Pikachu manga, toys, books, and other media.-Design:Misty's...
, Brock
Brock (Pokémon)
Brock, known as in Japanese versions, is a video game character in the Pokémon franchise. In the Pokémon video games, he is the Gym Leader of Pewter City and mainly uses Rock -type Pokémon; in the anime series, he left his position as a Gym Leader to travel alongside Ash Ketchum and become a...
, and Giovanni. There are 16 playable characters in the game. In the 1P Stadium, only Ash is playable and Gary's Pokémon, Nidoran♀, Growlithe, and Krabby, will fully be evolved into Nidoqueen, Arcanine
Arcanine
is a Pokémon species in Nintendo and Game Freak's Pokémon franchise. Created by Ken Sugimori, Arcanine first appeared in the video games Pokémon Red and Blue and subsequent sequels. They have later appeared in various merchandise, spinoff titles and animated and printed adaptations of the franchise...
, and Kingler, respectively, in Hard mode, Very Hard mode, and Super Hard mode when challenging him the second time. These fully evolved Pokémon are not playable with Gary.
1P Stadium
This is the main story-based mode of the game. The player takes on the role of Ash and plays through a linear tournament against other Pokémon trainers to become the Pokémon Puzzle Master. Each round is played against a computer opponent in a single Versus round, in which scoring combos and chains sends garbage blocks to the opponent's playfield. The player may choose from one of five difficulty levels before starting the tournament.Spa Service
Team Rocket steals the player's Pokémon, forcing the player to play through a series of stages in which the members of Team Rocket put on various disguises. Each stage requires the player to clear blocks down to a predetermined "clear line" - the player passes a stage when there are no blocks above the line. The player also encounters two stages in which the goal is to score combos and chains to defeat an opponent. The first of these stages takes place against "Team Rocket 2" (Butch and Cassidy), and is optional (losing does not affect the outcome of the game). The final stage takes place against Giovanni, and the player must pass this stage to win.Stages start in 2D mode, but eventually switch to 3D about halfway through the game. Spa Service Mode is equivalent to Stage Clear Mode in Panel de Pon.
Time Zone
The player plays on a single 2D or 3D playfield for two minutes and attempts to score as many points as possible.2P Stadium
This mode allows two players to play against one another in three competitive games. 2P Versus Mode plays identically to 1P Stadium - the objective is for one player to cause the other to lose by filling their playfield. Each player can send garbage blocks to the other's playfield by scoring combos and chains.Players can also play in Spa Service Mode, in which the objective is to clear blocks down to the clear line before the other player does, or Time Zone Mode, in which the objective is to score more points than the other player in two minutes.
All two-player modes can be played in 2D and 3D, and each player chooses a trainer to play as. By default, games are played in best-of-5 matches, though this can be changed in the Options menu.
Marathon
The player plays in either 2D or 3D mode, chooses an overall difficulty level and a starting speed level, and plays for as long as possible, scoring as many points as possible. This is equivalent to "Endless Mode" in Panel de Pon.Puzzle University
This mode presents the player with a series of puzzles in which the player must clear all the blocks in a predetermined number of moves. There are multiple classes of puzzles, spanning simple "switch the correct blocks" puzzles, to chain puzzles where timing is important, as well as 3D puzzles. Once all the puzzles in the main mode have been completed, the player can access a second set of more difficult puzzles by entering a code on the controller. This is equivalent to "Puzzle Mode" in Tetris Attack; however, Puzzle University also provides a puzzle editor, in which the player can create and play their own 2D puzzles, while Tetris Attack never had that feature.Professor Oak's Lab
Contains several non-interactive tutorials describing both basic and advanced techniques.Mimic Mansion
Hosted by Tracey Sketchit, this area also contains a number of tutorials showing various techniques. Unlike Oak's Lab, techniques are broken up into several categories and many skill levels, from beginner to advanced, and can be presented both non-interactively and interactively. In Interactive mode, Tracey first shows the player a set of moves, then has the player repeat those moves to achieve the same end.Mimic Mansion also provides a "Super Easy" gameplay mode which plays identically to Marathon Mode, except that gameplay is overall much slower than normal, and the speed level never increases beyond 1. Scores are not stored from this mode.
Pokémon Center
This section provides access to player records, trainer profiles, and game options.Music
Background musicComputer and video game music
Video game music is any of the musical pieces or soundtracks and background musics found in video games. It can range from a primitive synthesizer tune to an orchestral piece, usually such that the older the game, the simpler the music...
for this game is based on the Pokémon 2BA Master CD, and the song "Catch Me if You Can" from Pokémon: The First Movie
Pokémon: The First Movie
Pokémon: The First Movie, originally released as , is a 1998 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series. It is the first theatrical release in the Pokémon franchise...
s short feature Pikachu's Vacation (as well as the score for the movie itself). Some music also comes from the anime.
Graphics
The cutscene graphics match the animation of the anime. This game was also known for being one of the few N64 games to have FMVs, and the only one to have crisp, clear, full screen, VHS-quality FMVs, with the only quality suffering being framerate (other games featuring FMVs, such as Resident Evil 2Resident Evil 2
Resident Evil 2, known as in Japan, is a survival horror video game originally released for the PlayStation in 1998. Developed by Capcom as the second installment in the Resident Evil series, its story takes place two months after the events of the first game, Resident Evil...
and Wheel of Fortune, had the videos shown either in tiny boxes in the corner of the screen or in widescreen format, and the quality was usually very grainy).
Gameplay
While regarded by many as purely a system port with a renovated Pokémon scheme, improvements in technology from previous consoles to the Nintendo 64Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
drastically changed the single and multiplayer experiences. The immediate upgrade in pure processing power allows players to navigate between blocks much faster, leading to elite play both on the console as well as on computer emulators where users can take advantage of a much speedier keyboard. Though never massively widespread, the emulators led to high level online play when there was no such online support for the console.
In addition, the Nintendo 64's
Nintendo 64
The , often referred to as N64, was Nintendo′s third home video game console for the international market. Named for its 64-bit CPU, it was released in June 1996 in Japan, September 1996 in North America, March 1997 in Europe and Australia, September 1997 in France and December 1997 in Brazil...
more powerful processor allowed for a much more sophisticated computer AI for the 1P Stadium mode. This AI combined the faster navigation with such complex attack and defense routines that developers added not just one, but two extra difficulty levels for advanced players.
There is one notable absence however, and that is the lack of play against a computer player in 3D mode for 1P stadium. If a player wants to face a computer player in 3D mode, they must do so by changing the second player to a computer one via the options mode, so that in the 2P stadium mode, the opponent faced will be CPU. Note that all selections usually made by the second player, such as character selection will still have to be entered via the second controller.
This is great for practicing against level 10 computer players.
The player can then select to face the computer in 3D mode if they wish. However, when facing the computer in any 3D mode, the AI becomes erratic, and usually self defeats. There is a small note in the instruction manual explaining the lack of AI for 3D mode. Its engine was later used in the Nintendo Puzzle Collection
Nintendo Puzzle Collection
is a compilation of puzzle video games published and developed by Nintendo for the GameCube home video game console. It was released in Japan, and was intended to be released in North America and Europe until it was announced that it was cancelled in both regions. It contains three video games: Dr...
version of Panel de Pon.
Reception
Pokémon Puzzle League received generally positive reviews from the media scoring 81/100 on MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, and 82% on GameRankings. Electronic Gaming Monthly
Electronic Gaming Monthly
Electronic Gaming Monthly is a bimonthly American video game magazine. It has been published by EGM Media, LLC. since relaunching in April of 2010. Its previous run, which ended in January 2009, was published by Ziff Davis...
gave the game a 9.2/10, noting it's similarity to Tetris Attack
Tetris Attack
Tetris Attack is a puzzle video game developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System home video game console and Game Boy handheld game console...
, and calling it "highly addictive". IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
rated the game 8.9/10, stating "I'm totally addicted and thrilled with Pokémon Puzzle League."