In PokéPark 2 though it happens all the time.Of course the real problem is they’re not proper tactical battles, as in the portable games, just ultra basic real-time fights that get old on your second button-mashing go. There’s always been disquiet at the dubious morals behind the Pokémon games (they don’t mind be caught and domesticated, honest!) but here the game works along the principle that starting a fight with random strangers will cause them to be your friend.As part of our research for the game we tried this in real life and found that absolutely nobody wanted to be our friends after we threw razor sharp leaves at them or dowsed them with a flamethrower. This involves some of the more accepted forms of social bonding, including a range of simple mini-games that cover such gaming basics as platforming and shooting (albeit only at cake ingredients).Sometimes a pokémon might coyly tempt you into a game of ‘It’ to prove your friendship or they might ask you to carry out a simple fetch quest with a nearby object, but most of the time they’ll want a battle. The quartet are trapped in a new PokéPark, a sort of wildlife preserve for pocket monsters, and quickly discover that there’s a plot afoot to kidnap Pokémon using hypnotic cakes (really).This isn’t exactly a complex plot driven drama though and most of your time is simply spent wandering around trying to make friends with other pokémon. PokéPark though panders to the very youngest members of the audience, those too young to realise that actually, video games are supposed to be fun.Very little of substance has changed between this game and the first, although now instead of just controlling Pikachu you also get to ‘be’ the three starter pokémon from Black/White: Snivy, Tepig and Oshawott. Obviously it was a game aimed at kids, but so too are the real Pokémon games and all the older, better spin-offs such as Pokémon Snap and Pinball. In fact they’ve been in a nose dive of quality and relevance for years, and this only heads further down towards the bottom of the barrel.The most depressing thing about PokéPark 2 is that it implies the original game sold in sufficient numbers that a sequel was deemed economically viable. However, the reputation of the many spin-offs has not endured as healthily. The fad may have blown over decades ago but the core portable games remain some of the most complex, open-ended and social role-playing games ever made.

Pokémon is a franchise constantly underestimated by its critics.

PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond (Wii) – make friends or else

Codes for pokepark 2