Ultra Pokémon Sun Review | Culture of Gaming

Annual releases are a lucrative strategy in the gaming business. One only has to look at the financial successes of Call of Duty, some of the EA Sports titles, and the WWE franchise under the 2K Sports banner to understand that yearly installments can be significant boosts to business.

The Pokémonfranchise has done a similar thing in releasing alternate versions of previous installments. Over the years we have seen HeartGold and SoulSilver which were remakes of Gold and Silver, Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire which were reiterations of Ruby and Sapphire. You can now add Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon to that growing list. Enhanced versions of Sun and Moon but selling for the same price, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon don’t measure up to the other Pokémon re-releases. Although some have had improved and updated graphics and gameplay as well as the addition of fresh content; the changes to Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are pretty insignificant in comparison.

In Sun and Moon, trainers travel to the Alola region. Inspired by Hawaii, the region itself is the most beautiful Pokemon setting ever designed. It has its own unique culture which has so much character and is so very captivating. That culture plays into every part of Sun and Moon. Each island has a special trial or island challenge (a complex series of Pokémon battles) which must be completed before you can battle that island’s champion or Island Kahuna. Each island also has its own unique Pokédex too.

Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon expands the main story, if only slightly. We learn more about runaway Lillie, who is featured more in the storyline than she was before. The plot remains mostly the same as it was in the previous versions. For all intents and purposes, there isn’t very much separating the regular and Ultra editions.

There is a new area to explore: Ultra Megalopolis. It is an alternate dimension accessible through Ultra Wormholes. Although Megalopolis provides new battles and new Pokémon, it doesn’t have a lot of life. There isn’t much happening there. The chief reason Megalopolis is around, is to introduce the new Ultra Recon Squad faction who dwell in Ultra Megalopolis.

The most exciting news is that another squad, Team Rainbow Rocket, also appears. Team Rocket’s Giovanni has gathered together preceding leaders to form the ultimate Pokemon Legion of Doom, so to speak. Their inclusion is a great addition for players but one wonders if it would have been better if an entirely new game was built around Team Rainbow Rocket instead. Maybe that is on the horizon? We can only hope because that would be a Pokémon blockbuster to be sure.

If adventuring through a Pokémon game only took a short period of time, then the idea of playing the same storyline all over again wouldn’t be such a chore but as it is Pokémon games take a good amount of time to complete. Having to replay the entire Sun or Moon adventure only to experience a few add-ons which only come into play in the concluding hours is a lot to ask for players unless they loved the original Sun and Moon so much they are willing to play through them again for those brief additions and to catch the new Pokémon. A better approach, a fairer approach to gamers, would be for these Ultra additions to have been provided via DLC at a lower price point.

If you haven’t experienced either Sun or Moon before, then the Ultra editions certainly give you more bang for your buck as Sun and Moon remain as two of the best Pokémon releases since Black and White, Diamond and Pearl and the classic Emerald. If you have already experienced Sun and Moon then it is best to pass on these Ultra editions. There just isn’t enough new material to warrant another excursion into The Alola region, no matter how amazing it was.