Pokémon Unite Impressions: Nintendo’s MOBA Is Better Than You Think

ou read the headline and came here to lambast me for my mediocre taste in video games. I get it, you're skeptical. Even a few of my coworkers gave me weird looks when I told them I was eagerly awaiting Pokémon Unite, Nintendo's new free-to-play MOBA that was released yesterday on the Nintendo Switch. The truth is, I can't put this damn game down. It's a genuinely fun MOBA with a pocket monster twist, and it's probably better than you think. 

 

What's a MOBA, some of you might ask? Well, us cool kids call them multiplayer online battle arenas (not really), and they provide a distinct blend of PvP and PvE gameplay. In short, each player on a team picks a unique champion to control and then levels them throughout the match, starting from level one. Players gain experience points by eliminating AI minions, destroying enemy objectives, killing other players; and then they spend those points to unlock abilities and stat boosts until they have access to their character's entire toolset at max level. All of this happens on a large map that is divided into multiple paths, often referred to as lanes, that each team vies for control of. Similar to team-focused games like Overwatch, team composition is really important for synergy and competitive advantage in MOBAs.

 

 

So why should you give Pokémon Unite a chance? Well, it's a great starting place for players who have always been curious about the genre but have been put off by its traditionally difficult learning curve. In Unite, Nintendo takes the genre's aforementioned format, simplifies it, and injects a heavy dose of Pokémon into the formula.

 

Battles in Pokémon Unite feature two teams of five Pokémon each. After picking their characters and items, players start the match on opposite ends of the map, to the east and west respectively. Then the team splits up. Typically, two teammates go to the top path, two fight it out on the bottom path, and one brave player ventures into the center of the map to defeat all sorts of wild Pokémon. Each team has two goal zones they must defend on each path while also defeating wild Pokémon to obtain Aeos Energy. Aeos is a resource that players gather and then slam dunk into the enemy’s goal zones. After depositing enough energy, the enemy’s goal zone is overloaded and destroyed, allowing your team to more easily push forward to the next part of the path. After 10 minutes, the team with the most deposited points wins the match. There are also smaller objectives in the form of wild Pokémon, like the legendary Zapdos, that pop up throughout the match and can be defeated for buffs and other competitive advantages.

 

The roster features over 20 playable Pokémon, ranging from fan favorites like Charizard and Gengar to more obscure picks like Cramorant and Crustle. Each character is grouped into one of five battle classes: All-Rounder, Attacker, Defender, Speedster, and Supporter. While there aren't any elemental weaknesses like in the series' normal installments, each character has unique stats, ability trees, and Unite Moves that make them distinct from one another.

 

 

 

 

Read the full article on Gameinformer.