The Mystery Dungeon games on WiiWare keep the series formula, randomly generated dungeons and turn-based combat, with several ideas of their own. The most striking is the Pokémon Tower, the ancestor of the team attacks in later entries. This page presents these mechanics.
The Pokémon Tower
The Pokémon Tower lets you stack the team’s Pokémon on top of one another. It unlocks as you progress through the game, and Slowking lets you practice it in the village.
- Stacked Pokémon follow the movements of the one at the base.
- The tower has as many HP as the sum of its members’ HP.
- All members attack during the turn of the Pokémon at the base.
- Members of a tower do not regain HP by walking, unlike Pokémon on the ground.
- A member hit by a move that it can only learn through breeding can learn it at its next level-up.
Evolution
When a team Pokémon reaches its evolution level, the game asks whether it should evolve, starter Pokémon included. Another quirk: a team Pokémon knocked out by an enemy evolves if it can, even if it is revived by a Reviver Seed.
Missions
Missions are shown on the village board: rescue a Pokémon, deliver an item to it, bring back an item or escort a client. The game reminds you of pending missions when you enter a dungeon without having accepted them, or when you leave a floor without having completed them.
| Rank | Points | Rank | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| E | 10 | ★ | 640 |
| D | 20 | ★★ | 960 |
| C | 40 | ★★★ | 1,280 |
| B | 80 | ★★★★ | 1,600 |
| A | 160 | ★★★★★ | 2,000 |
| S | 320 | Six and seven stars | 4,000 and 6,000 |
Ranks
| Rank | Points |
|---|---|
| Bronze | 100 |
| Silver | 200 |
| Gold | 1,300 |
| Platinum | 1,600 |
| Diamond | 2,400 |
| Super | 4,000 |
| Hyper | 4,800 |
| Master | 6,400 |
| Royal | 8,000 |
| Slowking Certification | 71,200 |
Recruiting
Recruiting opens up after the first dungeon. As in the other entries, the leader must land the final blow, but a Pokémon in a Pokémon Tower can recruit too. The chances increase with the leader’s level: none up to level 14, then a 5% gain at level 15, 7.5% at level 21, 13% at level 31 and 18% at level 41. Some species start from a negative rate, and each version has its own exclusive Pokémon.
Online features
Rescue between players went through the Internet, and WiiConnect24 brought special missions and the monthly announcement of legendaries. These services shut down with WiiConnect24 in 2013 and Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in 2014. See Legendaries and shiny Pokémon.
