Released in Europe on July 9, 2010, PokéPark Wii: Pikachu’s Adventure is the second Pokémon game on Wii, three years after Pokémon Battle Revolution. Developed by Creatures, it makes Pikachu the hero of an adventure in an amusement park populated by nearly two hundred Pokémon. A family game, generous in mini-games, but one that struggles to renew itself.
Pikachu at the park
The PokéPark is protected by the Sky Prism, an artifact that has shattered into fourteen Pieces. Sucked into a hole opened by Mew, Pikachu lands in the park, separated from his friends Chikorita, Piplup and Charmander. To save the PokéPark, he must find the Sky Prism Pieces, which the zone masters hand to the winners of their attractions. The story is light, but each zone has its own little conflict to settle, with endearing characters.
Fourteen attractions
This is the game’s strong point. Racing, flying, sliding, brick-breaking, spinning tops, shooting: the fourteen attractions make good use of the Wii Remote, which you shake, tilt or point at the screen. You play them with the Pokémon you have befriended, each with its own strengths, and succeeding at all of an attraction’s bonuses draws in a legendary or mythical Pokémon. See the attractions.
Making friends
Between attractions, Pikachu explores the zones and takes on the Pokémon’s challenges: chases, battles, hide-and-seek, quizzes. 193 Pokémon can become his friends. The idea is fun at first, but the challenges quickly look alike, and the battles lack finesse.
For the youngest players
PokéPark Wii clearly targets children: everything is simple, guided and colorful, with no real difficulty. Adults will tire of it quickly, but for a young fan, it is a world where you run into your favorite Pokémon around every corner. It is a shame there is no multiplayer mode.
Reception
The press was divided: an average of 62 out of 100 on Metacritic, 13 out of 20 for Jeuxvideo.com and 7.5 out of 10 for IGN. The game was re-released in 2015 on the Wii U Virtual Console. Its sequel, PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond, adds three playable heroes.
Our verdict
A pleasant family game with successful attractions, but too simple and repetitive to appeal beyond the youngest players.
What we like
- Fourteen varied attractions
- Good use of the Wii Remote
- 193 Pokémon to meet
- Legendaries to attract in the attractions
What we like less
- Challenges that quickly become repetitive
- An adventure that is too easy
- No multiplayer mode
- Imprecise battles
