Just in time for the holiday season, Nintendo has released the follow-up to last year’s wildly successful Pokémon Sun and Moon in the powered-up Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon. Now available for the Nintendo 3DS family of handheld systems, the games are essentially just a way to tide fans over until the next true generation of Pokémon arrives for the Nintendo Switch sometime in the future. But is it enough of a difference to make revisiting the Alola region worth it?
The previous games to see a sequel or “third version” of the main two entries in a Pokémon generation were Black 2 and White 2, which were actually a pretty serious change from the original Black and White games; they introduced a new storyline, new gym leaders, and even new areas to explore. It’s the kind of upgrade that Pokémon fans were hoping for with Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, but unfortunately, this isn’t that. Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are more akin to earlier “third versions” of Pokémon games, such as Emerald or Platinum, with a slightly modified storyline and some added features – but it’s otherwise basically the same experience.
That’s not to say that’s a bad thing, however. Sun and Moon were both really good games, and the differences are – in my opinion – enough to make revisiting the games a worthwhile experience. The plot changes, which introduce a group known as the Ultra Recon Squad and refocus the story onto the mysterious Pokémon known as Necrozma, are enough of a twist to make things interesting. Longtime fans of the series will also enjoy the new villainous team, Team Rainbow Rocket, which is made up of all previous antagonistic leaders from past games.
There’s a decent amount of new Pokémon and new Ultra Beasts to be found in this game, as well as new forms of existing Pokémon (such as Lycanroc’s new Dusk Form) to make things interesting. I’ve also found different Pokémon in areas where they definitely were not found in Sun and Moon, which has been an interesting surprise. It makes the game feel fresher than it should. I’ve also really enjoyed the addition of the Mantine Surf minigame, which, though simple, is addictingly fun.
Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are easily the best versions of these games on the 3DS system. They manage to push the little handheld console to its limits – for better or worse. One of my biggest gripes with Sun and Moon was the tendency for the game’s framerate to drop severely and lag a lot during any battle that involved more than just two Pokémon on the field, and that issue still remains in these games. With the amount of multi-battles that take place over the course of the game, it’s a problem that’s seen a little too often for my taste.
Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are definitely just releasing for the sake of not having a long layover between Sun/Moon and whatever the Nintendo Switch titles turn out to be. Even though there’s not a ton as far as new features, and the evolution from Sun/Moon isn’t as drastic as Black 2/White 2 were from Black/White, the games are absolutely a worthwhile pickup – especially for people who may have originally passed on Sun and Moon. The games are available now.
-Carrie Wood
