Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky | |
---|---|
North American cover art with Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky | |
Developer(s) | Chunsoft |
Publisher(s) | Nintendo The Pokémon Company |
Director(s) | Seiichiro Nagahata Hironori Ishigami |
Producer(s) | Koichi Nakamura Hiroaki Tsuru Mikiko Ohashi Kunimi Kawamura Hitoshi Yamagami |
Designer(s) | Hiroshi Nakamura Fujimi O-nishi Shinya Yada |
Programmer(s) | Yuji Fukuda |
Artist(s) | Fuyuhiko Koizumi |
Writer(s) | Shin-ichiro Tomie Emiko Tanaka |
Composer(s) | Arata Iiyoshi Hideki Sakamoto Keisuke Ito Ken-ichi Saito Yoshihiro Maeda |
Series | Pokémon Mystery Dungeon |
Platform(s) | Nintendo DS |
Release | |
Genre(s) | Roguelike |
Mode(s) | Single player |
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky[a] is an enhanced version of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness for the Nintendo DS in 2009. As a sister game, and sometime mentioned as the definitive edition to Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Darkness,[1] additional features include the addition of the missing Generation IV Pokémon, further development for a few side characters, and more options, items, and features.
In terms of gameplay and premise, Explorers of Sky installments are largely similar to its predecessors, where a human-turned-Pokémon joins an Exploration Society and explores shifting dungeons, fighting hostile Pokémon through turn-based combat. The three games had accumulated worldwide sales in excess of 5.9 million copies in 2010, then 6.37 million copies after 2010.[2] Upon its release, the game received mixed reviews from critics, in opposition to the fans' reception who has been notably more positive, with many considering it a cult classic and one of the best games in the Mystery Dungeon series overall.
Gameplay
Serving as a sister game to Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness, many new content were added in Explorers of Sky. As with its predecessors, the game follows the story of a human who is mysteriously transformed into a Pokémon, determined by a personality test at the game's start-up. Along with the starters from the previous game, five more are included as playable choices; Phanpy, Riolu, Shinx, Eevee, and Vulpix. Some, however, are only available to certain genders; Eevee, Skitty, and Vulpix are always female, while Riolu, Phanpy, and Shinx are always male. Moreover, 2 starters, Munchlax and Meowth were removed and can only be played as the partner.
New features
Lookalike items will start to appear early in the game; they are meant to do the opposite effect of their original counterpart and are distinguished by having a letter swapped or changed in its name. A new location appears during the story's progression named Spinda Café. It serves as a quality of life upgrade, in that case used as a location to recycle items, find new optional dungeons, obtain rare items and new missions, and meet the player's team besides their partner. After completing the game's main story, the remaining Generation IV Pokémon that were not present in Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness; both forms of Shaymin, the Origin form of Giratina available only for a few dungeons, and Arceus in the form of a statue in Destiny Tower, have returned since their in-game debut in Pokémon Platinum, which was released the year after the original games. Throughout the entire game, the player is able to unlock music tracks in the Sky Jukebox, which allows players to play the game's entire soundtrack. This feature would be recycled in the Nintendo Switch and Steam port of Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate in 2020, then for its smartphones port in 2022.[3]
Explorers of Sky expands on the plot of Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness. One such is the event Pokémon Shaymin, located in a new location called Shaymin Village, and a new side story for Shaymin available after finishing the main story and graduate from the Guild.[4] One of the new locations, Shaymin Village, along with its dungeon, Sky Peak Mountain Path, references Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer and its main dungeon Table Mountain, as the progress from a village to the top of the mountain, checkpoints spread in the main dungeon, and a boss at the mountain's peak function equally in both games.[4]
Through completing the main storyline of Explorers of Sky, five new Special Episodes will be gradually unlocked at certain points of the game which add unique stories expanding on side characters of the game, and explores the background of several other characters, sometimes new to the plot. They involve playing as the specified characters of the episode as opposed to the player's protagonist and partner; namely Bidoof, Igglybuff, Sunflora, Lopunny, and Grovyle.[5][6]
Version exclusives
Many new locations are available in both the main story and its special episodes, along with new items and lookalike items, and Pokémon and items who were available exclusively in Explorers of Time or Explorers of Darkness now present in the same game. As Explorers of Sky had noticeable differences with the original games, content such as Wonder Mail, now named Wonder Mail S, were not cross compatible. Other minor exclusivity includes new background artworks for the game's main menu, faster saving time, and more ways to obtain exclusive rescue quests.[6]
Plot
Long ago, prior to the main story, Igglypuff, later known as the head of the guild Wigglytuff, became an explorer by meeting Armaldo, and began his journey as one. From that moment, he showed his prodigious talent for exploration and succeeded in one difficult expedition after another. However, Armaldo was arrested for being a criminal himself, resulting in affecting Igglypuff for years to come. Igglypuff, now evolved as Wigglytuff, meets the Team Charm in one of his explorations. The treasure hunter Team Charm, formed by Lopunny, Gardevoir, and Medicham, have previously heard of a treasure in the south of the continent. After confronting numerous foes, they went on finding the rumored treasure, only to be a dud made by Ditto. The real treasure was none other than a Time Gear that was previously seen in the background of Explorers of Time’s title screen.
Long after these events, Bidoof, one of the members of the Wigglytuff Guild, originally wanted to become a first-class explorer. As such, he left his hometown and started training at the guild, with mild results and seen as the idiot of the group. It would be in an exploration of a rumored treasure that he would meet Jirachi, with both of them being the reason behind the main character and their partner joining the Guild soon after. During the chase against Grovyle in the main story, Sunflora, a senior member of the guild, would have a request on arresting a group of Haunters.
As Grovyle sacrifices himself to drag Dusknoir back to the future in the main story, it was originally thought that Grovyle, the Pokémon from the future, would disappear as a result of the heroes' success in changing the future. However, the both of them, along with Celebi, were also involved in the change. Primal Dialga had finally makes its own move to prevent the future from being changed. Grovyle is determined to stop Primal Dialga from keeping the dark future intact, while Dusknoir is determined to find out the truth from Primal Dialga's betrayal.
After the team graduated from the Wigglytuff Guild, they were made aware that a village was discovered at the east of the continent. By getting there, they would find a village filled with Shaymins, numerous explorers including teams, and a mountain in front. Atop of the mountain was once a field to see across the continent turned into a poisonous area. The protagonist would eventually fix this problem by reaching the peak, reverting back to its original intent.
Development
With the success of Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness worldwide, and the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series selling over 10 million copies sold by the end of 2008, a sister game would be announced half a year after the release of Shiren the Wanderer 3 for the Wii in Japan. On January 20, 2009, 4gamer teased Explorers of Sky with a pending release date set for Spring 2009. Like Pokémon Platinum was the sister game of Pokémon Diamond and Pearl at the time, Explorers of Sky was shown as the sister game of Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness, and featured additional content such as additional Pokémon available at the start and side stories centered for a few side characters in "Special Episodes".[6] Nearly a month after its teasing, the game received a release date set for April 18, 2009 in Japan, in addition of a website dedicated to the game.[7] A day before its initial release, more info were dropped for the game, along with the presence of Shaymin and its new location, Shaymin Village.[8]
A trimester after its Japanese release, on July 29, 2009, Explorers of Sky would receive a North American release for October 12 of the same year, confirmed by Nintendo of America.[9] Later in September 2009, a European released was confirmed for November 20,[10] and in October 2009 an Australian release for November 12.[11]
Release
Explorers of Sky was released in Japan and Taiwan on April 18, 2009; North America on October 12, 2009; Australia on November 12, 2009;[11] and Europe on November 20, 2009.[10] No release date for South Korea was even announced throughout 2009, even if its predecessors had one. It was later re-released on the Wii U Virtual Console in Japan on July 20, 2016, in North America on June 23, 2016, and in the PAL region on August 18, 2016.
Reception
Aggregator | Score |
---|---|
GameRankings | 55.84%[13] |
Metacritic | 54/100[12] |
Publication | Score |
---|---|
1Up.com | C+[15] |
Famitsu | 35/40[20] |
GamePro | 5/10[17] |
Hardcore Gamer | 5/10[16] |
IGN | 4.9/10[18] |
Jeuxvideo.com | 13/20[21] |
Nintendo Power | 8/10 |
Official Nintendo Magazine | 7/10[14] |
RPGamer | 2/5[19] |
Explorers of Sky received mixed reviews, with the game receiving a score of 54 out of 100 on Metacritic.[12] However, fan reception has been notably more positive, with many considering it a cult classic and one of the best games in the series, many praising the game for its gameplay and story-writing.[22] In an interview held in 2022, Shin-ichiro Tomie claimed he was not aware of the western fanbase, but was able to receive messages from Japanese fans of the series via letters, with some of them claiming the trio as his "magnum opus".[23]
1.40 million copies of Explorers of Sky had been sold by March 31, 2010, bringing the total sales of the three games to over 5.90 million copies.[24] Later, combined worldwide sales for the three Explorers games passed over 6.37 million copies according to Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association; 4.88 million for Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness and 1.49 million for Explorers of Sky.[2] They are currently the best-selling games in the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series, surpassing their predecessors. They are also the best-selling games in the Mystery Dungeon series in general; surpassing Squaresoft's Chocobo's Mysterious Dungeon and Enix's Torneko: The Last Hope, both accumulating 1.34 million and 759,000 copies respectively.[25][26][27]
Anime tie-in
A sequel episode, Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky - Beyond Time & Darkness,[b] was first broadcast in Japan on April 12, 2009, also as part of Pokémon Sunday.[28]
Notes
- ^ Known in Japan as Pokémon Fushigi no Dungeon: Sky Exploration Team (Japanese: ポケモン不思議のダンジョン 空の探検隊, Hepburn: Pokémon Fushigi no Danjon Sora no Tankentai, lit. Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Sky Exploration Team)
- ^ ポケモン不思議のダンジョン 空の探検隊 時と闇をめぐる 最後の冒険, lit. "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky: The Final Adventure Crossing Time and Darkness"
References
- ^ "『ポケモン不思議のダンジョン』シリーズ最新作発売決定 『ポケモン不思議のダンジョン 空の探検隊』". Famitsu (in Japanese). January 15, 2009. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
- ^ a b CESA Games White Papers. Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association.[ISBN missing]
- ^ Midorisato, Takayuki (December 3, 2020). "Nintendo Switch/Steam「不思議のダンジョン 風来のシレン5plus フォーチュンタワーと運命のダイス」本日発売". Game-watch (in Japanese). Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ a b "あたらしいエピソード | そらのいただき | 特集:ポケモン不思議のダンジョン 空の探検隊 | ポケットモンスターオフィシャルサイト". pokemon.co.jp (in Japanese). April 15, 2009. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
- ^ "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky - Special Episodes". www.serebii.net. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
- ^ a b c "新エピソードを収録,主人公&パートナーポケモンが増えた「ポケモン不思議のダンジョン 空の探検隊」が2009年春に発売". 4gamer (in Japanese). January 20, 2009. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ "「ポケモン不思議のダンジョン 空の探検隊」の発売日が4月18日に決定! パッケージイラストにはシェイミの姿も". 4gamer (in Japanese). February 16, 2009. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ "「ポケモン不思議のダンジョン 空の探検隊」は4月18日発売&「ポケットモンスター プラチナ」でシェイミに出会える"どうぐ"を期間限定配信". 4gamer (in Japanese). April 17, 2009. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ "Pokemon Mystery Dungeon 3 US Date Set". IGN. July 29, 2009. Retrieved September 11, 2022.
- ^ a b Spanner Spencer (2009-09-29). "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky gets European DS and DSi release date". Pocket Gamer. Retrieved 2018-01-03.
- ^ a b "Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky dated for Australia". Go Nintendo. Archived from the original on July 11, 2011.
- ^ a b "Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky for DS Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
- ^ "Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky". GameRankings. Archived from the original on 2019-12-09. Retrieved 2020-04-05.
- ^ "Review: Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers Of Sky". Official Nintendo Magazine. November 20, 2009. Archived from the original on October 23, 2010. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ Parish, Jeremy (October 27, 2009). "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky Review". 1Up.com. Archived from the original on June 9, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky". Hardcore Gamer. Archived from the original on September 27, 2013. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ Noble, McKinley (October 13, 2009). "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky". GamePro. Archived from the original on October 17, 2009. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ DeVries, Jack (October 13, 2009). "Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky Review". IGN. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ Wilson, Glenn (October 13, 2009). "Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky - Staff Review". RPGamer. Archived from the original on April 27, 2010. Retrieved September 9, 2022.
- ^ "Famitsu review scores". Nintendo Everything. 2009-04-08. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
- ^ dharn (November 20, 2009). "Pokémon Donjon Mystère Explorateurs du Ciel". Jeuxvideo.com (in French). Retrieved September 11, 2022.
- ^ Trahan, Philip (16 January 2020). "A History of the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series". GameRant. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
- ^ Seafoamgaming (April 18, 2022). "The Meeting of Destiny: An Interview with Shinichiro Tomie from SPIKE CHUNSOFT". Retrieved April 20, 2022.
- ^ "Nintendo Co. Ltd. Financial Results Briefing for Fiscal Year Ended March 2010" (PDF). Nintendo. Retrieved 2018-01-03.
- ^ "1998年テレビゲームソフト売り上げTOP100". Geimin.net (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 24, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
- ^ "1999年テレビゲームソフト売り上げTOP300". Geimin.net (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 24, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
- ^ "2002年テレビゲームソフト売り上げTOP300". Geimin.net (in Japanese). Archived from the original on October 24, 2016. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
- ^ "アニメ版「ポケモン不思議のダンジョン」の新作 ポケモン☆サンデーで4月12日放送" (in Japanese). Pokéani. Archived from the original on 2009-03-14. Retrieved 2020-03-10.
External links
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